I think the best-case for Pritchard was that he became a backup, offense first PG who made up for his lack of size with hustle on defense. The second-best scenario is that he become a microwave-type scorer and ballhandler but not someone actually asked to initiate the offense or anything like that. The first role means he gets consistent playing time, but the second one means his playtime fluctuates more depending on how hot he is and the defensive matchups that night.
One of the disappointing parts of his career so far is that even though he's clearly giving full effort on D, it doesn't translate to a significant defensive impact. By my eye he doesn't have a long wingspan in addition to being short, so it's just hard for him to bother his man. You would think he could be a pest and sneaky effective at pressuring ballhandlers, but it's just not the case. Then of course he can get taken out by screens easily and he doesn't have the reach to bother anybody's shot.
The other disappointing thing is his size and ballhandling ability ideally fits him into the backup PG role but he seems to naturally want to be a scoring guard. That would be fine if he could score consistently, but the problem is he doesn't have the elite athleticism that most successful short guards have. He can't just blow by people and get a good look whenever he wants. Sometimes you'll see him dribble into a bad possession because he simply can't create enough separation to get his shot off. At that point you're faced with a dilemma of a guy's physical profile and skillset not fitting an established role. The question then becomes, is he elite enough at certain things so that you live with the shortcomings? So far, the answer has been no.
The obvious thing he could improve is his shooting numbers, which took a dip last season. He really needs to be an elite shooter to make up for his weaknesses. The other thing that realistically could improve is his PG skills, but that would require actual playing time and development. Even then, there's a cap on how effective he could be as a primary ballhandler due to the aforementioned lack of size/athleticism. When teams actually gameplan for him in the playoffs, he's just constantly being trapped and challenged to effectively pass out of it. He can't always do that due to his lack of size and inability to blowby or split the defenders. At that point what can you do? Play him as a off ball guard? But then your team is way too small because you probably need to play another guard next to him. That's the main problem, in a nutshell.
One of the few saving graces is he's always giving full effort. That's going to help you during the regular season and he'll often come up with an effort offensive rebound or two between three much taller but surprised defenders. He can change a game with his energy or if he's hot from 3, especially against bad/average NBA bench units. However, there's just a limit to how effective he can be in the playoffs when it really comes down to whether or not you have an exploitable, fatal flaw in your game.