Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens met with media Thursday to discuss the future of his club following a disappointing exit from the 2023 NBA playoffs. After winning 57 games in the regular season, Boston failed to make a return to the Finals, falling instead in seven games to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals.
There’s been lots of chatter around Boston and the league about rookie head coach Joe Mazzulla. Following the suspension of then-head coach Ime Udoka, Mazzulla, 34, was thrust into the top leadership position on Boston’s sidelines just days before the regular season opened this fall. Stevens suggested on Thursday this was valuable experience for Mazzulla, and missing a trip to the Finals by a single game is a great accomplishment for a head coach, not a demerit.
