The Boston Celtics have been playing some exceptional basketball this season. They’re fluid on offense and stringent defensively. They’re diverse on both sides of the floor. One moment, the Celtics can be suffocating you with sharp switches and bullish physicality, the next, they will be sagging off and looking to contain a drive. It’s the same on offense: a barrage of threes one moment, and then a healthy dose of rim finishes the next.
Joe Mazzulla is a significant part of why the Celtics are such a dynamic force this season. He spent the summer looking inward, figuring out what type of coach he wanted to be and how best to translate that message to his team. In a recent interview with Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe, Mazzulla discussed how he developed and honed his coaching philosophy during the offseason and to begin the current season.
“It’s more working with the guys on the culture,” Mazzulla said. “What temperature do we want to set? What do we want to be known for? How are we going to handle success and failure? What does late-game philosophy look like? Why don’t we call timeouts? Why do we call timeouts in certain situations? It’s having conversations with the players about, ‘This is what I want us to look like, this is what I believe in. What do we believe in together, and how do we make it ours?’”
The Celtics currently sit third in offensive rating, fifth in defensive rating, and second in net rating.
Celtics Lab 233: Boston beats the Lakers on Christmas Day, and making sense of trade rumors with Bobby Krivitsky https://t.co/GzzNf981pe via @thecelticswire pic.twitter.com/H9HizoNJAM
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) December 26, 2023
They are widely viewed as the most talented team in the league, and have been drawing praise for how each member of the roster is sacrificing for their teammates.
I asked Mazzulla about how he handled being thrust into the spotlight and his sometimes contentious interactions with media last year. He gave a really interesting answer about his growth.
Full Q&A here: https://t.co/g0B0ijUkj3 pic.twitter.com/AcnQ9tXHCd
— Adam Himmelsbach (@AdamHimmelsbach) December 24, 2023
This summer, Mazzulla had the opportunity to build out his coaching staff and make his own hires. He brought in Sam Cassell, Charles Lee, and former Celtics guard Phil Pressey. The Celtics are Mazzulla’s team now, and it’s showing. The fanbase has every reason to be optimistic for what the rest of this season and the immediate future holds.
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