The NBA used point differential during group play as a tie-breaker to advance to the knockout phase of the In-Season Tournament.
That means even though Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said before the game that point differential would have “zero” impact on how he would coach his team against the Bulls on Tuesday night, he changed his tune when the game actually started.
After the Nets defeated the Raptors during the seeding games, however, Boston needed to defeat Chicago by at least 23 points in order to advance to the quarterfinals.
So with more than seven minutes remaining in the game, Mazzulla instructed his team to intentionally foul Bulls big man Andre Drummond to send him to the free-throw line.
Celtics were intentionally fouling Andre Drummond while up 32 POINTS with 7:02 in the 4Q
Joe Mazzulla had to explain to Billy Donovan they needed to win by 23 to have a chance to advance 😂 pic.twitter.com/4rEoWvHfus
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 29, 2023
Bulls head coach Billy Donovan was visibly upset by the decision and approached Mazzulla on the sidelines.
With a referee nearby in case matters got any more tense, Mazzulla explained why he chose a route that was somewhat embarrassing to Drummond.
After the game, meanwhile, the two coaches elaborated on their feelings about what happened and what was said during their exchange.
RELATED: The NBA In-Season Tournament’s tiebreakers, explained
More from Celtics head coach Joe Joe Mazzulla:
"I had to explain to him, this is what our people are telling us, this is what we have to do… gives us the best chance to advance."
Joe Mazzulla on conversation he had with Bulls HC Billy Donovan pic.twitter.com/nx6WBPB5P5
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) November 29, 2023
“We had a guy on our staff sitting near the bench. I told him don’t talk to me until we’re at the point where it’s necessary. So once it got to 30 at the start of the fourth, we started communicating on what the Brooklyn game was going and what the defecit was. So when I started the Hack-A-Drummond, Billy thought we had to win by 22 but he didn’t know the ramifications of what was going on in the Brooklyn-Toronto game. So I had to explain to him this is what our people are telling us, this is what we have to do, this is the process to protecting our lead. This gives us the best chance to win and advance.”
He added that he gave credit to Donovan for understanding.
More from Bulls head coach Joe Joe Mazzulla:
Billy Donovan did not like the Celtics decision to purposefully foul Andre Drummond in the fourth quarter.
Ceded that teams have to chase point differential, but felt that crossed the line.
“I just felt bad for Andre in that situation.” pic.twitter.com/ZmGuwX6Y6r
— Julia Poe (@byjuliapoe) November 29, 2023
Donovan shared his thoughts about what happened as well:
“Andre is a veteran guy and I told [Mazulla]: ‘What are we doing here?’ I’m totally fine. I get it on keeping your guys in, wanting to get in, the league’s made a big deal. …
In fairness to them, they got to deal with the rules, too. They’re trying to get into Vegas. There’s things that they got to to do. For me, it was just the foulding. Joe was great when I talked to him. He understood. He wasn’t trying to do anything. I also understand the situation he is in.”
Donovan added that he thought Drummond was in a “tough spot” in a 30-point game, but that there were “no hard feelings” in that situation.
