Joe Mazzulla is never one to accept praise, often deflecting it toward his staff and players. He famously told Derrick White “nobody cares” after being congratulated for winning Coach of the Month. He’d probably even call this piece a waste of time, but I’m here to say it’s time for him to get his credit.
Fans and award voters have discredited Mazzulla’s success as a product of loaded rosters, ignoring his part in elevating those units. Sure, he inherited a contender. But it was days before training camp, and he was stuck with another coach’s staff. Managing 57 wins as a rookie under those circumstances was a massive success, but still only good for a 3rd place finish in Coach of the Year voting.
A dominant 64-win Championship season somehow moved him back a spot, and a 61-win follow-up through injury and fatigue took him out of the race altogether.
The narrative was that they should be that good, so he can’t be rewarded for meeting expectations. Sustained success isn’t as cool as the shiny new playoff team, or the overachiever. But now, Boston is on the other side of that spectrum, and his group is doing far more than anyone expected.
Mazzulla had his championship roster completely gutted at the top. In a flash, Jayson Tatum, Jrue Holiday and his top three centers were all out of the picture. They went from the top of the league to a projected Play-In team, or worse.
There weren’t many believers. Their preseason win total was set at 41.5.
Boston is currently 33-18. They would have to go 9-22 the rest of the way to beat that total.
They are the 2nd seed in the East and finding answers every single night. Mazzulla has pushed all the right buttons in terms of lineup combinations and game-planning. The roster has carryover from previous years, but he’s getting the absolute most while toggling through a variety of unproven bench pieces.
They have the highest Offensive Rating in the league, and their 8.0 Net Rating is down just -1.4 from last season despite the considerable changes. You can see that sustainability most clearly when Jaylen Brown is off the floor, as those lineups are still steamrolling teams with a +12.8 net rating and a 121.6 offensive rating.
Their defense, which could’ve fallen off a cliff, is quickly climbing and sits just outside the top-10.
Losing Al Horford, Kristaps Porzingis and Luke Kornet was supposed to be catastrophic for this team. Mazzulla has empowered Neemias Queta and Luka Garza, and played to their strengths so effectively that you’re not left each night thinking about what they lost.
There are other coaches doing great work this season, but nobody is crushing expectations at a level this extreme. No team has faced this much roster turnover, and hardly missed a beat.
The sportsbooks are telling a different story, with J.B. Bickerstaff sitting as a heavy favorite to take home the Red Auerbach Trophy. And look, the Pistons’ breakout is great and Bickerstaff is a worthy contender, but there was an expectation they could take a step forward. Boston was supposed to take several steps back, yet Mazzulla’s group has the better Net Rating.
He is not solely responsible for the Celtics’ success, though it should be unmistakably clear how effective his principles and system are.
Their latest win in Houston is one of the finest examples. Without Jaylen Brown, they still absolutely squashed the Rockets. Mazzulla went an unconventional route and gave Ron Harper Jr. his first career start. Few would think to call on a two-way player, let alone throw them at Kevin Durant, but it turned out to be a stroke of brilliance. His defense combined with their efforts to shrink the floor, held Durant and their #5 offense to 93 points.
It’s moments like these, where he’s tweaking the rotation, and building players confidence, while still maintaining their style that you can see how effective he is.
Managing great teams is not easy — we’ve seen enough implode to know that’s true. But this season has revealed without a doubt that he adapts to his group, and knows how to extract the most value from them.
With massively talented teams of the past, he understood that they’d benefit from the freedom to make plays without frequent intervention. For a squad like this current one, his fingerprints are all over the game. This is something that was mistaken as a dependency, when it’s far more about awareness.
For the critics who thought he was only as good as his roster, this season is a big green slap in the face. For award voters, the evidence is undeniable. It’s time to leave the goalposts where they belong, and award Coach of the Year to Joe Mazzulla.
