Behind the late Bill Russell, who managed to bring his Celtics to 60 wins in his first season as head coach in 1967, it is Joe Mazzulla who has the best record for a rookie coach in Boston.
“The bigger it is, the simpler it is”
With 57 victories this season, Coach Mazzulla has managed to make people forget the snub at the start of the season and the Ime Udoka affair, who was promptly fired after having a relationship with a franchise employee.
On the eve of his first adventure in the playoffs in the costume of the head coach, Joe Mazzulla does not panic. On the contrary, he takes this challenge head-on and intends to make the most of it.
“Look, we can’t escape the fact that the playoffs have a different resonance. But the more important it is, the simpler it is”sends Mazzulla straight to the site Heavy. “My objective for these playoffs is to do the same thing as during the whole season: I will rely on my staff, on the players and on my experience, because I have worked for very good people. I lived through many playoff series. It doesn’t mean that we won’t make mistakes but I have a lot of good people around me, in the staff and among the players. Our locker room is really intact, it’s almost the most important thing basically. »
Unhappy finalists against the Warriors, the Celtics set off again to attack the great NBA mountain with a background and a collective that many other teams envy them. Admittedly, it is no longer the same coach, but the philosophy and the workforce have not (or very little) changed.
“I have the humility to realize that I don’t know everything”, he adds. “That’s why we have a staff around us, to be better than you in the areas you don’t master. My staff is one of the best I have known in my career. I like to refer to their opinion, but also to that of the players because they are the ones on the field, who see what is happening. We have a very experienced locker room, with players who have known many teams and coaches. We all work together. »
“The most important thing is that we are all well connected”
With veterans like Al Horford and Blake Griffin, even Malcolm Brogdon (who was already a veteran in his rookie year so to speak), plus the hard core formed at the club of Marcus Smart, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown (plus the two Williams ), Boston does have a solid team through and through, both physically and mentally.
Above all, Coach Mazzulla wanted to establish a collegial mode of operation, in which the players take an important part in refining the systems and, ultimately, strengthening their collective cohesion.
“I want the players to ask me questions. This is the most important because they are the ones who play. They have their own experience. We do things our way, and it’s unique, but I always want them to ask me questions so we’re all on the same page. I want them to be comfortable because if they are not, there will be a lag and the most important thing is that we are all well connected. »
Like the keyword “Ubuntu” which had welded the C’s version Garnett-Pierce-Allen until the coronation in 2008, Boston wants to once again base its success on its ability to stick together in difficult times, which does not will not miss during these upcoming playoffs…
“No one puts more pressure on me than myself. The goal is to win the title.” concludes Mazzulla. “All coaches are going to make mistakes during the playoffs. All. But it is above all a question of finding the small details that can make the difference. And for that, you need great players, a great locker room and an excellent staff, [ce dont je dispose]. »
| Shots | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | bp | Int | CT | party | Points |
| Jayson Tatum | 74 | 36.9 | 46.6 | 35.0 | 85.4 | 1.1 | 7.7 | 8.8 | 4.6 | 2.9 | 1.1 | 0.7 | 2.2 | 30.1 |
| Jaylen Brown | 67 | 35.9 | 49.1 | 33.5 | 76.5 | 1.2 | 5.7 | 6.9 | 3.5 | 2.9 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 2.6 | 26.6 |
| Malcolm Brogdon | 67 | 26.0 | 48.4 | 44.4 | 87.0 | 0.6 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 1.6 | 14.9 |
| Derrick White | 81 | 28.6 | 46.2 | 38.0 | 87.5 | 0.6 | 3.0 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 2.2 | 12.5 |
| Marcus Smart | 61 | 32.1 | 41.5 | 33.6 | 74.6 | 0.8 | 2.4 | 3.1 | 6.3 | 2.3 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 2.8 | 11.5 |
| Al Horford | 63 | 30.5 | 47.6 | 44.6 | 71.4 | 1.2 | 5.0 | 6.2 | 3.0 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1.9 | 9.8 |
| Grant Williams | 78 | 26.1 | 45.4 | 39.5 | 77.0 | 1.1 | 3.5 | 4.7 | 1.7 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 2.5 | 8.2 |
| Robert Williams | 35 | 23.5 | 74.7 | 0.0 | 61.0 | 3.0 | 5.4 | 8.3 | 1.4 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 1.4 | 1.9 | 8.0 |
| Sam Hauser | 79 | 15.8 | 45.0 | 41.1 | 70.6 | 0.4 | 2.1 | 2.5 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 1.2 | 6.2 |
| Payton Pritchard | 47 | 12.7 | 40.6 | 34.1 | 73.3 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 5.1 |
| Mike Muscala | 19 | 15.2 | 43.4 | 36.2 | 66.7 | 0.5 | 2.6 | 3.2 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 4.8 |
| Blake Griffin | 40 | 14.1 | 48.8 | 34.9 | 65.6 | 1.2 | 2.7 | 3.8 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 1.9 | 4.2 |
| Luke Kornet | 68 | 11.3 | 67.5 | 27.3 | 81.1 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 2.8 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 1.1 | 3.7 |
| noah vonleh | 23 | 7.4 | 45.8 | 25.0 | 100.0 | 0.8 | 1.3 | 2.1 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 1.5 | 1.1 |
| Jd Davison | 11 | 2.8 | 38.5 | 25.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 1.0 |
| justin jackson | 23 | 4.7 | 25.9 | 25.0 | 50.0 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.9 |
| Mfiondu Kabengele | 3 | 5.8 | 33.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.7 |
| Justin Champagnie | 1 | 3.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
