Some Boston Celtics players have been up in arms about the level of physicality that the Orlando Magic have played with in their first-round series. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Kristaps Porzingis have all suffered injuries of some kind, but head coach Joe Mazzulla isn’t complaining about how the Magic are playing.
“No one’s been arrested,” Mazzulla said. “As long as we’re playing within the rules, you have to win in the trenches. Rebounding, turnovers, defending without fouling, all those things go into play.”
Add that to the list of incredible Mazzulla quotes. Most coaches in his position would have been kicking and screaming at this point about how their players need to be protected, but not him.
In Game 1, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s hard foul on Tatum led to a bone bruise in his right wrist. The Celtics’ star missed Game 2 and watched on from the sidelines as Porzingis was left bleeding from his forehead after being elbowed by Goga Bitadze. The Latvian was able to return to the game but was left with a big gash on his forehead.
Then in Game 3, Cole Anthony yanked Brown to the ground as he went up for a layup. The reigning Finals MVP’s index finger dislocated when he fell.
Brown ripped the referees and the Magic after the game. He stated that the officials have not been able to control the situation, while the Magic aren’t even playing basketball. Brown added that they could fight to see who advanced to the next round.
How did Mazzulla react to all this? Well, not in a way that any other coach would have.
Mazzulla yelled at Tatum to get up after that hard foul by Caldwell-Pope. He even stopped the Celtics’ trainer from checking on him. Then, after Game 2, Mazzulla stated he liked seeing Porzingis bleed on the court. Considering he’d given such absurd responses, you would have expected him to have quite a reaction to Brown’s comment about fighting.
Back in 2024, Mazzulla had advocated for fighting to return to the NBA. The 36-year-old claimed that people are being robbed from an entertainment standpoint. When asked about Brown’s comment, though, Mazzulla had somewhat of a tame response by his standards.
“I don’t know that he said it out of frustration, as he did from the perspective of doing whatever it takes to win. At the end of the day, that’s what the environment calls for is upping the physicality, and that’s what we have to do,” said Mazzulla in a chat with the media on Saturday. “That’s what the game calls for, the series calls for, and we have to be ready to do that.”
A hiccup in Game 3 aside, the Celtics have taken care of business in this series against the Magic. A 107-98 win in Game 4 in Orlando has given them a 3-1 lead, and they have one foot into the next round at this point. Game 5 will be at the TD Garden on Tuesday at 8:30 PM ET, and you’d fancy the Celtics’ chances of winning it.
