Coach Joe Mazzulla is fresh off an NBA championship run with the Boston Celtics but somehow he still doesn’t get the respect he deserves. After Mazzulla was placed 11th on CBS’s NBA coaches ranking, former league forward Udonis Haslem spoke up in Mazzulla’s defense.
“Recently there was a poll that came out on the top coaches in the NBA,” said Haslem on ‘The OGs’ podcast. “And it had Joe Mazzulla number 11. There ain’t one coach in the league better than Joe Mazzulla. So you could say ‘that’s my favorite team’ and I got my sh*t with Boston, but I’m real now. It ain’t 10 f***ing coaches in the league better than Mazzulla… I know he should be in the top eight at least.”
Haslem’s beef with the Celtics is well-documented. As a Heat veteran for 20 years, his battles on the court often brought him face-to-face against the Celtics, who are consistently in play for the NBA championship every season. Halem’s battles against the Cs went both ways but it’s no surprise that he developed a small hatred for them that’s survived into retirement.
So when Haslem gives praise to Joe Mazzulla, the current head coach of his rival team, it means more than most. For Haslem, there is no question that Joe Mazzulla is one of the game’s top coaches even if some media outlets disagree.
Mazzulla, 36 is currently the youngest coach in the league and before the Celtics, he had only coached at the NCAA Division II level. He was an assistant under former coach Ime Udoka but after a sexual scandal went public, he was exiled from the team and told never to return.
Mazzulla initially took over as an interim coach but after leading them to the NBA’s best record into February, he was given the full-time gig and has been in charge ever since. In his short tenure there so far, the players and the front office have spoken highly about Joe and it was under his leadership that they finally broke the seal and won their first title since 2008.
Yet, according to a recent CBS poll, Joe is only the 11th-best coach in the league, behind names such as Tom Thibodeau, Ime Udoka, Steve Kerr, Rick Carlisle, and others. Mazzulla was on tier 4, labeled as an “obvious floor-raiser.”
The problem with analyzing Mazzulla’s coaching is that he’s working with a nearly flawless roster. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, and Kristaps Porzingis form the best starting five in the NBA and their strength at full power is tough to match.
But whether you love him or hate him, you have to respect Mazzulla for galvanizing his troops and finding a game plan that plays to the strengths of all his players. For a team that’s had trouble rising to the occasion and executing in the clutch, Mazzulla has found a way to clean up the offense and get his players on the same page like no other team in the league.
For better or worse, this upcoming season will be a big test for Joe and his Celtics. If they can make a solid title defense, then we’ll know that this Celtics team is serious about keeping their impressive run going for as long as possible.
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