Why Celtics' Joe Mazzulla is giving NBA coaches the cold shoulder
11/15/2024 03:15 PM
BOSTON — Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla is dedicated to sharpening his mind and body. Anything that detracts from that personal commitment could generate weakness—even a simple hug. Following a Friday morning practice, Mazzulla told reporters he’s “cordial” with some opposing NBA coaches, but not overly friendly.
“It's very important to not give away psychological tells,” he clarified.
To prove his point, the New England native explained how an encounter with former Celtics assistant coach Charles Lee was meant to throw him off his game.
“I told Charles when he left, 'I'm not talking to you during the season. I'm not waving to you at the national anthem. I'm not doing that. You're an enemy,'” Mazzulla recalled. “So he breached NBA rules and came into the assistant coach locker room and forced me to give him a hug. That could easily be a psychological tell that knocks you off your game competitively. He knew what he was doing.”
Lee was a big part of Boston’s victorious 2023-24 campaign and the momentum he gained from winning his second NBA title helped earn him his first head coaching job with the Charlotte Hornets. His nefarious hug with Mazzulla probably occurred in early November when the Celtics and Hornets faced each other on back-to-back nights.
Charles Lee, now the head coach of the Hornets, just went through and dapped up all the Celtics assistants before giving a big hug to Sam Cassell pic.twitter.com/Ov1vneGSnV
— Noa Dalzell (@NoaDalzell) July 17, 2024
“No,” Mazzulla responded bluntly when asked if it was nice to hug Lee.
Despite the bond Mazzulla and Lee share from winning a title together, it was all business on the court. The C’s won both games against the Hornets by double-digits and Lee even received his first technical after arguing with the officials. The two Eastern Conference squads will meet two more times this season in April right before the 2025 NBA Playoffs begin.
How are Joe Mazzulla and Charles Lee faring this season?
Heading into his third year as the Celtics skipper, Mazzulla has led his team to a 10-3 record to begin the 2024-25 regular season. Boston was 11-2 through 13 games last season, so Mazzulla’s men are once again on track to compete for the top seed in the East. This shouldn’t come as a shock, as Boston returned its entire starting five and maintained most of its coaching staff to boot.
Lee’s Hornets are further down in the standings, but nobody in Charlotte should be that mad about their performance thus far. At 4-7, the Hornets sit in 11th place, just above the struggling Milwaukee Bucks and less than a game out of a top-eight seed. They had a similar, 3-8 record at this point last season but later suffered an 11-game losing streak that spanned most of December, essentially ruining their 2023-24 campaign.
Former Celtics assistant Charles Lee celebrated his first win as a head coach with the Hornets last night
pic.twitter.com/oQRJEZhcUC— Daniel Donabedian (@danield1214) October 24, 2024
Seven of the Hornets’ 11 opponents qualified for the 2024 NBA Playoffs, partially excusing their mediocre start. Four of the Celtics’ 13 opponents were playoff teams last April, yet their schedule tightens up shortly. In fact, the defending champs square off against the 13-0 Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night at TD Garden.
Prior to that highly-anticipated showdown, the Celtics host the 2-10 Toronto Raptors on Saturday evening. As for the Hornets, they have a tough back-to-back slate with the Bucks and Cavaliers on Saturday afternoon and Sunday night, respectively.
The post Why Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla is giving NBA coaches the cold shoulder appeared first on ClutchPoints.
