Through the first few months of the season, the Celtics have once again had one of the best records in the NBA. Last year, despite the chaos caused by an abrupt coaching change, a same situation occurred. However, in head coach Joe Mazzulla’s second season at the helm, the Celtics had far more consistency this year.
about a 26-6 record, the Celtics have much to be pleased about. Wyc Grousbeck, a co-owner of C’s, spoke highly of Mazzulla and the C’s during an interview on WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show. Halfway through the season, Grousbeck also disclosed his current grade for Mazzulla.
Grousbeck remarked, “You have to give Joe an A—he’s inspirational.” As a player, I suppose you would feel a desire to make Joe proud of yourself if he were coaching you. Joe is just a guy you can just instantly get along with. He is the type of guy who thinks his opinion matters. He is quite forthright and honest about his feelings and the reasons behind them. As a player, you want to be on the positive side of that.
The Celtics are hoping that their strong play will carry over into the postseason. Mazzulla received a lot of flak for the C’s 3-0 loss to the Heat in the East Finals. Even after forcing a seventh game, the Celtics were unable to return to the NBA Finals.
Nevertheless, the team trusted Mazzulla since he had a traditional offseason to get ready rather than being thrown into the mix only days before training camp started. This season, those early returns have wowed, and the C’s will try to build on that moving ahead.
“He seems like one of them,” Grousbeck remarked. “Rather than leading them as some professor in an ivory tower sending down messages, he’s leading them as a guy in the trenches right beside the players.” He’s battling right there beside them. Indeed, it’s entertaining to see the entire thing.
