Joe Mazzulla Has Lessons to Learn, but Boston Celtics' Failures Aren't All On Him
It really is easy to look at the Boston Celtics' failures in the Eastern Conference Finals and put it all on Joe Mazzulla. You could even, almost, say it's the easy way out.
Despite his faults as a first-year head coach (we will get to them), this is not all on him. The issues plaguing Boston have been the same issues the past few years across different coaches. At a certain point, the players have to show up.
So far, they have not. At least not when it counts most.
Boston has struggled at the end of games for years. Applause rained down upon Jayson Tatum after his Game 7 performance in the second round, but he has not been the same since. Jaylen Brown has gone from making second team All-NBA to actively hurting his team in the conference finals.
The following play sums up the series perfectly: Brown drives in traffic, and he may or may not have been fouled, but he stays on the ground looking for a foul call either way. The Heat immediately run in transition, resulting in a Max Strus three.
It's true that Mazzulla has looked in over his head during the playoffs, especially now up against the best coach in the NBA. There are certainly lessons he can take from the conference finals master class Erik Spoelstra is hosting. But in many ways, Mazzulla inherited a group that has struggled for a while.
To Mazzulla's credit, after getting demolished in Game 3, he took the blame for not having the team ready. He didn't throw anyone under the bus, instead asking everyone to lay the blame "on me."
As much as Mazzulla wants to avoid blaming his roster, he also doesn't deserve the level of condemnation he's receiving.
Entering Game 4 in Miami, Boston fans and much of NBA Twitter are calling for Mazzulla to be fired. But that reaction doesn't consider the issues this team has faced pre-dating his time as head coach.
Poor Clutch Play
This iteration of the Celtics has been awful at the end of games for years. Before this season, the last time Boston had a positive net rating in clutch games was 2019-20 at 4.4.
After that, the Celtics were near the bottom in 2020-21 and 2021-22.
It's easy to forget that last season in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Boston nearly blew a 13-point lead with 3:35 left in the fourth quarter. The only saving grace was a Jimmy Butler pull-up three in the final seconds that clanged off the rim, allowing the C's a narrow escape.
The Celtics were good this regular season in close games but have not held up in the playoffs. At just 4-6 in 10 clutch games, Boston has a net rating -5.9—and its stars are shrinking in the moment.
The Jays' Struggles
Tatum has led the Celtics in scoring during the playoffs at 27.8 points per contest, with Brown not far behind at 23.1. But during the conference finals, the pair has been awful.
Tatum's scoring has dipped—and his three-point shooting has fallen off the cliff. He's shooting 25 percent from three over 6.7 attempts in the series, falling from 35.9 percent.
Tatum has completely disappeared in the fourth quarter for Boston. He has more turnovers (2.5) in the final period than field-goal attempts (1.5).
In Game 1, Tatum did not get a shot off in the fourth quarter but had three critical turnovers as the Celtics were trying to come back.
But Tatum isn't the only Jay struggling.
Jaylen Brown has been just as bad, with his scoring down to 16.7 points per game this series. He's shooting 10 percent(!) from three on 6.7 attempts per night. Compare that with what he did in the series against Philadelphia when he averaged 22.9 points on 54.1 percent shooting and shot 43.2 percent from deep.
Brown, three games into the Eastern Conference Finals, has 11 turnovers to 10 assists. Between Brown and Tatum, the two have combined for 23 of the Celtics' 45 turnovers against Miami.
At this point, can you really still put it all on the coach?
It's fair to say Boston is in a 3-0 hole because two top stars are playing well below their means.
Coaching Lessons To Learn
There's no question Mazzulla is being out coached by Erik Spoelstra. But that shouldn't come as a surprise. Not when Spoelstra has been in the NBA since 1997, became a head coach in 2008, has been to the Finals five times and has two championships to his name.
Despite the amazing credentials, Spoelstra was not always considered the best coach in the NBA like he is now. In fact, he had growing pains early on, including losing in the Finals to a Dallas Mavericks team far less talented than the LeBron James-led Heat.
That should give some hope to the Celtics and Mazzulla's coaching future. He was given a difficult task, taking the job three days before training camp after Ime Udoka's initial suspension. He had no real time to prepare, and the Celtics did not have time to conduct an actual coaching search. It was a marriage of convenience.
It's also easy to forget that Mazzulla is only in his fourth year in the NBA. He has things he will need to learn, and, ultimately, Spoelstra might be the best teacher.
The first lesson: Have strong convictions loosely held.
Spoelstra is very quick to adjust away from things that go stale and lean more into what breathes life back into the team.
The Celtics swung the series against Philly back their way when Mazzulla played big, moving Robert Williams into the starting lineup for Game 6. But then, he stuck with that lineup in the Eastern Conference Finals a game too long, going small in Game 2 starting Derrick White.
The other adjustment Mazzulla was slow to make was on defense. He elected to not double team Jimmy Butler in the first two games, leaving his defenders on an island, and Butler took advantage. The Celtics started to double Butler in Game 3 to varying degrees of success, but that was also a move that should've been made a game earlier.
Another lesson Mazzula needs to learn from Spoelstra: Use your timeouts.
This has been a criticism levied at Mazzulla all season. In Game 1 against the Heat, Miami outscored the Celtics, 46-25. The only timeout Boston called was the mandatory TV timeout at 6:28 after its 12-point lead disappeared and the game was tied.
Compare that to Spoelstra during the second quarter of Game 3. Boston went on a mini 5-0 run to cut a 22-point lead to 17, and Spoelstra didn't hesitate burning a timeout and getting the team refocused.
There is value in using timeouts to stop runs.
Should the Seat Be So Hot?
The solution here is not firing Mazzulla. It's helping him grow, helping him learn these lessons.
Bringing in a new coach would make that four coaches in four years for the Celtics. But just look at the other team in this series threatening to sweep the conference finals. The Heat have had the same lead man for over 15 seasons. That continuity is there in Miami, and it matters.
It's also mattered for Denver, who is now heading to the NBA Championship after a conference finals sweep of their own over the Los Angeles Lakers (not to mention a 12-3 overall record this postseason).
Michael Malone has been Denver's head coach since 2015, all despite some tough postseason runs, including a first-round exit just last season. In Miami, firing Spoelstra was also never an approach the organization took when the Heat lost the 2011 Finals.
There is no arguing Boston has been out-coached in the playoffs. But this is a total team failure for the Celtics that trickles down to, if not starts with, the stars flaming out.
Firing Mazzulla does not fix the issues the Celtics have had since before this season. A fourth coach in as many years is not the answer.
Mo Dakhil spent six years with the Los Angeles Clippers and two years with the San Antonio Spurs as a video coordinator, as well as three years with the Australian men's national team. Follow him on Twitter, @MoDakhil_NBA.
