Celtics HC Joe Mazzulla Doubles Down on NBA Eliminating Halftime

Gabe Smallson | Feb 17, 2025

Feb 8, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla signals to the team in the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Boston Celtics' head coach Joe Mazzulla is no stranger to providing his honest opinion.

From post-game mathematics comparisons to modeling his coaching style after a top Premier League manager to threatening to bench the team's stars mid-game, Mazzulla has a fascinating approach to basketball that has clearly been working out.

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In late January, Mazzulla made a claim that many brushed off as simply a quirky statement that fans are more than accustomed to, but he has recently doubled down on his take.

Mazzulla wants to ban halftime.

Joe Mazzulla wants the NBA to ban halftime:

“If it was up to me, I wish we would ban halftime. I can't stand halftime. I just don't understand it. I guess I do from a business standpoint, but I hate it. It's useless.”

(via @ZoandBertrand) pic.twitter.com/1ZdyV2XSd9

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) February 15, 2025

From the fallout of NBA commissioner Adam Silver claiming he's a "fan" of 10-minute quarters, the head coach shared his own unique proposal during an interview with 98.5 The Sports Hub's Zolak & Bertrand show.

"If it was up to me, I wish we would ban halftime. I can't stand halftime," Mazzulla said. "I just don't understand it. I guess I do from a business standpoint, but I hate it. It's useless.

"It gives you an opportunity to escape from the arena. It gives you an opportunity to escape from the competitive arena. I've never understood it from a psychological perspective of -- it's crazy, I think in cricket they take a few hours off."

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Mazzulla is known for being a stone-cold competitor, but this would bring an entirely different element to the game of basketball.

In many instances, games are won or lost at halftime. Sometimes players need to regroup, readjust, and even just take a few moments to rest before the deciding quarters.

Mazzulla even utilized halftime recently, threatening to bench Boston's stars, before a 26-point comeback.

To the coach's point, it makes a lot of sense for a team that is finally finding its' groove mid-way through the second quarter to keep playing and not take a significant pause on play after a nice run. Momentum can easily be lost with the larger breaks, but at least for the time being, halftime appears to stay for good in the NBA.

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