Celtics News: Bizarre Joe Mazzulla Decision 'Changed the Energy' in Win Over Wizards

The Boston champ made a wild choice to help snag an NBA Cup win.

Nov 22, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla argues with an official prior to being assessed a technical foul against the Washington Wizards in the second half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images / Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla made a wild choice to help snag an NBA Cup win.

With the Celtics trailing the Washington Wizards 66-63 midway through the third quarter, Mazzulla kvetched his way into earning a technical foul call from attendant officials.

According to Taylor Snow of Celtics.com, Mazzulla planned the tech to shift the game's momentum.

It worked.

Boston promptly went on a 12-4 tear. Boston wound up outscoring Washington 26-21 in the frame, then really turned on the charm in the fourth period, outscoring the Wizards 33-24.

Joe Mazzulla says he picked up a tech midway through the 3rd as "a way to manipulate the environment."

Boston was down 66-63 at the time.

"It changed the energy in the arena."

Celtics went on a 12-4 run after his tech. pic.twitter.com/kE8BdNQ5DZ

— Taylor Snow (@taylorcsnow) November 23, 2024

“I thought it changed the energy in the arena. Could you feel that?” Mazzulla said. "It wasn't really about energizing the team, it was really about manipulating the environment. I thought it was kind of what the environment needed at the time. We just have to make those calls from time to time. So really, I thought the team was, we were playing pretty good, it wasn't like I needed to do that. But I felt like it was a way to manipulate the environment."

All told, Boston won its fourth straight contest, claiming a 108-96 victory. The Celtics improved their record to 13-3, and now sit 2.5 games behind the East's No. 1-seeded, 16-1 Cleveland Cavaliers. Boston is now 2-1 in its NBA Cup bracket, East Group C. The Wizards dropped their 10th straight defeat, and are 0-2 in group play.

Boston weathered a poor performance from All-NBA power forward Jayson Tatum, thanks in large part to a terrific showing from All-Star small forward Jaylen Brown.

Tatum scored 16 points on 6-of-19 shooting from the field (0-of-10 from long range) and 4-of-6 shooting from the foul line, but managed to chip in nine rebounds, eight assists, and two steals. Brown more than picked up the slack, scoring 31 points on 11-of-27 shooting from the field (but a rough 3-of-13 from beyond the 3-point arc) and 6-of-8 from the charity stripe, while grabbing 11 boards, dishing out five dimes. Neemias Queta started at center in the stead of ailing centers Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford, scoring seven points on 1-of-3 shooting from the floor and 5-of-6 from the foul line.

Next up for the Celtics is a Sunday afternoon matchup with the new-look Minnesota Timberwolves, who have gotten off to a mediocre 8-7 record after swapping out pricey four-time All-Star power forward/center Karl-Anthony Towns with ex-New York Knicks All-Star power forward Julius Randle and shooting guard Donte DiVincenzo. While Randle has looked more or less like his prime New York self, DiVincenzo has struggled out of the gate with his new franchise, averaging 9.5 points on .348/.324/.786 shooting splits, 3.3 rebounds and 3.1 rebounds.

More Celtics: Rajon Rondo Takes Shot at Boston, Says Lakers Title is More 'Special'