The Layers of the Celtics Naming Joe Mazzulla Head Coach

From Joe Mazzulla to Ime Udoka and the Celtics' assistant coaches, the ripple effects of Mazzulla having the interim tag removed.

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

"Joe's the best choice to do that by a long shot."

That was the message Celtics' president of basketball operations, Brad Stevens, delivered to team owner Wyc Grousbeck while the franchise's top decision makers settled on an interim-head coach.

Fast forward to the present, and Joe Mazzulla's All-Star break got off to an ideal start, receiving a promotion that makes him the Celtics' 19th head coach in franchise history and agreeing to a contract extension.

"As he has shown, Joe is a very talented coach and leader," expressed Stevens. "He has a unique ability to galvanize a room around a mission. We are thankful for the work he has done to help get us to this point, and excited that he has agreed to lead us into the future."

Despite the turmoil surrounding the Celtics entering the current campaign, plus not having Robert Williams in the lineup until mid-December, and losing one of their top offseason acquisitions, Danilo Gallinari, likely for the season before it began, at 42-17, Boston has the best record in the NBA.

While the Celtics' lead over the Bucks is down to a game and could shrink in half if Milwaukee beats the Bulls in Chicago on Thursday, with Boston perched atop the conference standings, Mazzulla and the Celtics' coaching staff is headed to Salt Lake City, Utah, where they'll coach Team Giannis in the All-Star Game.

Mazzulla made the leap from sitting behind the bench a season ago to being at the helm of a team that came within two games of capturing the Larry O'Brien Trophy. At 34, he became the youngest active head coach in the NBA. He didn't have a summer to prepare or a chance to assemble his own coaching staff, thrust into the job under turbulent circumstances.

The Johnston, Rhode Island, native has rewarded the franchise for its faith in him. While he interviewed for the Jazz's head-coaching vacancy after Quin Snyder's departure, Boston blocked Utah from bringing him aboard Will Hardy's staff, with Grousbeck telling the Jazz's CEO of basketball operations, Danny Ainge, he could only poach one of the two.

And when the Celtics tabbed Mazzulla to step in for Ime Udoka, it was with the belief he'd prove capable of filling the role beyond this season. One might nitpick with how he's done, for example, sometimes waiting too long to take a timeout when the opposition goes on a run, a challenge that does have benefits with the playoffs in mind, but he's earned this promotion and the right to have the interim tag dropped from his title.

And when Boston endured its roughest stretch of the season, with the Celtics losing five of six games in December, including three-straight at home, Stevens voiced his support for Mazzulla.

"Every 20 games that you coach in the NBA, you’re just getting better and better and better. Just even like looking at where we started from the start of training camp, the leadership, the organization, the way that everybody embraced him, he embraced everyone else. He’s very open to people. To the different ideas that they have. Maybe too open, right, sometimes? Cause there’s a million of them coming at him at once.

"But he’s been great, and his staff’s been great. That’s something that probably doesn’t get talked about enough. I think that was a unique thing for everybody, and the staff just came in and did their job to add to winning. That’s what we have to do. Everybody in this building has a role; we all have to play it as well as we can to give ourselves a chance to win."

As for Udoka, his time in Boston was over before this day arrived. And while he was on the verge of becoming the Nets' head coach this season, only to see it fall through, he'll be one of the top coaching candidates to fill one of the vacancies that open up this summer.

If the Sixers, currently third in the East at 38-19, disappoint in the playoffs, it might mean the end of Doc Rivers' tenure in Philadelphia. Udoka was an assistant in the City of Brotherly Love in 2019-20, working with Joel Embiid. In a scenario where Rivers is out, it would hardly be a surprise if Udoka returns as head coach of the Sixers, a chief rival of the Celtics.

And with Udoka likely to land a job somewhere, it'll be interesting to see if and how many of Boston's assistant coaches he brings with him. The Celtics' coaching staff mostly came with Udoka, and they have long-standing bonds with him dating back to their Oregon roots.

Having been together for two years and, in some cases longer, Boston's coaching staff, Mazzulla included, gets along well with everyone pulling in the same direction. But the opportunity to rejoin a long-time friend and receive a promotion would make for a compelling offer.

Any departures would also bring with them the chance for internal promotions. And after reports of potentially adding a veteran assistant coach like Frank Vogel to Mazzulla's staff before the start of the current campaign and the Celtics reaching out to Jay Larranaga about a possible return, perhaps one of those two or someone else with head-coaching experience, like Snyder, joins Boston's coaching staff if the franchise finds itself with holes to fill.

Further Reading

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Here's What Stood Out in Celtics' Win vs. Pistons: Hosts Don't Let History Repeat Itself

Grant Williams Reportedly Seeking Contract In the $20 Million Annually Range

Jayson Tatum to Participate in 3-Point Contest at All-Star Weekend

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Mike Muscala on Celtics Debut: 'a Blessing, it was Fun'

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