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COMMENTARY
The Celtics were never obligated to choose Joe Mazzulla.
Not when Ime Udoka’s personal life spilled into an improper relationship professionally. Not when the team started the season 4-3. Not when the Nets appeared to be on the verge of hiring Udoka, scratching the scab off of a sensitive topic early in the season for Celtics players who still had not received an explanation as to why Udoka was no longer their coach. Not even after they won 14 out of 15 games and started the season 18-4.
Until Thursday morning, the start of the All-Star break, the Celtics went without an official head coach. The team seemed to be holding on to Mazzulla’s interim tag for procedural reasons rather than coaching ones, but Mazzulla must have felt some pressure, whether he would admit it or not. After all, who wouldn’t be nervous participating in a months-long audition for millions of dollars and their dream job?
But Mazzulla auditioned so well, he made the Celtics’ decision pretty easy. The surface-level is obvious — the Celtics have the NBA’s best record at the All-Star break at 42-17, which is why Mazzulla’s first NBA game as the official head coach of an NBA team will be the All-Star game. They have the league’s best net rating, buoyed by the NBA’s fourth-best defense and third-best offense. They have shown the ability to beat teams in a variety of effective ways.
Of course, the Celtics have a number of talented players who impact winning more than the coach, but that’s the case with any roster — just ask Gregg Popovich, who can put a championship ring on four fingers and a thumb and is currently coaching a 14-45 Spurs team. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and a plethora of star-in-their-role players are the biggest reasons the Celtics put the ball in the basket and prevent the opposition from doing the same.
