BOSTON – One day after he and the Celtics’ coaches thrashed local media in a pickup basketball game, head coach Joe Mazzulla explained some of his motivation for setting up the competition and thanked the reporters who participated in it.
“Yesterday was very, very important,” Mazzulla said Wednesday before hosting the Toronto Raptors in a preseason game. “It will be laughed at and joked about, but it means a lot more to humanize (the two sides of the team’s media coverage) — we have too many interactions where it’s coach and you. Like, everyone’s doing their job.”
The Celtics media members were initially scheduled to play against each other in a pickup game Tuesday on the Auerbach Center court, but Mazzulla issued a surprise change of plans by involving his team’s coaching staff instead. Mazzulla and a group of his assistants won a 12-minute game against the media, 57-4, while applying full-court defensive pressure the entire time.
While addressing the reporters who played in the game, Mazzulla was not sitting on his usual news conference podium. He had asked for it to be removed.
“One of the reasons there’s no stage up here today is because I felt like after yesterday we all had our guard down, and we were all in the competitive arena together,” Mazzulla said. “And that meant a lot to lower everyone’s guard and bust balls and do all that stuff. So, it was cool to see everybody in a natural environment. And, sometimes, we’re coming from a competitive arena, and you’re not in a competitive arena — you’re just doing your job. And that’s where things get misinterpreted. But for all of us to be in the same arena, I think that says a lot.”
Mazzulla has been known to have tense exchanges with the reporters who cover his team. During his media availability, he referenced his recent criticism of a question from Hardwood Houdini writer Jack Simone.
“We all got to see (Boston Sports Journal writer John) Karalis shove Jack Simone (in the game),” Mazzulla said. “It’s no different than me getting pissed at Jack Simone’s question, right? It’s a competitive reaction to a thing that’s going on, so, if anything, we have to do it more because it humanizes the competition. And I realize how much you guys really like the game and care about it. So, I hope that (the pickup game) doesn’t drag on as something that’s funny. It’s something that was serious. So, I meant that. It was important that we did that yesterday, and we’ll do it again. So, thanks.”
First Appeared on
Source link
