Joe Mazzulla has a dream job, but under tough, weird circumstances.
On one hand, he steps into training camp with a potential champion on the floor. The goals for this team are the loftiest in the league and every minute of preparation in September is done with June in mind.
But Mazzulla is still the interim guy. When a reporter joked with Jayson Tatum about the new head coach still driving a minivan, Tatum joked “his check is probably still the same.” Mazzulla’s ascent was so surprising and quick that he is still using the old coach’s staff. Even the schedule for training camp was done before he got the gig.
It’s like Lando Calrissian flying off in the Millenium Falcon wearing Han Solo’s clothes. It’s cool … but also weird.
But Lando also had Chewbacca, and Chewy is cool. They worked well enough together to get Han back (spoiler alert), so maybe this partnership will work?
“Great staff. Their character is great, their leadership, their communication,” Mazzulla said of his inherited assistants. “I try to ask them more questions before making decisions, and the great thing is we built a great dynamic on our staff last year, and so we all know each other's strengths and weaknesses very well. We all know how to communicate with each other, and they do a great job.”
The mess surrounding this situation is confusing and disappointing, and it could be tough for him considering most of his coaches are personal friends with Ime Udoka. Mazzulla, to his credit, understands the only way he’s going to succeed in this job is to keep most things the same, and keep everyone heavily involved.
“Honesty,” is what Mazzulla is asking for from everyone. “Where are we at, and where are we trying to get to? Does this make sense? Is this what our team needs? They're all very, very smart. We're all very smart and it's about, I have to listen to them. And so we just have to do it together.”
Their run together as assistants created enough of a bond where things seem to be holding in the early going. Mazzulla and Damon Stoudemire were joking like old buddies on the sideline while guys got up post-practice shots. If there's any animus following Udoka’s suspension, everyone’s doing a good job of hiding it.
It helps that Mazzulla has had years to build relationships and trust with most of these players.
“Joe’s been really good. I mean, it's not like he's a new person, just kind of in a different position,” Tatum said. “I mean, it probably takes some time to get used to being the voice, especially all of a sudden, but he’s been doing a great job the last couple of days.”
The return to the floor has helped a lot. To a man, Celtics players say the normalcy of playing basketball helps things feel like they always did. There's a sense of picking up where they left off, which is about all anyone can ask for considering the circumstances.
This is like the first few seconds of a rocket launch. So far, the systems all check out, but this ride comes in stages, and there are plenty of chances for things to go wrong. The next step for these guys, after one more practice, is a preseason game on Sunday where we’ll see if everyone can back up the talk of this week.
“I’d like to see carryover,” Mazzulla said of Sunday’s game. “So however long we need to play the guys we need to to see the things that we worked on these three days is important and if you can see that carry over, and then we can kind of know, ‘Okay, let's see this now.’ So I think that's what we're looking for.”
OTHER PRACTICE OBSERVATIONS
- Derrick White is “going back to the basics” with his jumper.
“Trying to work on just not being flat, using my legs and stuff like that,” White said after practice. “Higher release point, staying in it, stuff that you did since you were a kid.”
White will be asked to do a lot, so keeping his jumper consistent will help him navigate the different roles. Getting started with the team from day 1 will also help.
“Last year I was running around the whole time and trying to play catch up,” he said. “This year I feel much more settled in, I know everybody, everybody knows me. Excited for the year to start and get going.”
- Jayson Tatum stepping up his leadership
The veterans will have to pull more weight during the season to make sure this plane flies straight. Tatum is at the top of that list. Al Horford has been praising Tatum’s more vocal demeanor since the playoffs, and Tatum says it’s all about picking his spots.
“I might not be the loudest guy, especially in front of the camera, but for the guys in that locker room, when we’re in practice or on the plane or on the court, my presence is felt in my voice,” he said. “We all put a lot into this game, so we all have the right to give input to each other. That’s all I try to do when I see something, try to help guys out.”
Horford isn’t the only player who has noticed Tatum’s growth.
“It’s grown a lot from when I was with him in USA to last year to, obviously, this training camp,” White said. “He does a lot of talking, pulling guys aside, seeing how we can get the best look and whatever it might be. So definitely see that maturity and the growth that he's doing.”
- The Celtics are off tomorrow and will practice Saturday ahead of Sunday afternoon’s preseason game.