Sam Hauser was going through is normal pregame shooting routine when a Hornets coach bolted onto the court out of nowhere and started challenging his shots.
Hauser’s initial confusion quickly gave way to a big smile, a hug, and some more shooting and shot-challenging from former Celtics assistant Jermaine Bucknor. The 6-foot-7 Buck, as he’s known, is a former international pro whose pregames were spent giving guys like Hauser resistance to simulate game situations. Bucknor and Blaine Mueller both left Boston with Charles Lee when Lee was named Hornets head coach last year.
"It's always great to see them,” Derrick White said. “They did so much for us last year, and it's great to see them. I feel like we haven't seen them all year since the beginning of the year, so we know he's been working hard to get the team to where he wants them to get to."
A weird quirk in the schedule meant the final two games of the season were Charlotte’s first and only trip to Boston. Players and coaches have reacquainted themselves already, but this was the first time the former Celtics were back in this building since it was a duck boat launching pad.
“A lot of joyous emotions,” Lee said before the game. “This is part of my journey, it kind of helped groom me to be ready for the position that I'm in now, and so just a lot of joy, a lot of gratitude when you walk in, because you're like, man, I got to win a championship here, and I got to learn from so many people, and all the all the things that helped prepare me for this moment is pretty special.”
Lee ducked onto the floor himself, joining his wife as they reconnected with other families and friends. Where Joe Mazzulla is the type to duck questions about his own brother because he coaches for another team, Lee was happy to mingle courtside with his former players and Celtics staff. Staff that, of course, didn’t include much time with Mazzulla.
“(We’ve spoken) very little,” Lee said with a smile and an exaggerated sigh. “Besides the time when I walked into his locker room to greet him then he had the nerve to come up here and say I forced my way in or something. Typical Joe. But we've had a couple text messages but very, very little conversation."
Lee said all that with a smile because he knows Mazzulla’s ribbing is his love language.
“I love that about Joe. You don't know if it's for real or a joke,” Lee said. “That's why you build such a great friendship. I understand that in the heat of a moment or during the season, you are the enemy. If you're not wearing a Celtics uniform or within the Celtics organization, he's doing everything he can to prepare to beat you. In the summer, he might share some knowledge with me or some wisdom and we'll grab a beer together or some wine."
Mazzulla was a great influence on Lee. Both have been learning on the job, with Mazzulla getting a head start and a better break in terms of talent on his roster. But that doesn’t mean Mazzulla didn’t have to figure things out on the fly. Lee’s experience with Mazzulla, as well as his time in Milwaukee with a long-established coach like Mike Budenholzer, has given him a depth of experience to lean on.
“The thing that I learned from both coaches was to just have a commitment to what you believe in,” Lee said. “I think both Bud and Joe, whatever it was they believed in, they made sure that every day that was the messaging. That was the point of practice. That was going to be brought up in a film session. That was going to be brought up in individual conversations with players. And that's what I took.
“The other thing that I feel like I learned from both guys, too, is they do a great job building relationships with their players and they communicate expectations. You might not like what's communicated to you, but you know where you stand and what's expected of you."
If the Celtics are any indication, he has the relationship-building part down.
"Charles had a tremendous impact on our team,” Jayson Tatum said. “Whether it's Charles or the assistant coaches that left with him, Blaine and Buck, those guys will always be bonded and connected for life. Couldn't be happier for those guys and their new positions and where their careers are going. It was a blessing and it was a joy to have those guys here for the year. And obviously what we accomplished is something we'll be able to hang our hat on for the rest of our life."
The Celtics are poised to do it again, while the Hornets are only just starting to build from the ground up. The 36-point thumping on Friday night was evidence of that. Lee’s journey in Charlotte will, hopefully, be a long one.
“I think the spot that he’s in is long-term, and you chip away at the things that you want to get better at,” Mazzulla said. “I think over the course of a season, you’ve seen the DNA of what he wants to do and the direction, and I think really the energy, even tonight coaching against him, the energy and the positivity that he brings to a team, I think the team shows significant spurts of his DNA.”
Lee, Bucknor, and Mueller got their championship rings during this visit to Boston. They are a nice reminder of the past and something each will cherish forever. But Lee would also like to leave his in the box.
“I don't need to brag, show the rings, or boast the rings or anything,” Lee said. “(My team knows) what I've accomplished, and the main thing is just trying to do everything I can to help this team and this organization kind of build towards sustainable success so we can have our own Hornets ring at some point too.”
