There was pressure on Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla before the season even began last year.
The Celtics, with their star-studded roster fortified by franchise pillars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown and augmented by new additions in Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, were expected to do nothing short of hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy in June.
That was heavy enough expectations for Mazzulla, who was just in his second season at the helm and younger than some of the players he coached.
But Mazzulla also put more on himself to guide the Celtics to an NBA title due to his previous experiences with the organization. He watched the Celtics get close to a championship in prior seasons, but come up just short.
And he wanted to get to the mountaintop for not only his current players, but those, like Marcus Smart, Grant Williams, Isaiah Thomas and Blake Griffin among others, who made their mark building up to this point, but were no longer a part of the organization.
“The one thing that has really stuck out is all the people that have played and worked for this organization that didn’t win one,” Mazzulla told The Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn. “That has really been on my heart because the difference between winning and losing, once you win, you’re not better than other people. I truly believe that. I’m not better than any other coach that’s coached just because I won.
“It’s just been a group of people that’s been able to accomplish something together and so there’s such a fine line between winning a championship and losing a championship. It can come down to 10 plays, 15 plays, and for the Celtics organization I felt both sides of that. I felt like a burden of having to win Banner 18 and I watched people, players, and coaches go after Banner 18 and not get it.
“It doesn’t mean that their work wasn’t great. It doesn’t mean their work wasn’t validated. It doesn’t mean they weren’t great coaches and great players. It just meant that it wasn’t time.”
Mazzulla’s sentiments were well-received, especially from Thomas, who played in one Eastern Conference finals with the Celtics.
The Celtics won’t have to worry about turnover next season or really in the seasons to come. Boston was busy this offseason locking its roster in place, giving lucrative contract extensions to Tatum and Derrick White while also re-signing Luke Kornet, Neemias Queta and Xavier Tillman Sr.
