Joe Mazzulla’s Journey From WVU Guard to NBA Coach of the Year

Sixteen years ago, Joe Mazzulla was a key part of West Virginia's run to the Final Four, and with that team being just the second in program history to reach the national semifinals, it's a group that Mountaineer fans will cherish forever.

If you remember, Mazzulla was primarily a bench piece for that Final Four team, averaging a little over 16 minutes per game. Starting point guard Darryl "Truck" Bryant went down with a foot injury, so Mazzulla had to step into the lineup and did way more than anyone thought to be possible.

He, too, was battling an injury with his left shoulder, which forced him to shoot free throws right-handed. In that stunning upset of No. 1 seed Kentucky, Mazzulla had 17 points on 5/11 shooting while dishing out three assists and collecting a pair of steals to help WVU punch its ticket to the Final Four.

Fast forward to the present day, and he has an NBA title ring and was recently named the league's Coach of the Year following an impressive 56-26 season, where the majority of the season he was without the face of the franchise, Jayson Tatum. Everyone wrote the Boston Celtics off, believing that without Tatum, this would be considered a "gap year" in their championship window. Instead, they blew past all expectations and earned the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

So, how in the world did Mazzulla get to where he is now?

Getting his start in the Mountain State (2011-16)

Mar 29, 2026; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Boston Celtics Head Coach Joe Mazzulla watches from the sideline during the first quarter against the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Brian Westerholt-Imagn Images | Brian Westerholt-Imagn Images

It didn't take long for Mazzulla to transition into the coaching world. Shortly following his senior season at WVU in 2010-11, he accepted an assistant coaching position on Stephen Dye's staff at nearby Glenville State. He was with the Pioneers through the 2012-13 season before making the jump to another Division II school in the state, and much closer to Morgantown, in Fairmont State.

The first taste of the pros (2016-17)

Six years in, Mazzulla wanted to get his foot in the door at the next level, so he took a position as an assistant with the Maine Red Claws, the G League affiliate of the Boston Celtics. Little did he or the Celtics know at the time that this would lead to something much, much bigger down the road. It doesn't always work out where you get hired to be the head coach of the organization you first worked for, but for Mazzulla, it did, just a few years down the road.

Mazzulla's first head coaching job (2017-19)

After getting a taste of the professional level, Mazzulla felt he was ready to become a head coach for the first time, and once again, he returned to West Virginia to do so, becoming the lead man at Fairmont State. This would be the first of two times that he was hired as the head coach for a team/organization he previously worked for.

In just two years with the Falcons, he compiled a record of 43-17 overall and a 35-9 mark in conference play.

His return to the Celtics (2019)

Brad Stevens had an opening on his coaching staff and reached out to Mazzulla to see if he would be interested in joining. Of course, he took him up on that offer and returned to the Celtics, this time with the big league club. In 2021, Stevens stepped down from his post as the head coach and into a front office role, where he appointed Ime Udoka as the team's new leader.

The interim tag (2022-23)

Udoka took the Celtics to the NBA Finals in his one and only year on the job. Due to a violation of team policies, Udoka was suspended by the team, and the two eventually parted ways. During this, Mazzulla was named the team's interim coach, which at the time was a bit of a surprise to everyone, given the lack of experience he had compared to others on the staff. Brad Stevens was a big believer in Mazzulla, and it turned out to be the right decision as the team went 57-25, earning the No. 2 seed in the East that season.

Hoisting the Larry O'Brien Trophy (2023-24)

Jun 17, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla celebrates with the Larry O’Brien Trophy after beating the Dallas Mavericks in game five of the 2024 NBA Finals to win the NBA Championship at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images | Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Despite an incredible season as the interim, there were a lot of folks still questioning whether or not Mazzulla was the right guy for the job. Celtics fans were not a big fan of some of his decisions, particularly in the series loss to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. He put a lot of that doubt to bed the very next season, guiding the team to an NBA title in his first year as the full-time head coach. That postseason, the Celtics lost a grand total of three games.

NBA Coach of the Year (2025-26)

There were several worthy candidates for this award, with Charles Lee turning around the Charlotte Hornets, J.B. Bickerstaff taking the Detroit Pistons to the top of the East, and Mitch Johnson doing the same with the San Antonio Spurs, landing the No. 2 seed. But Mazzulla winning that many games with a team that, on paper, looked to be a play-in team at best, is remarkable. He has quickly turned into one of the best coaches, if not the best coach, in the entire league. Through four seasons, Mazzulla has a record of 238-90, which gives him the highest winning percentage of any coach in NBA history (.726).

Add us as a preferred source on Google