Joe Mazzulla Doesn't Want 'Stupid Award,' But This Might Be His Only Chance to Get It

Joe Mazzulla does not mince words. He might mumble them, but he doesn’t mince them.

He was asked before the Hawks game about being the favorite for Coach of the Year. Anyone who has followed him closely over the years knows he is not one for personal accolades, and he’s also not one to play along with questions. But even so, part of his answer was still a bit striking.

“I don't need it. I think it’s a stupid award. They shouldn’t have it.”

Okay.

Mazzulla has made one thing abundantly clear in his time with the Celtics. He will never put himself above the players in any way. In fact, I think it’s probably more accurate to say he won’t even elevate himself to their level of importance. If coaching is important to Boston’s success, He makes sure he’s clear that it’s because of the whole staff, not just him.

“However it is to make sure the staff and the players get the appreciation,” he said of the award. “It’s more about the players, it’s more about the work that the staff puts in. It’s just that simple.”

Let’s start at the top.

He’s right. The players play, and that's the most important part of everything. The best coaches in the world can get something special out of players, but the players have to be willing to accept the coaching and be able to execute whatever they're being taught.

The Celtics lost to the Hawks last night because of the players. They beat the Charlotte Hornets and Oklahoma City Thunder because of the players. They hit shots, or don’t. They make the passes or don’t. They make the reads or don’t. So in the most basic way, Mazzulla is right about that.

He is also right about the staff. From player development to game-to-game scouting reports, to in-game adjustments and even challenges, the staff puts way more hours at work than anyone realizes. Some guys go from putting together long video scouting reports to lacing up their sneakers to work out with the stay-ready group. Some go through full workouts and sweat more than the players before every game just to get guys ready. Then they grab laptops and run through the scouts so everyone is up to speed. So yes, saying those guys put the work in is an understatement.

But Mazzulla has to accept that he’s the guy that starts the whole process. He’s the guy who sets the culture, who listens to the coaches and empowers them to be great. He’s the guy who develops relationships with the players to keep them focused on the task at hand. He’s the one who talks to everyone from the kitchen staff to the owner to make sure there is one unified message that serves as a beacon for his team to follow.

And the one thing that might set him apart more than anything else is the genuine humility he carries into this job. He’s not in it for any personal glory. He’s here because he loves basketball, specifically Celtics basketball. He understands that his firing is inevitable because death comes for us all in work and in life, so he coaches in a way that sheds distractions from the task at hand. And he knows that whenever he’s gone, someone will step into his shoes and be the focus of whatever the present is at that time.

He may put it brusquely… “nobody cares” or whatnot … but he is on point with how he thinks about things.

Fortunately for the Celtics, but maybe unfortunately for him, that indifference to the ego-satisfying external stuff is exactly why he’s up for the ego-satisfying awards. The humility and drive that brings him the clarity to hone his unique approach is why the Celtics have put everything together from the player and coaching perspective. It’s a big reason why this team has won 50 games and is marching towards locking up the second seed in the Eastern Conference. It’s why guys from Jaylen Brown to Jordan Walsh are able to find themselves and their games. Yes, they put in the work, but Mazzulla created the environment in which they thrive.

And because of that, two things are happening: The Celtics are overachieving, and the expectations for their success are skyrocketing. Which is why this might be one of very few chances, if not the only chance, for him to win that stupid award he doesn't want.

Coach of the Year always tends to go to the biggest overachiever relative to preseason expectations. Because of all their second apron moves, along with Jayson Tatum’s injury, reasonable observers slotted them in the low-end of the playoffs or worse. Now that they are the second seed, all the voters are sitting here in relative shock. But that shock has already begun to give way to the understanding that Mazzulla is very good at what he does, and that blowing expectations out of the water shouldn’t be all that surprising.

From now on, anything less than a successful Celtics team will be the surprise. The Celtics could sign you and me to contracts and Mazzulla could find a way to squeeze some wins out of the situation. The gap between expectations and results will go away. Even if another Celtics team with injuries or lesser talent finds its way to more wins that expected, it will be explained away with an “of course they're good. They're a Joe Mazzulla team.”

So now is the time for him to win it. If he doesn’t, he’ll become Erik Spoelstra, widely regarded as a coaching genius who never won Coach of the Year. Spo’s only chance now is a lifetime achievement award with a marginally surprising team down the road. We don’t want that to happen to someone else.

Mazzulla deserves the award, even though he doesn’t want it. He should win it. The only thing stupid about the award this year would be if it went to someone else.

The Spoelstra situation is probably at the top of the list of reasons why Mazzulla thinks the award is stupid. How can you have an award like that and have it never go to one of the best coaches we’ve ever seen? I should probably ask him to clarify his stance the next time he talks to the media.

“I really don't ever want to be asked or talked about it again,” he said. “It’s just that dumb.”

Okay nevermind. I think we got what we needed anyway.