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Joe Mazzulla Had Hilarious Three-Word Message About Significance of NBA Cup

The Celtics coach joked about the NBA Cup before Boston's game against Cleveland.
Boston Celtics head coach Mazzulla watches from the sideline at TD Garden.
Boston Celtics head coach Mazzulla watches from the sideline at TD Garden. | David Butler II-Imagn Images

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A Joe Mazzulla press conference always keeps you on your toes.

Before the Celtics' NBA Cup game Tuesday night against the undefeated 15-0 Cleveland Cavaliers, Mazzulla was asked a simple question. Why does the NBA Cup matter?

Mazzulla's quick-witted, serious answer brought laughter to the room as he often does when addressing the media through his patented unconventional statements.

"Who said that?" Mazzulla responded, poking a bit of fun at the question.

Then, the question was framed differently to Mazzulla. Does the NBA Cup matter?

He went on to discuss how the Cup games provide something to play for and gives his team an opportunity to win, which they already do so much of.

"It presents an opportunity for us to go after something, to win something," Mazzulla said after the joke. "To me, over the course of a long season it presents something good that can come from it. If you lose, you're pissed off because you didn't achieve your goal of winning and if you win, you achieve your goal of winning. It's a win-win over the course of a long season for us."

Boston (11-3) came out strong in the first half against Cleveland. The Celtics are 0-1 in NBA Cup play, hoping to position themselves to make it into the knockout round.

Never change, Joe.


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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a writer at Sports Illustrated, primarily covering the NBA and WNBA. Before joining SI in November 2024 as a breaking/trending news writer, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation and A10Talk. He’s an alum of both Michigan State and St. Bonaventure University, receiving a master’s degree from the Bonnies’ sports journalism program. Outside of work, he’s a husband, father, yogi and fairly mediocre tennis player who’s open to any tips on how to play defense in EA Sports College Football.

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