NBA analyst, former All-Star Isiah Thomas calls Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla his coach of the year
Thomas took to social media to voice his support for the second year NBA head coach.
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Despite holding the NBA’s best record and most dominant lineup, the Celtics didn’t rack up many awards this season.
Brad Stevens won executive of the year for his role in piecing together the 2023-24 iteration of Boston’s roster. Specifically, his additions of Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday in the offseason were crucial in earning recognition.
Outside of Stevens, though, no awards were handed out to Boston. Jayson Tatum didn’t even finish top 5 in MVP voting, no player was recognized for Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player, and Sixth Man of the Year. And Joe Mazzulla did not bring home Coach of the Year honors.
Ex-NBA All-Star and current TV analyst Isiah Thomas weighed in on that, responding to a clip of Mazzulla and saying “Big respect to coach Joe Mazzulla … my coach of the year!”
Joe Mazzulla guided the Celtics to the best regular season record in the NBA, and his tactics on the defensive end helped Boston earn the NBA’s third-best defensive rating, while maintaining the second-best offensive rating. He’s gotten a lot out of his players on both sides of the ball.
A lot of Mazzulla’s work was downplayed based on how good the Celtics’ roster was, and that could have played a factor in how Coach of the Year voting played out.
Regardless, this year’s Boston team has been steadfast in the belief that the time for individual achievements is over. The Celtics are focused on raising banner 18 over everything else.
Jaylen Brown continued pushing that message when asked about being left off the All-NBA teams. Tatum was the only Celtic listed among the NBA’s top-15 players.
If Boston beats the Indiana Pacers on Saturday, it’ll be one game away from the NBA Finals, with a chance to capture the championship that eluded it in 2022. That might be all Mazzulla and the Celtics care about, but Thomas is giving the young coach his flowers, anyway.
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