In his less than two full seasons as head coach of the Boston Celtics, Joe Mazzulla has made a habit of going viral. From his unbridled enthusiasm for jiu-jitsu, to watching the Boston-based heist film “The Town” four times a week to give himself a “Boston mindset,” to responding “Jesus, Mary and Joseph?” when asked if he got a chance to meet Prince William and Kate Middleton the night the British Royal Family attended a Celtics game, to (allegedly) having to delete his accidentally public Quizlet account with hilarious scouting reports on NBA players shortly after it was (possibly) discovered in his first year as a head coach... the list of Joe Mazz Memeable Moments is long. To the point that our friends over at CelticsBlog even made a “real or fake Joe Mazzulla quote” quiz to get in on the fun.
Joe Mazzulla trying to block Royce O’Neale’s shot is his most unhinged moment yet
Royce O’Neale’s shot was not going to count, but Joe Mazzulla is not one to just let a shooter see the ball go in... even in a game he’s coaching.
But the latest instance in which he resembled a mid-2000s Will Ferrell character being asked to coach an NBA team came during Boston’s 127-112 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday, when Royce O’Neale attempted a three after a timeout was called during the closing minutes of the fourth quarter.
Again: This shot would not have counted. But never one to let a cool shooter get warm, Mazzulla, hilariously, attempted to block the shot:
Textbook contest. Maybe he was a little late on the timing to block it, but he got a hand up and let his momentum carry him to the side to avoid the possible four-point play, and that’s all you can ask for as a coach... from your coach:
Asked about the moment after the game, Mazzulla had about as funny a response as possible (courtesy of our own Noa Dalzell of CelticsBlog):
*spoilers for the 2010 Ben Affleck vehicle, “The Town”*
Just like Jeremy Renner’s James Coughlin sacrificing himself so his buddy Dougie Macray (Ben Affleck) could get away, Mazzulla wasn’t going to leave his players out there on an island, even if it came at risk of potentially the largest fine in NBA history had he, again, accidentally undercut a player in the basketball game he was coaching.
Say what you will about Mazzulla, but no one can claim the man overlooks the margins.
Anyway, if the Celtics win the championship this year, Joe Mazzulla feels like the odds-on favorite for head coach in NBA history to go shirtless at their team’s championship parade.
