It does not appear as if it was three months in the past that the Boston Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks in Sport 5 of the NBA Finals and seized Banner 18, however the staff is again to work and now lower than 4 weeks from Opening Night time on Oct. 22.
Making ready for its first championship protection in over a decade, Boston is not reducing corners. That is the plan and it begins with coaching camp. Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla is setting the tone whereas additionally welcoming again practically your entire forged of Boston’s title-winning crew — Oshae Brissett and Svi Mykhailiuk are the one gamers not returning — for an additional coaching camp and similar to final season, the purpose hasn’t modified one bit.
“It is a mindset,” Mazzulla advised reporters at Sunday’s apply, per CLNS Media. “When it comes all the way down to that, you need to discover methods even when issues are actually arduous, to execute and you need to discover a technique to simply be nice and work at that. The blokes do an incredible job of doing that they usually’ve competed by way of the primary 4 days.”
Mazzulla added: “So long as we all know we’re on the identical web page about making an attempt to get the very best out of one another and the staff, I feel it really works.”
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Boston is getting into its third season with Mazzulla as head coach. At this level, everybody apart from newcomers, understands the Mazzulla methodology pushed by open-mindedness and distinctive, quirky ways that basketball groups do not historically make the most of.
When the Celtics have been honored at Fenway Park by the Boston Pink Sox to have a good time their championship, Mazzulla jotted down psychological notes. He wasn’t watching the sport with the identical lenses because the hundreds of others in attendance, however as an alternative searching relevant classes to evangelise to Boston and that is precisely what Mazzulla did after reducing up movie from the sport to share with the locker room forward of Opening Night time.
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When Kristaps Porzingis arrived prematurely at coaching camp and crossed paths with Mazzulla, the 7-foor-2 heart was requested a easy query and given an excellent easier — and extra direct — reply in response.
“What do you assume coaching camp needs to be? Straightforward or arduous?” Mazzulla requested Porzingis at Auerbach Middle, per ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne. “… It needs to be tremendous arduous.”
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The Celtics did all the things they might final season, however nonetheless, the staff understands the doubt hasn’t indifferent itself. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have been disrespected in their very own methods by USA Basketball through the 2024 Paris Olympics, Porzingis is coming back from offseason knee surgical procedure — perhaps round December — and the trail Boston took to crossing the end line has left outsiders belittling its record-setting championship. So, whereas Mazzulla’s mindset for the staff hasn’t modified, regardless if the Celtics returned to coaching camp as champions or not, the surface notion, too, remains to be the identical.
Boston cannot management the goalpost motion occurring exterior TD Backyard, however the champs can silence them for an additional summer season by hitting the rewind button in 2024-25.
“On the finish of the day, whether or not we received or misplaced, if we’re standing up right here at this level the purpose is to win,” Mazzulla mentioned throughout media day at Auerbach Middle. “Whether or not we might’ve misplaced final 12 months our purpose could be to win a championship this 12 months. So I feel simply clearly stating we wish to win a championship each single 12 months. That is the purpose, that is the usual, that is the expectation. So, what occurred up to now actually does not change once we step for within the constructing on this present day, it is to win a championship.”
