Dude, I'm Extremely High

Shank's not trying to put too much pressure on the guy, is he?

Expectations are extremely high for the Celtics — and Joe Mazzulla is fine with that

He grew up here, just like you and me, and he knows how important the Celtics are going to be in this spring of 2024. He has seen the recent decline of the once-great Patriots and Red Sox, and he knows fans think it’s about time for the Celtics to step forward and win a championship — the way they did regularly in the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s.

Rhode Island-raised Joe Mazzulla is still only 35 years old, and the franchise he coaches has won only one banner in his lifetime (2008), but he knows the expectations that come with coaching a team of All-Stars after recent playoffs featuring near-misses.

Everybody says the Celtics have the best team this year. And … if the Green don’t win it all, everybody probably will say it’s because their coach is too inexperienced, and they rely too much on threes, and he doesn’t call enough timeouts, and he cares too much for analytics, and that the late-game execution is lacking when the score is close.

This site has knocked Shank early and often when his columns contain the element of overhyping a team for the sole purpose of knocking them down later. I don't believe that applies with this team this year, but as Shank has noted a few columns ago, they need to win the tough games in order to win it all.

The Joe Mazzulla Column

Shank takes a slightly different look at the Boston Celtics during their playoff run, with the focus on head coach Joe Mazzulla:

Can Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla relax now with a series lead against the 76ers? No chance.

PHILADELPHIA — The Celtics led almost from wire to wire and beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 114-102, in Game 3 of their conference semifinal Friday at the Wells Fargo Center. Boston leads the series, 2-1, and has a great shot to get back to the Finals and maybe win the franchise’s 18th banner.

“I think we managed the game well,” coach Joe Mazzulla said after the win. " … It’s the playoffs. We’re playing against a great team … every possession is a round. Our only expectation is to be ahead at the end of the game.”

Can the super-serious Celtics rookie coach Joe Mazzulla now relax?

No way.

Mazzulla is tightly wound. He is cut in the mold of Ralph Nader, Colonel Nathan Jessup, and … dare we say … Bill Belichick? Let’s just say he’s unlikely to get a call if NESN needs someone to replace Charlie Moore, the Mad Fisherman.

Whatever that's supposed to mean...