Gotta give Joe some guts for deciding to
take calls from callers when he called in to Zolak & Bertrand on the Sports Hub today for his weekly call in. Some of the callers didn't hold back (I wonder if any were from CelticsStrong
)
On Thursday, Mazzulla decided to switch things up and take live calls from fans.
?We?ve got to give the people what they want,? Mazzulla said. ?We?ve got to connect with those people more, so open up the phone lines.
The hosts should be careful as they brought this idea to life, Zolak said. Mazzulla wanted nothing of the sort.
?I think it?s the opposite. I don?t think we have to be careful at all,? Mazzulla said. ?I think it?s the opposite.?
One caller said he didn't get asked hard enough questions by the hosts.
Mazzulla?s first fan response was to an emailer, who said his biggest issue with Zolak and Bertrand?s show is that Mazzulla isn?t asked enough hard questions when he comes on.
?We?re going to rectify that,? Mazzulla said.
Another caller said that Joe was unlikeable because of how he answered press conferences in the past.
One caller told Mazzulla that the way the coach answered questions at press conferences during the early days of his time as Celtics head coach made him unlikeable.
?First, I?ll apologize for being a product of my environment,? Mazzulla said. ?We?re all from New England. We all grew up being short and being relatively ****s. I?ve got to step away from my environment, but I think you make a good point.?
?My relationship with the media has grown over the years and I think you?re right ? it?s a conduit between where I am and where you guys are. As a fan, I think it?s important to know that when I?m up there, and I?ve obviously kind of learned on how to approach it differently, but at the end of the day when I?m answering a question I may not be looking to answer it from a fans perspective. I may be talking to our team, or an opponent, or I may be deflecting, or I may be trying to throw an opponent off.?
Another caller bemoaned what is a common refrain here...why aren't the Cs more creative in clutch situations. Why it is just JT pounding the rock and then taking a bad shot?
The same caller also asked why the Celtics? offense isn?t more creative in clutch situations. Jayson Tatum ?just gets the ball and pounds it into the ground,? the caller said. Why aren?t there better plays drawn up?
?End of quarters, as long as we get the two-for-one,? Mazzulla said. ?We missed it last night. If you were watching the game we didn?t end the quarter with a two-for-one and we ended up with the possession on defense. So, there?s two things there ? one we?ve got to get the possession on the two-for-one on the offensive end and we have to trust our process and our players to get the best shot possible.?
Another asked if the Cs would be a better team without JB.
Another caller asked if the Celtics will be a better team without Jaylen Brown.
?The answer is different,? Mazzulla said. ?I don?t think it?s about better or worse, it?s about different. It?s about two things ? we?ve talked about it a bunch during the offseason. One. just the gratitude of people who made the Celtics better than they found it from a community standpoint, from a competitive standpoint.?
?Obviously, his career as a Celtic will go down in history and now we?re in a situation where we?re looking to create that for the current team that we have now ? it?s never a question of better or worse, it?s always a question of different and taking advantage of the strengths that you have.?
And this last one is also a CelticsStrong special - is Joe willing to change his strategy from just "chucking 3s"? Maybe attack the rim now and then?
The Celtics led the league by a wide margin in 3-point attempts per game (46.1) during the playoffs last season, despite losing in the first round to Philadelphia.
Would Mazzulla be willing to change his strategy?
?I think it all depends on the matchup and who you?re playing against in whatever round that you?re in,? Mazzulla said. ?A lot of that goes back to the shot selection standpoint of the defenses and the coverages and the matchup that you?re playing against.?
?One thing we did to work to change that last year was the offensive rebounding. We got really good at that. I thought in the series last year, Philly was really good at taking those away. Our crashing was really good, but we didn?t get the rebounds to get more shots. So, it?s a combination of all of it.?
https://www.boston.com/sports/boston-celtics/2026/10/15/joe-mazzulla-took-live-calls-about-the-celtics-on-98-5-the-sports-hub-the-callers-didnt-hold-back/?p1=hp_primary
The 16 minute segment can see seen on Youtube on the link below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0_nLrKmeHII didn't agree with all his answers (what do I know
) but I give him credit for at least facing the wrath of Celtics fandom...I would actually love it if he did this more often
