Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla definitely listens when Celtics alumni like Kendrick Perkins criticize how the team is run. On February 13, Perkins criticized the Celtics for not posting up enough and taking too many threes.
“When you also have their personnel, I would love to see more post-ups from the wings and the guards,” Perkins said on ESPN’s “NBA Today.” “Again, it’s about finding that balance and not just being a 3-point shooting team. Because if those 3s are not falling, what else are you going to lean on? I feel like they have the personnel to do it. They just have to get it done and start practicing it now.”
Perk: The Celtics don’t post up enough. They have nothing to rely on if the 3s don’t go in.
Celtics in the post this season:
‣ Post up frequency – 7.3% – 2nd in the league
‣ Post up efficiency – 1.17ppp – 1st in the league
After the Celtics beat the Nets, one reporter asked Mazzulla about the Celtics’ postup frequency this season.
“We talked over the last week or so,” Mazzulla responded, per Celtics.com’s Taylor Snow’s X account. “We definitely think we need to post more. I don’t think we’re posting enough.”
Mazzulla later clarified his facetiousness, saying, “I was joking. We’re second in frequency and first in efficiency.”
Not only is Perkins objectively incorrect on this front, but even if the Celtics are relying on threes, it’s getting results. The Celtics score 120.4 points per 100 possessions, per NBA.com, which ranks No. 2 behind the Pacers in offensive rating.
Joe Mazzulla’s Thoughts on Celtics All-Star Snubs
The Celtics will have two players who will represent the team at the 2024 All-Star Game: Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. At the same time, the Celtics also had two players who just missed the cut even after the Eastern Conference had two injury replacements: Kristaps Porzingis and Derrick White.
On February 13, Mazzulla put the league on blast for not including either one of them in the All-Star Game.
“Clearly, winning is not important, huh? Winning’s not valuable,” Mazzulla said, per CLNS Media Boston Sports Network’s YouTube Channel. “How could you not put both of those guys in? Winning’s not the most important in the league.”
Mazzulla added that what makes them special is what they value the most.
“They are the guys that have been around and just want to play the right way. They want to be a part of winning, and winning’s the most important thing to those two guys. At the end of the day, that’s all that matters.”
Joe Mazzulla Has Responded to Kendrick Perkins Before
Joe Mazzulla has definitely heard what naysayers like Perkins have said about him. When the Celtics lost to the Nuggets on January 20, Kendrick Perkins called Joe Mazzulla a name to criticize his coaching style.
“They have two Joe Mazzullas,” Perkins said on NBA Countdown. “They have the one that got the philosophy of we’re going to get up more 3s than you. When they hit them, he looks great. Then you have the other Joe Mazzulla, who just stands over there, and you wonder. If you take his brain out and you put it in a bird, the bird is going to start flying backwards. You got that Joe Mazzulla.”
Before the Celtics played the Pacers in their next game, reporters asked Mazzulla about the Celtics injuries, including Porzingis, Al Horford, and Luke Kornet.
Mazzulla jokingly replied with, “I’m a bird brain. You know I can’t do that.”
Mazzulla with a quick injury update for tonight 🐦
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Joe Mazzulla Throws Shade at Kendrick Perkins Over Dig at Celtics