CHARLESTON — When Mike Conley was a little kid playing basketball, all he worried about was making sure that his 10-year-old teammates were having fun.
“I can remember being in elementary school, on little rec league teams where you had a mix of boys and girls, and I was doing my best to get all people involved,” Conley told CelticsBlog in an exclusive interview. “Like, I knew I might have been the best on the court and could score every time, but I was like, let me just make sure that he got a shot,
or she got a shot, and just make sure that everybody was happy and having fun.”
Looking back, Conley is still not entirely sure why involving teammates was such a priority to his 10-year-old self. Part of it, he admits, was the result of how he was raised: both his mom and dad constantly hammered home the importance of caring for others.
“They really made it seem like the world is always bigger than you,” Conley said. “It’s not about you. Your time here is: how can you affect people in a positive way and change people’s lives? That’s been the mantra from day one.”
In any case, it’s no surprise that nearly 30 years later, Conley is widely heralded as one of the best teammates and sportsmen in basketball. He’s famously never been called for a technical foul. He’s won four NBA Sportsmanship Awards, the most of any player in NBA history. And he’s earned the league’s Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award twice, most recently in 2024 with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
“Leadership just comes naturally to him,” Joe Mazzulla said. “People flock to him.”
After years of it almost happening, Conley landed in Boston in July, signing a 1-year deal as a 38-year-old free agent. In part because they both hail from Indiana, Conley and Brad Stevens have known each other for a long time, and they’d gotten in contact almost every time the point guard was a free agent during his illustrious career.
But it just never worked out.
“The timing was never there,” Conley said. “And then, ironically enough, 20 years into it, the timing finally is right.”
And while Conley is not in his basketball prime, he arrives in Boston ready to bring the leadership and mentorship he’s become so well known for across the league.
“It’s part of the job at this stage of my career,” he said. “I understand it. I understand there’s going to be a lot of times where I don’t play. There’s going to be some times where I’m needed. There are other times where I’m just needed to be the voice for a big stretch of the season. Being comfortable with that, and being able to own that, is my role and my job.”
No one has benefitted more from his mentorship so far than Payton Pritchard
Since training camp began last week, Pritchard has spoken extensively about how helpful Conley has been for him. The two 6’1 guards share the same player development coach this season — God Shammgod Jr. — and they begin their practices with joint workouts. On off days, the two like to golf.
“He’s just reliable, and just a good dude,” Pritchard said. “He’s somebody you can always talk to and lean on.”
Pritchard’s presence in Boston was a draw for Conley, and something he made note of from the start.
“When I signed here, he was one guy I had pegged as like, hey, I’ve loved this game from afar,” Conley said. “If there’s anything I can do to help him, I will do it.”
Little did he know just how much Pritchard would want to be mentored by him.
“We’ve been working out ever since I set foot in Boston, every little micro detail,” Conley said. “He’s so easy to be around because he wants to learn; he asks a ton of questions, texts me at nighttime, and hits me early in the morning about something that he has an idea about.”
So, on Sunday night in Charleston, as the Celtics enjoyed a team dinner at their hotel, Pritchard peppered Conley with basketball questions.
“We’re just sitting there watching football, and he’s like, ‘So you think my pace is a little bit too fast? You think I should slow down on certain things?” Conley recalled.
The questions continued throughout the night.
“When do you feel like you were the best version of yourself?” Pritchard asked Conley.
“He was gauging what I was like at certain ages, and how I was at his age, at 28,” Conley said. “It’s just fun to be able to give information to somebody that really wants it.”
Interestingly, Conley serves as a shining example that the future holds endless possibilities; he became the first player to be named an All-Star for the first time in his 14th NBA season or later, when he was an All-Star replacement in 2021 at age 34. So, he views Pritchard’s future as extremely bright.
And Pritchard relishes the chance to pick the veteran’s brain. He’s been asking him for advice on how to draw more fouls without becoming a flopper and how to be a better facilitator.
“As somebody that’s looked up to Mike, [I ask him] how he thinks of the game and how he was able to create his shots and create shots for his teammates and maybe handle playing the point guard position, momentum swings,” Pritchard said. “He’s been in a lot of great environments, great playoff series. How was he able to kill in those moments and dominate the game?”
Conley has grown as a teammate throughout his career
While it was always Conley’s natural instinct to be a good teammate, he feels it’s only become easier with the years.
“When you’re 18, you’re in a room full of 25, 30-year-old guys, and you’re just trying to find your way as an individual,” Conley said. “You’re trying to learn from them as much as you can, and take the back seat, and take your bumps and bruises along the way. And when your time comes, when you’re given more on your plate, when you’re given more responsibility, you take those lessons that you learned from your vets, lessons that you learned from your coaches, and the stuff you’ve instilled throughout your life, and apply it.”
As such, in Year 20 as a pro, he feels poised to lead, even in a locker room filled with NBA champions like Jayson Tatum, Payton Pritchard, Derrick White, and Sam Hauser.
Not every aspect of leadership and teamwork came naturally; Conley did not enjoy calling out his teammates early in his career, but over time he came to accept that it was an important part of his role. As his reputation as a good teammate and leader grew, he felt empowered to speak up, even when it wasn’t always comfortable.
“If there’s a guy who’s got bad body language, I’ll approach them like, ‘Man, this isn’t how we want to be seen. This isn’t our culture. This isn’t how we react.’”
And if he sees teammates disrespecting one another or communicating in a way that isn’t productive, he’ll weigh in.
“I’m big on how people address certain people,” Conley said. “Not everybody can be addressed the same way, just the way they emotionally are set up. So, just trying to balance that; being able to step in and say what I need to say, when I need to say it.”
Joe Mazzulla has already observed Conley exhibiting the same caretaking instincts he had as a kid.
“He’s constantly coming into the building, worrying about others and not thinking of himself,” he said. “It says a lot about him. He comes in very present: how can he help the team?”
Luka Garza is intimately familiar with Conley’s impact in a locker room; the two were teammates on the Minnesota Timberwolves for three seasons.
“He’s the best,” Garza said. “He’s able to connect with every guy on the team. He has just a rare skill, but also just is the same, man. Every day, he shows up with a consistent, positive energy.”
Conley is also instilling a sense of perspective in his younger Celtics teammates
It’s only been a few months, and game action hasn’t even begun, but Conley is already wildly impressed by what he’s experiencing in Boston. He’s not thrown off by the fact that he’s a few months older than Joe Mazzulla — he already experienced that when coached by Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy
“I’ve learned a lot, actually, just from being here for a month — from Joe, from the staff, from the culture, the way things are run here,” he said. “It’s a lot. It’s very unique, a very unique place.”
And, as he acclimates, he finds himself constantly hammering home to his younger teammates just how good they have it in Boston.
“I’m telling these guys, I’ve been a lot of places, and you’re not going to find much better than what you have here, as far as the coaches, the way they work, the facilities, the healthcare, all the things that are intertwined in there,” he said. “So, I’m really impressed and excited to spend a year here.”
Jordan Walsh has been among those who have appreciated Conley’s presence.
“He’s an all-around great guy who tries to take mentoring to another level,” Walsh said.
Walsh laughed as he remembered another aspect of Conley’s presence he appreciates: “Then, of course, there’s the occasional ‘I’m 40. I’m ready for this sub,’” he said. “That’s great as well.”
There’s a world where Conley lands in Boston years ago, when he was still among the best point guards in the game. He can’t help thinking about that scenario sometimes.
“Obviously, I wish it happened earlier,” Conley said. “But hey, I’m grateful for every stop I’ve had, and grateful to be here.”
“It’s been a long time coming.”
