Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla has an earned reputation as one of the thorniest coaches in the NBA to ask a poorly thought-out question, picking up the mantle of iconic San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich in tat regard. He has also earned a reputation for being one of the league's most demanding coaches, tolerating little in terms of avoidable mistakes.
Yet he is also seen as one of the most popular coaches in the NBA among players themselves. And while it may seem incongruous for Mazzulla to be seen as a bristly, porcupine of a coach in some circles, it is how he approaches the game itself – and motivating his players – that makes him such a popular leader in the league. "It comes back to the guys, they want that for themselves,"
he explained in a recent interviewwith the "No Show Dogs" podcast. "I don't think you can ... make someone do something that they don't want to do."
"I think at the end of the day, we're just facilitators, and so we have a group of guys again— our front office scours resources to bring in the right people and then you have the right people, and then you're just helping facilitate that."
"But it's the guys that have to make the decision to want to do that, and they all do that," he continued. "But off-the-court stuff, that to me is my favorite thing to do – it's my favorite."
"It's learning about different people ...we've got guys that are married, guys that are married with no kids, guys that are married with kids. We've got guys that are single, got guys that are in relationships, guys from different religions, guys from different countries. I mean, in the building alone, we have players from seven different countries and employees from nine different countries. So learning is the coolest part about ... each guy or having conversations about your wife or your kids. You get to meet people where they're at and have an understanding of (the fact that) we're all on a journey. How can we be on a journey together?"
"But along the way, how can we learn about each other and have an understanding of (why) I can't be the best, I can't be who I am if I don't understand who you are," said Mazzulla. "And we've got to do that together."
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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Joe Mazzulla breaks down how he motivates the Boston Celtics players
