The Boston Celtics have made Joe Mazzulla official as their new ‘head coach’ after temporarily replacing the separated Ime Udoka, who was involved in a scandal within the Massachusetts franchise.
Mazzulla had been working as ‘interim coach’ while Udoka was suspended. However, the good performance of the team has resulted in him being promoted, as well as gaining a new contract extension, although the terms of his new deal are unknown at the moment.
“As he has already shown, Joe is a great coach and a very talented leader,” said Brad Stevens. “He has a unique ability to galvanize a room around a mission. We are grateful for the work he has done to help us get to this point, and excited that he has agreed to guide us into the future.”
It should be noted that Mazzulla’s Celtics are leading the NBA and the Eastern Conference with a record of 42-17, and they have also added 7 victories in the last 10 games they have played. They are followed closely behind by Antetokounmpo’s Bucks with a 40-17 record.
For his part, Udoka presumably will leave the Celtics in the next few hours, and had previously aroused the interest of the Nets as soon as Steve Nash’s dismissal was confirmed. In his only season on the bench he went a remarkable 51-31, losing in the NBA Finals to Stephen Curry’s Warriors.
(Cover photo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
