Joe Mazzulla should take notes from Mike Budenholzer
Eric Hartline- USA Today Sports
Mike Budenholzer, a championship-winning head coach, was just fired by the Milwaukee Bucks. He won a championship with the team just two seasons ago. And yet his team let him go. This is mainly because the Bucks, the number one seed in the East and one of the presumed favorites to win it all this year, lost to the Miami Heat in five games in the first round.
No, this article isn’t about Mike Budenholzer or the Bucks. There’s a lot of nuance to that situation that won’t be covered in this article. But one thing Budenhlozer was almost unanimously ripped for in the decisive game 5 was not calling a timeout and drawing up a play at the end of regulation. Though there was only half a second left on the clock, they could’ve come up with SOMETHING, and calling a timeout would’ve advanced the ball up the court at least. Then, at the end of overtime when the Bucks needed to score to stay alive, the offense was breaking down, but Budenholzer didn’t call a timeout, leading to time expiring and the Bucks’ elimination.
Again, this article is not about Mike Budenholzer. It is about a different head coach, Joe Mazzulla, who is similarly allergic to taking timeouts. It’s about his performance in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals between the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers. In the final 18 seconds of overtime, the Celtics were down by one single point. 18 seconds is plenty of time to get down the court and score, but as Marcus Smart and then Jayson Tatum dribbled down, it became clear that nothing was opening up. There was no offensive motion. And suddenly, the clock was running out, a last second pass was forced to Smart, who flung up a prayer of a three point shot that went in. However, it was released far too late, so the Sixers ended up winning by a point.
In any given basketball game determined by such a slim margin, any play can make or break the entire game. If one or two baskets had fallen Boston’s way instead of bouncing in and out, maybe there is no overtime at all, and Boston returns to TD Garden with a 3-1 series lead. If Jaylen Brown slides out to cover James Harden, maybe the last basket is worth 2 points and not 3, or doesn’t happen at all. Maybe it’s not fair to blame the loss entirely on Mazzulla.
But Mazzulla is extremely notorious for letting the players play and not using his timeouts in these types of situations. And while the sentiment is nice, the team is at a point where that is not acceptable anymore. It’s extremely realistic that even if he HAD called a timeout and drawn up a play, it wouldn’t have worked out. It’s the playoffs, and stuff happens. However, as a head coach, it is your JOB to set up your players and put them in a position to succeed. Simply taking your hands off the reins in the closing seconds of a playoff game won’t cut it. You need to help your players if they are struggling (and they were, nobody could get an open look).
The Celtics were Eastern Conference champions last season, making an NBA Finals appearance but falling short. Anything less than a championship title this season will be a disappointment given that it is the exact same team plus Malcolm Brogdon, the Sixth Man of the Year.
A championship-winning head coach was fired because his team was expected to compete for the championship and was eliminated earlier than expected. It’s not necessarily likely that Joe Mazzulla will be fired if he comes up short, and the series is only 2-2, so it’s not doomsday for the Celtics at all. But it could prove to be very wise if Mazzulla took some notes from the fired Bucks head coach and called timeouts in future late-game situations.
It’s worth acknowledging that he did admit he should’ve called a timeout at the end of overtime and that he will learn from that moving forward. Good. Let’s see if that is true in another last second situation. The players could use some set plays or a different look on the court. And it could be the difference between winning or going home.
