BOSTON – Emmanuel Mazzulla told his father he could use his jiujitsu skills to beat his opponent with his back turned because he was confident he was better. Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla immediately responded by telling his young son that you always should respect your opponent and “fight with fight” to win, no matter your ability.
Forward Jayson Tatum, guard Jaylen Brown and the talented Celtics are the favorites to become the first repeat champions since the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018. Even so, Mazzulla is ensuring that his Celtics have the mentality to fight with fight against every foe entering the upcoming season that begins Tuesday night against the New York Knicks.
“It’s same thing with basketball. This is where the sustaining success comes in,” Mazzulla told Andscape. “You have to play the game knowing you’re the best but knowing that your opponent could beat you at any time. That’s fighting, that’s life, that’s basketball. That to me is what coaching and playing and being a part of the Celtics is. You have to know you’re the best, but you have to know you didn’t lose at any time.
“And too many times confidence is lost because you’re like, ‘Oh, I can’t think of myself as the best because that’s pride.’ It’s not pride. If you’re good, you’re good. It’s how you handle that. And so, what my son said was, ‘I can give an opponent my back if I think I’m better than you.’ No, everyone’s better than you, but you’re also the best. And can you live in that space.
“We have to know we have one of the best chances to win. One of them. There are a bunch of teams that have a chance. Can we play with the confidence and the humility to know we’re really good, but with the humility to know that we can lose at any time? That’s it.”