Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla has agreed to a multi-year contract extension with the franchise, the team announced Friday.
“This is truly a blessing,” Mazzulla said in a statement. “I would not be here without my faith, my wife, and my children. We are thankful for the partnership with our ownership groups, (president of basketball operations Brad Stevens’) mentorship and the support of our staff. Most importantly, I am grateful for the players I have been able to coach the past three seasons. I look forward to competing for the Celtics and the city of Boston.”
The team did not disclose the terms of the extension.
Mazzulla, who led the Celtics to their 18th championship a year ago, was entering the final year of his contract and is now locked in with the Celtics as they begin a rebuilding phase amidst Jayson Tatum’s Achilles tear and the departures of veterans Kristaps Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday.
“He understands the job and has a passion for the Celtics that is only rivaled by our most die-hard fans,” said Stevens. “He’s worked hard and accomplished amazing things in his first three years as a head coach — including averaging over 60 wins per season and winning the 2024 NBA Championship. Joe is a gifted leader who brings a consistent commitment to learning, improving, and maximizing each day we get to compete for the Boston Celtics.”
Mazzulla had a rocky start to his tenure in his debut season, taking over for a suspended Ime Udoka, but then transformed the organization in his second season to lead the Celtics to another title. He was able to imprint his bold, brash and empathetic personality on the locker room to build a culture that thrived on versatility and problem-solving.
The Celtics tapped into cross-match hunting in the post across the board, which put them at the front of the curve that season as the rest of the league worked to adapt. They built an eight-man rotation where every player could shoot 3s and create for the first time this generation, which led to a record 3-point volume.
Mazzulla adopted polarizing principles, particularly high-frequency 3-point shooting, and stood strong on his approach. This put him on rocky standing in his first season when the team was not fully on the same page, but it led to great success in his second year. Boston had another strong regular season in 2024, but broke down in the second round of the playoffs against the New York Knicks as Jaylen Brown played through a knee injury, Holiday struggled with several ailments, Porziņģis was a shell of himself due to illness and Tatum tore his Achilles.
With Tatum set to miss most, if not all, of next season, Mazzulla will lead a team in a transitional phase. Brown, Derrick White and Payton Pritchard will lead the team, with newcomer Anfernee Simons able to provide scoring punch. Mazzulla was already expected to make changes to the system so the team could keep evolving, but he will have no choice after substantial roster shifts.
The Celtics were willing to extend him based on his success with a stacked locker room, but Mazzulla will now be able to show his chops as a coach working with an incomplete roster.
(Photo: Winslow Townson / Getty Images)
