“It felt like a true gift from God” – Joe Mazzulla calls his Celtics head coaching job a gift from the heavens originally appeared on Basketball Network.
Joe Mazzulla admitted that it was surreal for him when he was officially named the new head coach of the Boston Celtics in 2023. Mazzulla initially served as interim head coach for the Cs in the 2022-23 season in place of Ime Udoka, who was suspended for violating the team’s code of conduct that year.
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Serving as an assistant coach for the Celtics since 2019, Joe admits that it took a while to sync in. But in the end, he figured there was a reason behind it and a gift from God.
“It just felt like it was a true gift from God really. You go through a little bit of like, ‘How the hell did I get here slash I don’t belong here.’ But I also, I was put here by God. So like that’s the only way to describe it,” Mazzulla explained when he spoke on “Games with Names.”
Mazzulla deserved coaching promotion
Humble as his explanation was, Mazzulla’s performance proved he deserved the position. As the interim coach, the Rhode Island native impressively led the Celtics to a 42-17 win-loss record that year. That proved to be enough to convince Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens to hand him the head coaching reins.
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“Joe is a very talented coach and leader,” said Stevens in a team statement via Mass Live. “He has a unique ability to galvanize a room around a mission. We are thankful for the work he has done to help get us to this point, and excited that he has agreed to lead us into the future.”
Mazzulla would repay the trust by helping the Celtics become the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference that year with a 57-25 record. They went as deep as the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals before losing out to the Miami Heat in seven games.
It is worth noting that in that series, Boston lost the first three games to the Heat. Boston responded by winning the next three, forcing Miami to a winner-take-all Game 7. Although the South Beach squad won, battling back from a 0-3 deficit showed Mazzulla could round up the Cs and fend off adversity.
In the 2023-24 season, he led the Celtics to a league-best 64-18 win-loss record to get the top overall seed in the league, gliding to the NBA Finals, where they eventually won in five games over the Dallas Mavericks.
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Mazzulla reveals the secret of success with Cs
With his achievements so far in the world of coaching, there is no question that Mazzulla has proven to be one of the brilliant minds in basketball. However, Joe admits that his success with the Celtics is not purely because of him but because of the people he works with.
“You have to have a group of players that allow you to be yourself. And I think you have to create a space where you allow your players to be yourself. And so, I think that identity, you know, where I think it is is, you know, being authentic to who I am,” Mazzulla explained.
Mazzulla’s coaching genius and humility are undoubtedly like no other; however, his head coaching journey is only beginning. The 2025-26 season will be another test for Mazzulla as a coach. His ability to adjust the team will be tested, which will undoubtedly be harder with JT’s uncertain return.
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The Celtics have already made moves this offseason by overhauling their roster. Now, it will be up to Joe to make it all work, hopefully enough to deliver more titles to Bean Town.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 11, 2025, where it first appeared.