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Boston Celtics make Joe Mazzulla permanent head coach on extension
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Joe Mazzulla, head coach of the Boston Celtics, looks on during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, February 12, 2023. /CFP
Joe Mazzulla, head coach of the Boston Celtics, looks on during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, February 12, 2023. /CFP

Joe Mazzulla, head coach of the Boston Celtics, looks on during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, February 12, 2023. /CFP

Joe Mazzulla has become the permanent head coach of the Boston Celtics and signed a multi-year contract extension, the team announced on Thursday.

"I think one of the things that's pretty obvious and evident about Joe is he's a really good coach, and he's also just an outstanding leader," the Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said at the press conference on Thursday. "I think he's done a great job, right from the get-go of, again, kind of like I said, galvanizing a locker room around a mission."

Mazzulla became the Celtics' assistant coach under Stevens in 2019. Before the 2022-23 had begun, he took over from Ime Udoka and became the interim coach, who led the team to lead the NBA with a 42-17 record before the All-Star break. He will coach Team Giannis – if Giannis Antetokounmpo plays – in the All-Star Game in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Sunday.

L-R: Jaylen Brown, coach Joe Mazzulla, owner Wyc Grousbeck and Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics pose for a photo for the NBA All-Star nominations of Brown, Mazzulla and Tatum ahead of the game against the Detroit Pistons at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, February 15, 2023. /CFP
L-R: Jaylen Brown, coach Joe Mazzulla, owner Wyc Grousbeck and Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics pose for a photo for the NBA All-Star nominations of Brown, Mazzulla and Tatum ahead of the game against the Detroit Pistons at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, February 15, 2023. /CFP

L-R: Jaylen Brown, coach Joe Mazzulla, owner Wyc Grousbeck and Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics pose for a photo for the NBA All-Star nominations of Brown, Mazzulla and Tatum ahead of the game against the Detroit Pistons at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, February 15, 2023. /CFP

"As far as the timing of it, from the standpoint of this is, the one thing, they've obviously done a great job, they've obviously put themselves in position to compete for the things we want to ultimately compete for thus far, and I want to give them the opportunity to finish the regular season strong, hopefully the postseason strong and not be in a cloud of uncertainty. I think that they certainly have earned that, and, Joe specifically, has just done a great job," Stevens said.

Mazzulla became the 19th head coach in the Celtics' history. His predecessors included Red Auerbach, Bill Russell, Tom Heinsohn, Bill Fitch, K. C. Jones and Doc Rivers, who have combined to win 17 NBA championships, a league record that they shared with the Los Angeles Lakers.

"Ever since I've been here, even as an assistant, I've always felt their support, I've always felt their communication, I've always felt their honesty," Mazzulla said. "So I always knew exactly where I stood. Even though it was an interim position, I knew exactly where I stood. I knew I would get a fair shake, an opportunity. I knew that I was going to be able to do the way that I thought to give you the best chance to be able to be successful because of that. Because of their standard and their communication and how they treated me as an assistant, I just felt comfortable regardless."

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