Joe Mazzulla makes surprising admission following Boston's historic collapse originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Saturday night was one of the roughest in Boston Celtics history. Joel Embiid put up 34 points. Tyrese Maxey added 30 more. Three players making their first-ever playoff starts in a Game 7 combined for zero points on 0-for-7 shooting.
The 76ers walked out of TD Garden with a 109-100 win, completing the first 3-1 comeback against the Celtics in the franchise's 80-season history.
Joe Mazzulla faced reporters after all of it
"Too many times it's all about winning, winning, winning," Mazzulla said. "You have to surrender to the idea that when you're going after that, you're gonna fail. We failed by not winning, but we stick to the process of being able to do that."
Mazzulla is a finalist for NBA Coach of the Year. He guided the Celtics to a 56-26 record while Jayson Tatum missed 62 games recovering from a torn Achilles. By any reasonable measure, this season earned respect before Game 7 even tipped.
Joe Mazzulla with an inspiring message:
— SM Highlights (@SMHighlights1) May 3, 2026
“Too many times it’s all about winning, winning, winning. You have to surrender to the idea that when you’re going after that you’re gonna fail, we failed by not winning, but we stick to the process of being able to do that.” pic.twitter.com/SkaZsa8lI9
His starting lineup decision is going to be the subject of every uncomfortable offseason conversation in Boston.
Tatum out due to left knee stiffness. Mazzulla chose to start Baylor Scheierman, Ron Harper Jr., and Luka Garza alongside Jaylen Brown and Derrick White.
The Celtics went scoreless on their first six possessions and were down 11-4 before the first substitution.
"I thought there was a couple things we saw tactically that we wanted to test out," Mazzulla said. "Give the series kind of a different feel."
It did not work.