Joe Mazzulla Has Bizarre Exchange With Reporter After Celtics’ Loss

Joe Mazzulla apparently went into the archives of Celtics reporting before Wednesday night’s game at Wells Fargo Center.

After Boston’s 106-103 loss to Philadelphia, The Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn asked about the Celtics’ reliance on the 3-pointer against the 76ers. Nearly 50% of the visitors’ shots were from beyond the arc and Mazzulla’s team only converted on 31.9% of them.

The question prompted a bizarre exchange between the second-year head coach and longtime C’s reporter.

Mazzulla: “I just finished reading a great article that you wrote in 2016 — ‘The Celtics shot too many threes.’ They shot 42 and that was seven years ago. We only shot five more tonight and they lost 121-114 (in 2016) and you blamed the offense, but not the defense. So, like, what’s your fascination with too many threes for the last seven years?”

Washburn: “Well, it wasn’t seven years.”

Mazzulla: “Two thousand and 16. It’s 2023. I just read it. It was a great article.”

Washburn: “Thank you.”

Mazzulla: “Yeah. ‘Are the Celtics settling for too many threes?’ You said that seven years ago. You were ahead of the curve.”

Elsewhere in Mazzulla’s postgame availability, he praised Boston for “playing the right way” in its second straight defeat. However, the head coach stressed the importance for his team to showcase “emotional maturity” moving forward.

The Celtics will try to get back in the win column Friday when they play their first-ever in-season tournament game. Tipoff for the matchup with the Brooklyn Nets at a new-look TD Garden is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.