Joe Mazzulla Content With Celtics Roster Despite Open Vacancy

BOSTON — February’s NBA trade deadline saw the Celtics make a few minor moves in adding Xavier Tillman Sr. and Jaden Springer, but when the dust settled the team still had its final roster seat opened, and it’s yet to be filled.

The Celtics had their chance to explore options in the buyout market although with the limited budget of needing to remain beneath the non-taxpayer mid-level exception ($12.4 million). Instead, Boston has elected to ride the horse that’s built an NBA-best 54-14 record and hasn’t lost more than twice consecutively throughout the season. Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla doesn’t have an issue with that.

“I actually haven’t put any thought into it,” Mazzulla said before Wednesday night’s matchup against the Bucks at TD Garden. “As far as I’m concerned, the guys that we have is who we go with. They’ve done a great job up until this point, every single one of them when their name has been called. And then we have really good alignment and communication as far as ownership and the front office and the building in general. So if there’s something that we feel like can put us in position to win we do it, but at the same time, I love everything everybody in the locker room has given us.”

Dalano Banton and Lamar Stevens, both of which never found their strides before the deadline, were Boston’s only departures. Then again, once the deadline came around and competitive teams scrambled for a last-minute roster polish or two, the Celtics didn’t raise enough concerns to warrant an urgent level of activity from the front office.

Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens got ahead of the deadline frenzy better than any other executive across the league in the offseason. Stevens pulled off two blockbuster deals, acquiring Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday and signing co-star Jaylen Brown to a record-setting $304 million extension. The offseason signaled the end of Boston’s involvement in any potential major roster swings, but it also proved to be more than enough.

The starting five — Jayson Tatum, Brown, Porzingis, Holiday and Derrick White — can only be matched by a few teams across the league. The depth? It’s been the most underappreciated aspect. Boston’s played seven games without two or more staters available and the team hasn’t lost once.

Since Nov. 14, when the Celtics overtook the Philadelphia 76ers as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, Boston hasn’t fallen from the top. But even that isn’t allowing Mazzulla and the Celtics to get too cozy with 14 games remaining before the playoffs roll around.

“There’s no such thing as comfortable in the NBA,” Mazzulla said of Boston’s 10-game lead over Milwaukee. “… You have to find that balance of understanding that it’s 10 games and you gotta continue to do what you do. Just gotta live in that space.”

Pritchard, White and the rest of last season’s remaining roster members have made their pitch to get Blake Griffin back on the floor. Maybe a 14-man roster will be all Boston needs to quickly erase the memories of Game 7 against the Miami Heat and return to the NBA Finals, this time in hopes of sealing the deal.