Mazzulla went to bat for Tatum and Brown
The Celtics have been at the forefront of some pretty weird criticism in recent weeks, specifically as it pertains to Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, and Joe Mazzulla’s had enough.
Tatum and Brown have been compared for months years their entire careers. It’s popular to pit them against one another for their differences, both on and off the court, despite pushback from nearly everyone in Boston who has spent time with them over the last seven seasons.
Mazzulla was asked about the criticism and used his Friday press conference at Auerbach Center to sound off on it.
“I’m kind of praying about how deep I really want to get into that,” Mazzulla said. “The whole thing about that really pisses me off, and I think it’s unfair to both of them. I think it’s stupid that people have to use those two guys’ names and use information they don’t know to create clickbait so they can stay relevant.
“It’s very unfair that those two get compared. They’re two completely different people. They’re two completely different players. They’re great teammates. They love each other, and they go about winning — they go about their processes in a different what. Why they always have to be lumped together, I think is unfair.”
Mazzulla continued while doing some comparing of his own, bringing up other famed duos around the league and the lack of negative attention they get.
“You see other duos around the league don’t have to go through that,” Mazzulla said. “It’s because of the platform they have, it’s because they’ve been so successful their entire careers. They’ve been able to (have long-standing) success at a high level, so people need them in order to stay relevant.
“… They’re two of the greatest teammates and players you can have, and it’s been an honor to coach them. It doesn’t mean they have to be the same. It’s (expletive). I love both of them and they deserve better.”