How will Mazzulla motivate the C’s? Forsberg and Giles discuss originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
As the reigning NBA champions, the Boston Celtics The Hunters can expect to have a target on their backs throughout the 2024-25 season. The Hunters will become the prey after finally bringing the elusive Banner 18 to TD Garden.
Joe Mazzulla is not concerned to be targeted. In fact, he’s looking forward to it.
“People will say the target is on our backs, but I hope it’s right on our foreheads between our eyes,” the C’s coach said on a recent episode of the Locked On Celtics podcast“I hope I can see the red dot.”
Mazzulla is unsurprisingly motivated heading into the new campaign, but how will he stop his players from resting on their laurels in the quest for further success? Chris Forsberg and Tom Giles discuss in a new episode of the Celtics Talk Podcast.
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“I’m not worried about complacency with these Celtics,” Forsberg said. “Because I know coach, probably since the day after he got off the boat, was telling them, ‘This is what we’re going to do next year. This is how we’re going to continue.’ I’m not nervous about this team and the idea of going backwards from Day 1.”
Giles agrees the Celtics won’t take their foot off the gas.
“Joe Mazzulla is not going to allow that,” he said. “That’s why I think he’s the perfect coach for this season. I mean, the intensity with the description of the target on his back, just the way he kind of spun that, it speaks volumes about Joe Mazzulla in general. He talked about it a few times last year, just a little bit about how they try to find the play within the game, and he’s going to continue to do that through training camp, through the regular season.
“I’m not worried about that. I think he’s kind of the perfect guy for them because he’s very competitive and very focused.”
USA Basketball has added another chip to the Celtics’ stars Jaylen Brown And Jayson TatumBrown’s shoulders at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Brown was left off the U.S. roster and Tatum was benched for two of the six games, including the semifinal against Serbia.
“If Tatum and Brown had a chance to give themselves a little bit of a treat,” Forsberg said. “They could say, ‘Hey, we finally won this trophy, we proved that we’re elite players.’ And Team USA in particular was like, ‘Wait, just in case you need a little extra energy to start a new season. If you need a little extra focus, here’s a little something for you.’”
“And if I was the rest of the league, I’d be like, ‘Man, why are we giving this team more motivation?'”
Also in the episode:
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How many games will the Celtics win this season?
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Who is the biggest threat in the Eastern Conference?
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What do you want Jaylen Brown to improve this year?
