Mazzulla says former assistant-turned-enemy Charles Lee “breached NBA rules” and forced a hug to knock Mazzulla off his game


Mazzulla says former assistant-turned-enemy Charles Lee “breached NBA rules” and forced a hug to knock Mazzulla off his game

40 comments
  1. I think this is my favorite Joe Mazulla quote yet. He’s genuinely annoyed a friend hugged him. Combine that with a story he told on the Lowe Post that his favorite childhood memory is that of his dad giving him a beat down in an empty parking lot in the rain, his psycho reputation feels completely earned.

  2. I understand people say he’s been leaning more and more into the bit, but damn the look in his eyes and lack of expression just tells me he’s dead serious about what he says.

  3. People say “check his freezer” as if Mazzula wouldnt straight up say

    “YES THEY DESERVE TO DIE, AND I HOPE THEY BURN IN HELL!” at his next press conference

  4. Mazzulla is so fucking funny, and the best part is he is 0% joking. It would be way less hilarious if he were doing a bit but he’s so clearly just telling his psycho truth

  5. This man is the biggest character in the NBA and that is saying something. I genuinely love him (but fuck you Celtics!)

  6. I can just see Lee going in for the hug and Mazzulla doing some jiu-jitsu shit and throwing Lee to the floor, putting him into a guillotine and telling Lee that if he ever tried that again, Joe would choke his ass out.

  7. Joe Mazulla has to be not only one of my favorite coaches, but favorite nba personalities in general lol.

  8. I agree with everyone that it’s really funny and good, and also that he’s 100% sincere and that’s what makes it so funny and good.

    But also it’s kinda cute and sad lol. It’s sad and I feel bad for him, but it’s cute because he doesn’t feel bad at all, he’s absolutely thriving in this truly toxic mind space.

    Good for you, you weird little psycho. You carved out a life for yourself when you can succeed at the highest levels using your emotional disability (?) as a superpower. And really, what more can any of aspire to than that?

  9. With all this, his comments about wanting more fights, and his enjoyment of martial arts, it feels like his love language is physical violence.

    If Charles Lee had instead gone into the locker room and just sucker punched Joe instead I think Mazulla would have been way happier.

  10. I say this without a hint of sarcasm or irony – it should be seen as a genuine inspiration that Joe has accomplished so much in his profession with (whatever you want to call it) his personality. Whether he is autistic or if he’s just really unusual, he has a job that requires managing people in a really high stakes environment, dealing with media and scrutiny, and he’s fucking killing it. I would like a long form magazine style article on him (probably not a book, at least not until he’s retired).

  11. I love how crazy he seems. I never realized how wild he was until that clip started making the rounds where a reporter asked him about some mundane basketball question for a sound bite and he was just like “it doesn’t matter, we’ll all be dead soon anyway.”

  12. This is great and also a bit. Those that think he’s serious need to listen to/watch more improv comedy.

    Sure, there’s a layer of truth in there, but he’s leaning way into it. You can tell he’s joking several times in this clip by his expressions.

  13. Well, I definitely believe he watches the Town a few times as week and couldn’t care less that that was a Jeopardy question. What a strangely intense dude.

  14. Seriously, the dude is a nut. One of my friends played under him at fairmont. apparently one day, after practice, all the other players had left the court, and it was just my friend and joe mazzulla left. joe got this intense look in his eyes and said, “hey, wanna learn something special?” my friend was kind of curious and was like sure definitely. joe mazzulla proceeded to pull out a cassette tape of anderson silva highlights and popped it into an old tv/ver combo he had in his office. they sat down and watched it together, with joe occasionally pausing the tape to explain a particular move or technique. he was like, gently grunting throughout. after they finished watching, joe said, “now it’s your turn.” he had my friend stand up and try to replicate silva’s moves, with joe providing really close guidance and feedback. they went on like this for hours, joe never once losing his enthusiasm or energy. my friend, on the other hand, was completely exhausted by the end and just passed out. he woke up with joe feeding him ice chips and cradling him in his arms with the tape still playing in the background. my friend never forgot that night, and he’s told me it was one of the most memorable experiences of his basketball career. we still laugh about it sometimes, and it’s become kind of a running joke between us. but maybe there’s some truth to the idea that anderson silva’s moves can be applied to the basketball court. or maybe joe mazzulla just really, really loves anderson silva

Leave a Reply