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Joe Mazzulla Cannot

Explain Not Taking

Timeouts in Celtics'

Game 4 Loss to Sixers

As he has throughout the season, Joe Mazzulla challenged the Celtics to figure it out on the fly in their Game 4 loss to the Sixers.

 Why are you a coach, Joe?

Joe Mazzulla's timeout usage has been a hot topic this season. ...

The first-year bench boss has demonstrated flexibility with that approach as he gets more comfortable managing games. 

See, Joe wasn't "comfortable managing games" because he is a "first-year bench boss" with a bone in his brain.

But down the stretch in regulation and overtime of Boston's 116-115 Game 4 loss to the Sixers, Mazzulla repeatedly opted against taking a timeout

...in the final two minutes, the Celtics had three possessions in that stretch, scoring on one and getting good shots on all three, including a clean look at a game-winning three by Marcus Smart.

And after Jaylen Brown made the mistake of helping off him in the corner to aid Jayson Tatum in trying to stop Joel Embiid from scoring at the rim, Harden buried a three that put the Sixers ahead by one, 116-115, with 19 seconds left.

Again, Mazzulla declined to take a timeout.

And again, Boston created a quality look at a three for Smart. The problem is it took too long to initiate the offense, and the Celtics' floor general made the shot, but it didn't leave his hand in time...

See, that's a problem, Joe. You'll learn that when you get more comfortable managing games. How long you figure that's going to take you, Joe?

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Mazzulla’s decision drew criticism after the game, with fans and pundits wondering why he didn’t call a timeout to draw up a possible game-winning play. When asked post-game if he considered calling a timeout, Mazzulla declined to answer the question, instead addressing the same reporter’s follow-up question asking him what the final play was supposed to be.

“That was the play, we just had to play with a little more pace,” Mazzulla said, referencing Boston not getting a shot off in time. “We had the right matchup. Jayson got downhill, made the right play at the rim, we just had to play with a bit more pace there. But that was the play.”  

Sure it was, Joe! Why didn't you say so in the first place?