Jayson Tatum was honest about what the last two-plus weeks of training camp have been like for him and the Celtics.
“Practice has been hard as (expletive), I ain’t gonna lie,” the Celtics star said.
The competitive portions of Celtics practice are closed off from viewing, but the energy on the courts of the Auerbach Center have been apparent from behind closed curtains over the last two weeks. Players have raved about the competitiveness. Something feels different.
It makes sense. A year ago, the Celtics were in the process of navigating an adverse situation after head coach Ime Udoka was suddenly suspended on the eve of training camp. First-time head coach Joe Mazzulla stepped in and did his best, but he was learning on the fly.
“I honestly don’t remember much about the beginning of last year,” Mazzulla admitted. “It happened so fast.”
But with a season under his belt and a full summer of preparation, Mazzulla has organized training camp to his liking. It’s been well received by his players.
“I give Joe a lot of credit. I’ve seen the growth,” Tatum said. “Not that he didn’t do a great job last year, but he’s just had more time to prepare. He was able to get a staff that he felt like supported him the best way. And he’s helped change the culture a little bit in a lot of ways honestly. I feel like he’s had his imprint on how he wants things to be, how he wants to practice, how he wants the environment, the vibe. And we’ve all bought in. …
“Joe has done a great job in kind of taking charge, doing things the way, you know, how he wants (them done). It’s his thing, he’s the coach. And it’s been really cool to see that.”
Payton Pritchard revealed earlier this week that practices have included more group work and team drills than previous camps that had more individual-focused work. The players are embracing that change, too, especially as they get some new players acclimated and try to build chemistry.
“I think that will pay dividends in the future,” Pritchard said.
Mazzulla said the Celtics’ atypical preseason schedule – which has included more time for practices – has been a benefit for his team. They’ve had some two-a-days. There has been more time intense, group-focused practices. Kristaps Porzingis said practices have consistently been high intensity. He mentioned that Tatum and Jaylen Brown went at it at the end of last Saturday’s practice. It’s carried through the rest of the roster.
“We’ve been working hard,” Tatum said. “The second unit’s been pushing the first unit. We have a lot of competitive days, so guys are excited, guys are in good shape, guys have been working this offseason. There’s just like a freshness about this season. We have a new staff, new guys on the team. I think everybody’s just really excited and ready to get going.”
Ego check
One word that’s been mentioned multiple times from Celtics stars recently: Sacrifice.
The Celtics are littered with talent and boast at least six players capable of starting. Mazzulla has insisted the starting lineup night to night won’t matter, but there is still an ego check involved with coming off the bench, or watching from the sidelines during a game’s critical moments.
“It’s been an adjustment period,” Tatum said. “At some points this year everybody’s gonna have to sacrifice. Essentially we’ve probably got six starters. And you can only play five, only five guys can finish the game. So between those six guys, any given night somebody might come off the bench, somebody might not finish, and it’s on all of us to understand that whoever’s night it is it’s for the better of the team. And we really have to buy into that. And it’s not easy sacrificing but it’s something we all have to do.”
On Tuesday night, Al Horford – who has started the vast majority of his career – came off the bench, and performed admirably in the role. He made three hustle plays in the first half that Mazzulla mentioned were the three clips he and his staff showed at halftime.
“If Al can come off the bench at this stage of his career, nobody should have anything to say if you’re the guy that’s coming off the bench or Joe takes you out of the game or if you don’t finish,” Tatum said. “And everybody has to have a team-first mindset to accomplish what we’re trying to do.”
It could be others on any given night. Derrick White or Jrue Holiday could come off the bench, too. No matter what lineup Mazzulla uses, one of the Celtics’ best players will be sitting at any juncture of the game, when the team is fully healthy. That necessary sacrifice doesn’t seem like it will be an issue.
“Honestly, I don’t think these guys care, but all we care about is winning and playing the right way,” Porzingis said. “We’re gonna trust Joe with those kinds of things and the rotations and there’s gonna be some nights somebody’s gonna rest and the starting five is gonna look different. So we’re prepared for it all and, and it doesn’t really make a huge difference for us.”
