A stretch of 16 games in 28 days, with 10 on the road, followed by the All-Star break, made it tough for the Celtics to squeeze in practice time.
However, with two days between games, the Celtics seized the rare opportunity for a session on Saturday morning at the Auerbach Center.
Throughout Training Camp and the season, practices often feature special guests. Paul Pierce, Eddie House, Leon Powe, Satch Sanders, and Stephen Silas have been seen in recent seasons.
On Saturday, the guest was new Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel, who observed the session after being invited by Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla. Vrabel didn’t address the team but left an impression.
“It was great,” Mazzulla said on having Vrabel attend the session. “He obviously brings a championship perspective.”
Vrabel played eight seasons for the Patriots from 2001 to 2008 and won three Super Bowls—catching touchdowns in two. The 49-year-old was voted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2023.
“He’s a legend, for sure,” said Derrick White.
“It’s pretty cool. I went to Vanderbilt and lived in Nashville when he was with the Titans, and so I followed him quite a bit there,’ said Luke Kornet. “I’m pretty pumped that he’s back in New England and looking forward to their season starting and him being the coach. I think he is awesome.”
Mazzulla has stressed the importance of building relationships with other coaches in the city, emphasizing the value of sticking together, helping each other, and leaning on each other’s experiences. Last summer, he was a guest at Patriots training camp, spending time with then-coach Jerod Mayo. He previously attended Patriots practice under Bill Belichick, where he sat in defensive meetings with Mayo and Steve Belichick.
The Rhode Island native has also built a relationship with Alex Cora and had discussions with former Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery. Additionally, he attended a Boston College football practice under Bill O’Brien.
“The four [coaches] that have these jobs – for however long they have it – there’s got to be a brotherhood there,” Mazzulla said on Saturday. “There’s got to be communication and understanding of we’re all carrying a responsibility to compete at a high level and to bring championships to the city, so you’ve got to learn from each other and have their perspective.”
Beyond support, Mazzulla pulls insights from the other sports—UFC, soccer, football, and baseball. The Celtics even incorporate different sports into their own practice sessions.
“Joe does a great job of showing us clips and things from different sports,” Jayson Tatum said. “I don’t know the terminology of the UFC, but put ‘em in a chokehold and s—, they’re about to tap out, and you see the guy or the woman that’s winning relaxing because they feel like they are about to win, and then you get the other person light. Just trying to translate that to the game of basketball.”
While Mazzulla is still getting to know Vrabel personally, Mazzulla says he’s long been aware of what the 2021 NFL Coach of the Year accomplished both as a player and coach—potentially a valuable resource as Mazzulla aims to become a multi-time champion himself.
“Any time you can just get together with guys that are in the same arena as we are and support each other, I think that’s important,” said Mazzulla.
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