The Boston Celtics couldn’t completely control their NBA Cup destiny, but head coach Joe Mazzulla pulled out all the stops on Friday night.
- Boston met the Chicago Bulls nearly a year after Mazzulla broke the unwritten rules of basketball by intentionally fouling Andre Drummond to send him to the free-throw line.
- In a similar fashion, the Celtics aimed to improve their point differential in the tournament standings during their 138-129 win over Chicago.
- Mazzulla explained, “One, it’s the point differential so you wanna exhaust as much as you can. But I like it because this tournament and the point differential kind of eliminates all the unwritten rules that you’re supposed to follow or not follow.”
- The Celtics needed to beat the Bulls and run up the score, especially after the Atlanta Hawks defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier, creating a confusing domino effect for Boston’s NBA Cup chances.
