The Boston Celtics pulled the rug from under the Indiana Pacers to win Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals in overtime, but Bill Simmons said this was no thanks to Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla.
Simmons opined on The Bill Simmons Podcast (skip to 21:33) on how Mazzulla has not made the right game plan preparations, even if the Celtics coach had a much longer lead time over the Pacers.
“I'm still kind of in a dark place even after a great win. I just don't know if I trust the coach [Joe Mazzulla],” Simmons said. “I'm just gonna be honest, I don't know if I trust his ability to read a series or a game ahead of time, and it feels like by Game 4 they'll be making some of these adjustments.”
Joe Mazzulla outcoached by Rick Carlisle, says Bill Simmons
The Pacers are two days removed from a tough seven-game series against the New York Knicks in the second round, but Bill Simmons said that Rick Carlisle was still able to outcoach Joe Mazzulla and knew how to take advantage of the Celtics.
“[Rick] Carlisle just had this team so figured out heading into Game 1. He knew like the three things. I'm going to put Siakam at the foul line, when they put their bench out I'm going to attack this, I'm going to unleash [Obi] Toppin when he goes in, I'm gonna keep trying to hunt [Al] Horford especially in the fourth quarter, like he was saving that a little bit you know because it wasn't like they're hunting Horford the whole game they're picking their spots, and then fourth quarter they really started going after him,” Simmons shared.
Despite Simmons seeing Carlisle outcoaching Mazzulla, Carlisle put the blame on himself for not calling a crucial timeout late in the fourth quarter that would have prevented a game-changing turnover from Andrew Nembhard.
The comments by Simmons on Mazzulla was not new, as he has been previously critical of the Celtics coach since replacing Ime Udoka. This may have been another case of Simmons, a Celtics superfan, playing “Monday morning quarterback” in pointing out Boston's flaws in an otherwise masterful execution down the stretch.
Jaylen Brown credits Jrue Holiday as Game 1 hero
Jaylen Brown knocked down big shots down the stretch for the Celtics, including a tough left corner 3-pointer with 5.7 seconds remaining, to carry the Celtics to a 133-128 victory to go up 1-0 in the best-of-seven series with the Pacers. Despite his impressive stat line, Brown gave props to Jrue Holiday for his hard-nosed defense, especially on top Pacers scorer Tyrese Haliburton.
“Jrue [Holiday] was exceptional. Shout out to Jrue. Jrue came out and balled and he's the reason why we won this game,” said Brown. “I think he was just poised and took advantage of his matchups. He just was so elite. And he's guarding [Tyrese] Haliburton, picking him up, chasing him around—that was special from Jrue Holiday. Being able to come out, knock down shots, and make some big plays at the rim.”
Brown had 26 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals. Meanwhile, Holiday had 28 points, seven rebounds, eight assists, and three steals. Jayson Tatum led the way with 36 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, and three steals.
Game 2 of the Celtics-Pacers series will be on Thursday, May 23, at 8:00 p.m. ET.
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