Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla has spent years quietly training in combat sports, and in a conversation with Ariel Helwani, he explained exactly why he prioritizes it alongside one of the most demanding jobs in professional basketball.
Mazzulla has been training for roughly four to five years.
“I would say like 4 or 5 years on and off. Obviously a little bit of it as a kid, but mainly in the last 4 or 5 years or so,” he said.
That journey connected him with MMA coach Eric Nicksic, and the relationship quickly grew beyond the physical work.
“Linking up with Eric was more than the training. It was really just his coaching style, his communication style, how he manages in between rounds, timeout communication, his relationship with his figh ters, and now it’s led to both our training, but also just making each other better in the craft of coaching.”
For Mazzulla, the appeal goes deeper than fitness. He sees the fig hter’s mindset as directly applicable to what he and his players face throughout an NBA season.
“I do think there’s a level of figh ting mindset throughout the season. You’re going into different crowds, different arenas, hostile environments, traveling a ton.”
“I like the idea that an individual fig hter can’t hide emotionally, from a win, a loss, from a success, from a failure. They’re very exposed. So I think there’s correlations to that, being in the NBA and making it through a season.”
He also takes his training on the road. Helwani noted that Nicksic had told him Mazzulla seeks out gyms in nearly every city the Celtics visit. Mazzulla confirmed it.
“Almost. I mean, you should work out. It only takes like 45 minutes to an hour.” His reasoning ties back to a broader philosophy. “I think it’s just kind of like the fighter’s mind. When we’re in a city, it’s us against the city, it’s us against not just that team, but the arena of that city, and I think it just keeps you fresh mentally and physically.”
The mental clarity he draws from training sessions is something he values highly.
“I feel a level of mental clarity to where I can just kind of take a deep breath, reassess. It’s a holistic approach, physically, mentally, emotionally. And I think it’s similar to what the guys go through.”
Mazzulla even competed once, losing a match two seasons ago, and he has no plans to walk away from the sport.
“The arts are kind of a simulation of a lifelong journey, where it never ends. I hope to be doing it for however long I’m allowed to do it. And I think the pursuit of that helps me with the pursuit of trying to make the Celtics great.”
