For most people in the NBA, summer is a time to kick back and relax. Maybe take a trip to Cancún or go island hopping in Turks and Caicos. However, Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla isn't "most people," and he's been using his time off to meet his players where they are — regardless of whether or not the destination is tropical.
In early June, Mazzulla traveled to Omaha, Nebraska to work out with Celtics wing Baylor Scheierman. The Celtics skipper was also spotted in Lisbon, Portugal that same week, as he went to see center Neemias Queta and check out the Portuguese basketball clubs that shaped the 7-footer's career. Additionally, Mazzulla visited guard Hugo González in Spain and had a barbecue dinner in Texas with wing Jordan Walsh all before Celtics Summer League officially started on Friday, July 10.
Keeping up with Joe Mazzulla's world tour this summer:
Visited Baylor Scheierman in Nebraska🇺🇸
Visited Neemias Queta in Portugal 🇵🇹
Visited Jordan Walsh in Texas 🇺🇸
Visited Hugo Gonzalez in Spain 🇪🇸
Visited Luka Garza in Iowa 🇺🇸
Visited Jayson Tatum in Boston, LA 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/nPWHtrsSR8
This continuous jet-setting has carried over into the dog days of summer. Mazzulla ran track and boxed with star forward Jayson Tatum back in New England and then attended basketball camps organized by guard Ron Harper Jr. and center Luka Garza in New Jersey and Iowa, respectively.
Going back to last summer, when Mazzulla spent time with Celtics champs like Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, and Sam Hauser, the reigning Coach of the Year has been seen with nearly every member of the Green Team's current roster during his offseasons. That includes a few first-year Celtics, too. This week Mazzulla was in Nashville with center Mitchell Robinson (who signed a three-year, $47.4 million contract with the C's in July), according to a source close to the team.
Just like in any relationship, going out of one's way to drop in on somebody shows a lot of care. Mazzulla could've waited until training camp in September to catch up with his team, but that's not his style. He'd rather show his guys how important they are to him — and the Celtics — by going out of his way to meet them.
"I know that he wanted to connect with me," Walsh described of Mazzulla's summer visit in an interview with Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston. "We had some good conversations. So I know he wanted to connect with me on a deeper level, because we're kind of trying to build something new this year. And this is his way of involving me and showing that he cares and that he's thinking about me."
Joe Mazzulla hits the track with Jayson Tatum and trainer Nick Sang 🏃♂️
(Via @jaytatum0 on IG) pic.twitter.com/C1WXK3UVqt
Mazzulla's travels might not be finished. Garza told Trey Redfield of Iowa 5 News that the fifth-year coach is off to Los Angeles to box some more with Tatum. This hands-on approach to training players separates Mazzulla from other NBA head coaches, and all of the time he's invested in his guys this summer helps contribute to the tight-knit team culture he wants in Boston.
"One thing where I truly do appreciate Joe, aside from being an excellent coach, is that I truly believe that he cares about us, our team as individuals, obviously myself, and the conversations that we have," Tatum said during the 2024 NBA Finals.
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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Joe Mazzulla continues Boston Celtics summer tour with visits to Luka Garza, Ron Harper Jr., Mitchell Robinson
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