Mazzulla explains viral Tatum injury exchange with one-word answer
Joe Mazzulla (briefly) revealed the message he was trying to send to Jayson Tatum after the Celtics star injured his wrist in Game 1 vs. the Magic.
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Mazzulla explains viral Tatum injury exchange with one-word answer originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The health of Jayson Tatum is an obvious storyline after the Boston Celtics star needed an X-ray on his right wrist following a hard fall in Game 1 of the team’s first-round playoff matchup with the Orlando Magic on Sunday.
But head coach Joe Mazzulla also inserted himself into the discussion with his reaction to Tatum’s injury.
As Tatum writhed on the TD Garden parquet in pain after Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s hard foul, ABC’s broadcast camera caught Mazzulla telling one of Boston’s trainers not to go on the court to check on the Celtics star before barking, “Get up!” in Tatum’s direction.
It’s not often you see an NBA head coach yell at his star player to get up after an apparent injury. So, what message was Mazzulla trying to send in that moment?
“Love,” Mazzulla responded Tuesday at Boston’s shootaround.
That’s an odd answer in a vacuum, but it’s on-brand for Mazzulla, who often implores his players to embrace setbacks and adversity. When a hard foul from the Miami Heat’s Caleb Martin gave Tatum an injury scare in the first round of the 2024 playoffs, for example, Mazzulla said he was “excited about the whole situation” and “enjoyed watching it.”
Celtics big man Al Horford offered a helpful translation of Mazzulla’s message Tuesday.
“Our team has taken after Joe and the way that he is,” Horford told reporters. “We want to play hard; we want to compete, That’s the mindset that we carry. Joe is competitive — just as competitive as we are.”
As for Tatum’s status, Mazzulla said the All-Star forward was “able to do some stuff” at Tuesday’s practice and is currently considered “day-to-day.”
“He was sore after the game; he’s gotten a little bit better today,” Mazzulla said. “He was able to go through some on-court work and we’ll go from there.”
Tatum stayed in the game Sunday after his injury, so it’d be surprising if he didn’t suit up Wednesday for Game 2. But it’s worth monitoring whether the ailment impacts his shot going forward.
NBC Sports Boston’s coverage of Game 2 begins Wednesday at 6 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live ahead of tip-off at 7 p.m. ET with Drew Carter and Brian Scalabrine on the call.
