Like many NBA fans, Bill Simmons is still trying to process the Boston Celtics' stunning first-round playoff elimination.
The Celtics entered the postseason as favorites to win the Eastern Conference behind a healthy Jayson Tatum, and they jumped to a 3-1 lead over the Philadelphia 76ers with a pair of blowout victories. However, Joel Embiid returned to completely transform the series and send the 2024 champions home early.
Simmons conducted a postmortem on Boston's collapse during Sunday's episode of his podcast. The Ringer founder and Celtics fan questioned how head coach Joe Mazzulla handled the series.
"I thought Mazzulla was incredible in the regular season," Simmons said. "Honestly, I voted for him for Coach of the Year. I thought he was incredible. And I don't know what they were thinking with this playoffs. I have so many questions."
"I really think Mazzulla screwed this series up"
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Simmons believes Mazzulla deviated too far from what worked during the regular season by turning down the tempo and tightening his rotation.
"Did Philly win this series or did Boston blow it? I think the answer is both," Simmons stated. "They went back to their 2024 style without the same players, is my biggest issue. They slowed it down. They didn't play with pace. They gave up on their bench."
The former ESPN personality wondered if Mazzulla was already looking ahead to future opponents. Boston was one win away from securing a second-round rematch with the New York Knicks before falling short of the conference semifinals for just the second time in the last 10 years.
"I think Mazzulla treated this series like, 'Let's figure out what we have for when we play the Knicks and the Pistons and whoever comes out of the West," Simmons said. "'I'm gonna use this as my litmus test series. I'm gonna see what we have in (Nikola) Vucevic. I'm gonna shorten my rotations. I'm gonna try to do the 2024 thing again.' And they just got away from what succeeded for them. The bench was the superpower of this team."
Simmons didn't understand why Mazzulla gave younger reserves less playing time before starting Baylor Scheierman in Game 7. The 25-year-old went scoreless in 22 minutes during a 109-100 home loss.
"I really think Mazzulla screwed this series up," Simmons said. "And I’m always going to think that."
