The “never meet your heroes” expression doesn’t apply to Joe Mazzulla, who seemingly benefits from every time he meets his.
In February, the Celtics coach traveled to the Etihad Campus in Manchester to pick the brain of his hero, Man City coach Pep Guardiola, to better understand his coaching philosophies.
After the visit, Mazzulla made his team watch hours of footage of Man City matches, explaining the philosophies that have made his idol, Guardiola, the best coach in the sport of soccer. The plan worked, as the Celtics steamrolled opponents en route to their fourth-best season in franchise history.
And now there’s more.
As the Celtics coach prepares for the biggest two weeks of his life, he’s been soaking in advice from his hero. According to Celtics beat writer Morey Hershgordon, Mazzulla and Guardiola had “an intimate conversation” at the TD Garden on Wednesday ahead of Game 1 of the NBA Finals.