“We’re not playing great, but we’re still in it.”
After Friday’s win over the Toronto Raptors, head coach Joe Mazzulla talked about how this refrain got the Celtics through timeouts in a game where they looked like a Costco-brand version of themselves. He stressed how he wanted his guys to exist in that space of not feeling their best, and then to figure out ways to attack that.
Much has been made—and I have made much of—the ludicrous power of this Celtics team when they play their best. But Friday saw the Celtics win despite several statistical shortcomings, including a couple that have been known to torpedo their chances of victory.