Joe Mazzulla reacts to Michael Malone’s firing in unsurprising fashion

NEW YORK CITY — After the firing of Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone, Joe Mazzulla becomes one of just two NBA head coaches who have won a championship in the past decade — and still have their job with the team they won it with.

Ahead of the Celtics’ game against the Knicks on Tuesday, Mazzulla reflected on the second NBA coach firing of the last month — Malone’s stunning firing, which came with just four games left in the regular season.

“You sign up knowing that. Again, he was what, ten years there? That’s a lot,” Mazzulla said Tuesday. “You hope for stuff like that — you hope for a situation, stability to be somewhere as long as you have, and when it’s your time, it’s your time. You focus more on the fact he was able to be there for ten years — not many coaches get to do that.”

Mazzulla also pointed out that only Steve Kerr, Gregg Popovich, and Erik Spoelstra have coached for at least ten years with the same organization.

“I wake up every day saying this could be my last day,” Mazzulla said. “You have to have that type of perspective. It gives you gratitude. It also keeps you hungry. You have to have a healthy balance of — you want this for as long as you can, but at the same time, you’re also replaceable. That’s just how it works. Every day I remind myself of my own mortality.”

It’s a similar tune he’s sung all year when it’s come to the firing of head coaches.

“We all get hired to get fired,” he said after the Boston Bruins fired head coach Jim Montgomery in November.

Winning an NBA title doesn’t provide job security for head coaches

In recent years, it’s become increasingly clear that leading a team to an NBA championship does not necessarily spell long-term success for head coaches.

The Toronto Raptors won the 2019 championship and saw Nick Nurse get fired four years later. Frank Vogel led the Lakers to a title in 2020 — and was let go just two years later. Mike Budenholzer similarly coached the Bucks to a championship in 2021, and was fired two years later, too.

All three coaches were re-hired by other NBA teams shortly after, but nonetheless learned they had lost their jobs just a few years after leading their teams to the top of the mountains.

But, most coaches have accepted that that’s just the way things go.

Knicks head Tom Thibodeau, now the fourth-longest tenured coach in the NBA, also reflected on the firing of both Malone and Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth, whose contract wasn’t renewed.

“Just disappointment,” he said. “It’s the unfortunate part of the business. I’ve known Michael for decades. Unbelievable family, great coach.”

Joe Mazzulla is quickly becoming one of the NBA’s more tenured coaches

Mazzulla is in his third year as the Celtics’ head coach and is already the NBA’s 15th most-tenured coach.

This season alone, he’s seen three coaches (Taylor Jenkins, Mike Brown, and Malone) lose their jobs, effectively making up 10% of the coaching workforce.

Mazzulla has always made clear that he understands the ruthless nature of the business — and recognizes that coaches are hired to get fired.

“You do the best you can,” he said Tuesday, “for as long as you can.”