Most people had never heard his name when he got the job in September 2022. He was 34 years old, had never been a head coach at the NBA level, and was handed one of the most pressure-filled jobs in the sport on two days’ notice.
Three years later, he has a championship ring, a Coach of the Year trophy, and the best winning percentage in the league since taking over.
Quick Bio
| Detail | Info |
| Full Name | Joseph Arthur Mazzulla |
| Born | June 30, 1988, Johnston, Rhode Island |
| High School | Bishop Hendricken, Warwick, Rhode Island |
| College | West Virginia University (2006–2011) |
| Position (Player) | Point guard |
| Coaching Start | 2011, Glenville State (assistant) |
| Joined Celtics | 2019 (assistant); 2022 (interim head coach) |
| Named Permanent HC | February 16, 2023 |
| Regular Season Record | 238–90 (.726) through 2025–26 |
| Playoff Record | 36–21 |
| Titles | 2024 NBA Champion; 2026 NBA Coach of the Year |
| Wife | Camai Mazzulla (married 2014) |
Who Is Joe Mazzulla?
Joe Mazzulla is the head coach of the Boston Celtics and one of the most successful coaches in the NBA right now. Since taking over in 2022, he has posted a .726 winning percentage in the regular season, the best mark in the league over that stretch.
He won the 2024 NBA title and the 2026 Coach of the Year award. He is 37 years old. The youngest Coach of the Year winner since Phil Johnson in 1975.
Early Life: Rhode Island Roots
Mazzulla grew up in Johnston, Rhode Island, in a family that lived and breathed basketball. His father, Dan Mazzulla, played college ball at Bryant University and spent five years playing professionally in Chile.
Dan later coached the Johnston High School girls’ team for over 20 years before passing away in April 2020. Basketball was not just something Joe grew up around. It was the family language.
Bishop Hendricken and Three State Titles
Mazzulla attended Bishop Hendricken High School in Warwick, Rhode Island. He was a standout point guard and made the all-state first team. He led the Hendricken team to three state championships.
The third one, in his senior year, came down to a last-second shot. That kind of moment tends to stay with a person. He graduated in 2006 and enrolled at West Virginia University that fall.
College Career at West Virginia
Mazzulla played five seasons at WVU under two different coaches: John Beilein and Bob Huggins. Both are respected names in college basketball, and playing for both gave him a broad view of the game early.
He helped the team win the 2007 National Invitation Tournament as a freshman. In the 2008 NCAA Tournament, he had one of the bigger moments of his college career, posting 13 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists in an upset win over Duke. He was also part of the 2010 team that made it to the NCAA Final Four.
WVU honored him three times as a Big East Academic All-Star.
His junior year included a legal issue involving underage drinking and a domestic battery charge at a bar. It is a documented part of his story.
Reports indicate he worked through it with mentorship from NBA legend Jerry West, who was connected to the WVU program at the time. Mazzulla has been open about that chapter of his life and the lessons it taught him.
From Player to Coach: The Grind Years
Mazzulla went undrafted in the 2011 NBA Draft. He briefly explored playing professionally overseas but quickly pivoted to coaching. He started as an assistant at Glenville State University in West Virginia in the fall of 2011.
His coaching path before the Celtics:
- 2011–2013: Assistant coach, Glenville State (West Virginia)
- 2013–2016: Assistant coach, Fairmont State University (West Virginia)
- 2016–2017: Assistant coach, Maine Red Claws (NBA G League)
- 2017–2019: Head coach, Fairmont State University (43–17 record)
- 2019–2022: Assistant coach, Boston Celtics
It was at Glenville State where he met his wife, Camai, who was coaching the women’s volleyball team there. They married in 2014.
His stint with the Maine Red Claws in the G League gave him his first look at NBA-level talent and operations. He ran the full-time head coaching role at Fairmont State for two seasons and won at a strong clip before Brad Stevens brought him to Boston as an assistant in 2019.
Becoming the Celtics Head Coach
When Ime Udoka was suspended by the Celtics on September 22, 2022, the team had to make a fast decision. Training camp was days away. They named Mazzulla interim head coach.
He had never been an NBA head coach. He was 34. A lot of people around the league raised their eyebrows.
The Interim Season
The Celtics went 57–25 in the regular season under Mazzulla in 2022–23. That is a remarkable record for any coach, let alone one in his first year running an NBA team. He won the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month award four times that season.
Boston made it to the Eastern Conference Finals before losing to the Miami Heat. The result was disappointing, but the body of work was hard to ignore. On February 16, 2023, the Celtics named him the 19th permanent head coach in franchise history and signed him to a contract extension.
The 2024 Championship
The 2023–24 season was where it all came together. Mazzulla led the Celtics to a 16–3 postseason record, one of the most dominant playoff runs in recent memory. They won the 2024 NBA Championship, the franchise’s 18th title.
At 35 years old, Mazzulla became the youngest head coach to win the NBA Finals since Bill Russell coached the Celtics in 1968–69. That is not a trivial comparison. Bill Russell is a legend. Being in the same sentence with him means something.
Key things he brought to that championship run:
- A three-point heavy offensive system that kept defenses stretched
- A defensive identity that was physical and disciplined
- A culture of accountability that kept stars like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown bought in
- Clear player development for role players up and down the roster
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The 2025–26 Season: Coach of the Year
Heading into 2025–26, the Celtics lost four rotation players. Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and Luke Kornet all departed. Then Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles tendon and missed most of the season.
Before the season started, Vegas had the Celtics projected for about 41 wins. Some expected them to tank, grab a lottery pick, and reset.
Instead, the Celtics won 56 games. They finished second in the Eastern Conference.
Mazzulla got production from players who were not expected to carry the load. He built a coherent offensive and defensive system around a depleted roster. Tatum returned in March, and the team was building momentum heading into the playoffs.
They lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in seven games in the first round, coughing up a 3–1 series lead. That was painful and made for an anticlimactic ending to a genuinely impressive regular season.
But the NBA’s Coach of the Year voters were not focused on the playoff exit. They were looking at the whole season. Mazzulla won the award with 392 total points in the vote, finishing 80 points ahead of runner-up J.B. Bickerstaff of the Detroit Pistons. Mitch Johnson of San Antonio was third.
When asked about potentially winning the award back in March, Mazzulla did not hold back: “I don’t need it. I think it’s a stupid award. They shouldn’t have it.”
When he actually received it, he credited his staff. “This award should be named Staff of the Year.” That is very much who he is.
His Coaching Record in Numbers
| Season | Team | Regular Season | Playoffs |
| 2022–23 | Boston Celtics | 57–25 | Lost in ECF |
| 2023–24 | Boston Celtics | 64–18 | Won NBA title |
| 2024–25 | Boston Celtics | 61–21 | Lost in ECF |
| 2025–26 | Boston Celtics | 56–26 | Lost in R1 |
| Total | 238–90 (.726) | 36–21 |
Four straight 50-win seasons. Best regular-season record in the NBA over that span. One championship. One Coach of the Year.
What Makes Him a Good Coach
People who follow the Celtics closely point to a few consistent things about how Mazzulla operates.
- He builds teams that defend at a high level and shoot a lot of threes
- He is not afraid to make unconventional adjustments mid-series
- He is honest with players, sometimes bluntly so
- He runs a player development program that consistently gets more out of role players than expected
- He gives credit to his staff and players almost always before himself
Joe Mazzulla is not flashy. He does not crave attention. He once called the Coach of the Year award stupid and then won it. That tells you something about how he thinks.
Personal Life
Mazzulla married Camai Roberson in 2014. They have a son, Emmanuel, born in 2017. Camai also has a son from a previous relationship whom Mazzulla has embraced fully.
His brother Justin works as an assistant video coordinator for the Utah Jazz. His late father Dan, who died in April 2020, was a significant influence on his development as both a person and a coach. Mazzulla is open about his Catholic faith and describes it as a grounding force through the chaos of an NBA season.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Joe Mazzulla?
He is the head coach of the Boston Celtics, hired permanently in February 2023, and the 2024 NBA champion and 2026 NBA Coach of the Year.
When did Joe Mazzulla become Celtics head coach?
He was named interim head coach on September 22, 2022, and became the full-time head coach on February 16, 2023.
Did Joe Mazzulla win an NBA championship?
Yes. He led the Celtics to the 2024 NBA Championship with a 16–3 playoff record.
What is Joe Mazzulla’s coaching record?
He is 238–90 (.726) in the regular season and 36–21 in the playoffs through the 2025–26 season.
Is Joe Mazzulla the youngest head coach to win the NBA Finals?
Yes. He became the youngest coach to win the Finals since Bill Russell coached Boston in 1968–69.
Conclusion
Joe Mazzulla took over an NBA head coaching job under difficult circumstances, with no runway and enormous expectations, and turned it into one of the better coaching runs in Celtics history.
He has four straight 50-win seasons, a championship ring, and now a Coach of the Year award that he publicly said should not exist. The results speak clearly enough without him having to.
