Will there be big changes in Boston this summer? Chris Mannix joins Mike Felger on Boston Sports Tonight to share his thoughts possible offseason change for Boston
It sounds like changes are coming to the Boston Celtics' coaching staff one way or another.
According to multiple reports, the Celtics are expected to keep Joe Mazzulla as their head coach after losing to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. But Mazzulla's staff of assistants in 2023-24 could look much different.
Celtics assistant coaches Ben Sullivan, Aaron Miles, and Mike Moser are expected to leave Boston this offseason to join Ime Udoka's Houston Rockets staff, The Boston Globe's Gary Washburn reported Wednesday. All three assistants were on Udoka's Celtics staff during the 2021-22 season.
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The departures of Sullivan, Miles and Moser would continue the coaching drain in Boston, as top assistant Will Hardy left in June 2022 to become head coach of the Utah Jazz and Damon Stoudamire parted ways with the team in March. In all, that would be five assistants out the door in the span of a year and leave the team with just two full-time assistants in Tony Dobbins and DJ MacLeay.
The Athletic's Shams Charania reported Tuesday the Celtics are expected to add veteran assistants to their coaching staff this offseason. After Stoudamire's exit, Boston didn't have a single coach on its bench with NBA coaching or playing experience, which put Mazzulla in a tough spot as he attempted to navigate his first NBA postseason as head coach.
Losing three assistants would heighten the Celtics' need for bench experience and give them plenty of vacancies to fill. Former Rockets head coach Stephen Silas -- who was seen chatting with C's president of basketball operations Brad Stevens during Boston's first-round playoff series -- could be a potential fit, while former Los Angeles Lakers head coach Frank Vogel has been linked to the Celtics as well.
Mazzulla went through some growing pains in the 2023 playoffs, drawing criticism for his reluctance to use timeouts and his team's inconsistent play. Adding multiple assistants with significant coaching experience would help Mazzulla's growth tremendously, however, and should be one of Stevens' top priorities this offseason.