Joe Mazzulla is a man of few words, but he knows how to get his point across.
The Boston Celtics entered Tuesday's game against the Los Angeles Lakers on a rare two-game losing streak after disappointing performances against the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers.
Mazzulla wanted more out of his players Tuesday night. So, he told them -- in rather direct terms.
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"Joe came in before the game and set the tone for us, told us we need to get our s--- together," Celtics star Jaylen Brown of his head coach after Tuesday's 122-118 overtime win over the Lakers.
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"... He just let his presence be felt. He let us know from the top to the bottom, starting with me and Jayson (Tatum), we gotta be better and everybody else is going to follow suit. He went directly at us, encouraging us to be better, embracing the challenge."
Tatum confirmed Mazzulla's blunt messaging, adding that his coach singled him out after a pair of rough games -- 18 points on 6 of 21 shooting vs. Golden State and 20 points on 7 of-20 shooting vs. the Clippers -- for the NBA MVP candidate.
"That's exactly what he said. He pointed me out. He basically told me it starts with me," Tatum said. "Last game I played like s---, and basically, he told me that. Told me the way I play, the rest of the guys are going to follow."
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According to Tatum, Mazzulla put the onus on him, Brown and Marcus Smart as the Celtics' leaders to be better if they want to achieve their lofty goals.
"He went down the line," Tatum said. "Went down to JB, went down to Smart, said it was our responsibility and that if we want to be champions, if we want to get to that point, that it's a responsibility each and every night, and nobody’s gonna take it easy on us."
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Mazzulla has made a point of empowering his players since taking over as interim head coach in September. The 34-year-old deliberately avoids calling timeouts when opposing teams go on big runs, instead forcing his players to correct their mistakes on the fly.
That approach may cause fans extra stress, but it worked again Tuesday night, as Boston rallied from a 13-point deficit with 4:25 remaining to force overtime and pull out a dramatic win.
"There’s certain lessons we can learn throughout games like that, and Joe tells us all the time he's not going to save us," Tatum said. "Especially in the course of the game where we’re not playing the way we should be. A lot of times he tells us to figure it out and he challenges us, and he did that tonight."
Mazzulla's unique coaching philosophy may not work for every team, and some players might bristle at being called out directly. But Tatum, Brown and the Celtics clearly appreciate Mazzulla holding them accountable as they aim to avenge their 2022 NBA Finals loss.