Boston’s Joe Mazzulla wins NBA Coach of the Year award

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Boston Celtics chief tactician Joe Mazzulla has officially been named the 2025-26 NBA Coach of the Year, as announced on May 27, 2026.

Mazzulla bested the Detroit Pistons’ J.B. Bickerstaff and San Antonio’s Mitch Johnson for the award, garnering a total of 62 first-place votes from the global media panel.

The former West Virginia University point guard became the fourth coach in franchise history to earn the award, joining the legendary club of Bill Fitch, Tommy Heinsohn, and Red Auerbach.

“That means everything to me,” Mazzulla said.

“In one of our first meetings this year, we met our entire building and said we are going to stick to the process of winning and not get caught up in the external thing. I thought the commitment from the entire organization to sticking to the process.”

According to the panel of selected sportswriters and broadcasters, Mazzulla deserved the award after overcoming adversity throughout the regular season.

Despite missing superstar Jayson Tatum for 62 games due to a torn Achilles, Mazzulla still managed to transform the Celtics into a contender, leading the Eastern Conference squad to a 56-26 win-loss record and the No. 2 seed.

Aside from Tatum being sidelined, the 2025-26 NBA season was also the year the Celtics traded away Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis, their frontcourt duo that helped them win the 2024 Larry O’Brien Trophy.

However, Mazzulla’s regular-season success didn’t translate in the NBA playoffs after the Celtics squandered a 3-1 series lead against the Philadelphia 76ers.

For the first time in five years, Boston lost in the first round of the postseason, despite having Tatum back playing alongside Jaylen Brown and Derrick White.

After the lopsided Game 4 win, the Celtics moved a win away from advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals, but Joel Embiid’s return to the 76ers changed the complexion of the entire series.

With Embiid back punishing Boston’s shaded lane, Philadelphia pulled off a miraculous comeback, sweeping all three remaining games to complete the upset.

“We obviously fell short of that, but I thought throughout the regular season, our guys came in every day with a chip on their shoulders. They came in wanting to stick to that process and get better every day,” Mazzulla added.