Celtics HC Joe Mazzulla gives honest take on 27-point loss to Rockets
The Boston Celtics suffered a crushing 128-101 defeat to the Houston Rockets at TD Garden on Saturday night. After starting the season 0-3 and rallying with three straight wins, including a
In the post-game press conference, Head Coach Joe Mazzulla kept it simple when asked about the loss and what comes next.
“Yeah, obviously it wasn't our night. The Rockets played well, good team, well coached, they were prepared,” Mazzulla said, via SB Nation's Noa Dalzell. “And this wasn't our night tonight, so to me, that happens over the course of the season. And so it will be more important about how we respond on Monday and shoot around and into the game on Monday night.”
The coach's message was clear: move on quickly. Boston will need to do exactly that after getting dominated on their home floor.
The Celtics are playing without Jayson Tatum, who sat out to while recovering from his Achilles injury. Derrick White and Payton Pritchard were available despite dealing with neck stiffness and an ankle sprain, but their presence couldn't stop the Rockets' balanced attack.
Kevin Durant poured in 26 points to lead Houston, while Amen Thompson nearly grabbed a triple-double with 17 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists. Boston got 17 points from Baylor Scheierman, but it wasn't nearly enough against a Rockets team that controlled every quarter.
The 27-point loss dropped the Celtics to 3-4 and left them sitting in ninth place in the Eastern Conference. After climbing back with three straight wins, the loss stings even more.
The Celtics are back in action Monday night when they host the Utah Jazz at TD Garden. Tip-off is set for 7:30 PM ET on NBC Sports Boston. After that comes a home game against Washington on November 5, followed by a two-game road trip to Orlando.
Browns Could ‘Ruin’ Shedeur Sanders: Mel Kiper Jr.
It was no secret at last April’s NFL draft that ESPN expert Mel Kiper Jr. was incensed about the way the league treated eventual
The free-fall was arguably the worst in the history of the NFL draft, and Kiper repeatedly backed Sanders and denigrated NFL teams for passing on him.
Fast-forward six months and Kiper is still backing Sanders, even as the Browns keep sticking with third-round rookie
Speaking on ESPN’s “First Draft” podcast this week, Kiper said, “Figure out Dillon Gabriel, that was Kevin Stefanski’s guy. Shedeur Sanders, Andrew Berry brought in because he was there in the fifth round, see what happens. … To me, let’s see how it plays out the rest of the year. I hope Shedeur has a chance. Even if he gets in there, he might struggle, does that mean he stinks? Does that mean he was overrated? No.”
Shedeur Sanders Was the Draft’s No. 1 QB One Year Ago
Kiper pointed out that long before Sanders was with the Browns, he starred at Colorado and was ranked by many as the top quarterback coming out in 2025. But he also pointed out that, over time, NFL teams reveal that they aren’t all that smart about drafting and developing quarterbacks.
That, Kiper said (and Browns fans know as well as anybody), is especially true of Cleveland’s NFL contingent.
“I don’t care what the league says,” Kiper said. “The league doesn’t speak about quarterbacks, they don’t know any more than you or I do about quarterbacks, really. Everybody’s clueless about quarterbacks including the National Football League geniuses, OK? They don’t know. Even when they have them, they don’t know. (The Browns) had
“Didn’t nine executives have (Shedeur Sanders) going as the No. 1 quarterback at this same time last year? What happened? Nothing happened on the field. All the sudden, ‘We’re washing our hands of
Browns Quarterback History Is Not Great
Again, when Kiper refers to “organizations” he means the Browns, who picked Baker Mayfield out of Oklahoma with the No. 1 pick in 2018 and went 11-5 with him in 2020. But Cleveland dumped him the following year, and Mayfield has gone on to be a two-time Pro Bowler and now an MVP candidate in Tampa Bay.
“This is the one that has you scratching your head. You had Baker, Baker was winning. Baker almost had you in a Super Bowl. To me, Baker should be in Cleveland. …” Kiper said.
“When Cleveland had Baker Mayfield, they hadn’t had any success, they hadn’t won anything—1999, no consistency at quarterback, 15 times since the AFC North came in 2002, they finished in last place. Fifteen times, last place. One playoff win since 1999.”
