Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla revealed a surprising take on the NBA’s rules, suggesting he’d like to see more physicality—akin to other sports. He reflected on his love for classic video games like NFL Blitz and NHL Hitz, hinting that he’d enjoy if the NBA allowed more on-court scuffles.
“The biggest thing that we rob people of from an entertainment standpoint is you can’t fight anymore. I wish we’d bring back like fighting,” Mazzulla shared with NBC Sports Boston. “You want to talk about robbing the league of entertainment, what’s more entertaining than a little scuffle? How come in baseball they’re allowed to clear the benches? How come in hockey they’re allowed to fight? I don’t understand.” He elaborated, “I just don’t get why some sports are allowed to clear the benches. They have bats and weapons (in baseball). We don’t. We have a ball. The other sport (hockey) has like one of the hardest playing surfaces in a puck and a stick, yet we’re not allowed to throw down a little bit?”
The NBA has a strict stance on fights, even penalizing players with suspensions for stepping off the bench during altercations. One notable case was the 2007 suspension of Amare Stoudemire, who missed a playoff game after leaving the bench during an incident with the Spurs. His absence had a significant impact, as the Suns lost that critical game, and the Spurs went on to close out the series.
Mazzulla also pointed to the rules in other sports, where fights and physicality are more tolerated, especially in hockey, where fights are almost built into the game. He admitted this isn’t the first time he’s shown his admiration for combat, recalling that before Game 3 of the 2024 NBA Finals, he shared a UFC clip from the Alex Pereira vs. Jamahal Hill fight. “You see (Pereira) gets hit in the nuts, looks at the referee, knocks the guy out five seconds later,” Mazzulla explained. “So it’s the approach to what happens to you and how you handle it, but the closer you are to beating someone, the closer you are to getting your ass kicked.”
Mazzulla went further, proposing the NBA adopt “power plays” like in hockey. “Basketball is one of the only sports that doesn’t have a power play,” he noted. He suggested implementing a rule similar to soccer’s new “blue card” rule, which forces a team to play shorthanded temporarily. “Let’s say you get a technical or let’s say you get a take foul, you get the one shot but you’re not really rewarded for that because if you miss it, you don’t get the reward for the take foul. There should be like a power play where a take foul, a technical, you have to play five-on-four for five seconds or three passes,” Mazzulla proposed.
He went on to imagine a power play structure where, “instead of taking the ball out on the side, you commit a foul, the guy goes to the other side of half court and he can’t leave the half court circle until like three seconds.” Mazzulla’s creative vision for these NBA rule changes reflects his enthusiasm for injecting even more intensity and entertainment into the game.
Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla wants NBA to ‘bring back fighting’ https://t.co/l4pzWhX4AV pic.twitter.com/PXNXhpILcg
— New York Post (@nypost) October 30, 2024
