Former Celtics top assistant coach Charles Lee made his first return to TD Garden on Friday night since being hired as coach of the Charlotte Hornets. Lee just spent one season in Boston but it was a historic one as he helped to guide the Celtics to their 18th title after being added to Joe Mazzulla’s staff. Lee received his championship ring ahead of the Celtics’ blowout win over the Hornets and reflected on the experience of coming back.
“A lot of emotions,” Lee said. “A lot of joyous emotions. Number one, you get to come back into a pretty historic building as the head coach of a phenomenal organization. And you’re building something in your first year, and to end the season here, it’s pretty special.
“This is part of my journey, it kind of helped groom me to be ready for the position that I’m in now, and so just a lot of joy, a lot of gratitude when you walk in, because you’re like, man, I got to win a championship here, and I got to learn from so many people, and all the all the things that helped prepare me for this moment is pretty special.”
Lee is dealing with a rebuilding situation in Charlotte but he has some unique perspective on this Celtics squad from afar this time around. Boston finished behind the Cavaliers and Thunder in the NBA overall standings this year amid their title defense but Lee had some high praise for this group as they approach their title defense in the postseason.
“They were good last year, and I feel like they got even better this year,” Lee declared. “I think that the bench has gotten deeper. Seeing what Payton Pritchard’s been able to do this year, he adds so much to the team. Sam (Hauser) and Luke (Kornet), those guys have really contributed a lot, too, and then your main guys have continued to get better.”
Lee also highlighted the continued development of Jayson Tatum in a starring role as a way that the team has improved with the same supporting cast.
“Like, to see JT (Jayson Tatum) the first time that we played them in Charlotte, to see the poise that he has, the trust that he has in all of his teammates, just continuing to make the right pass over and over again,” Lee explained. “It’s a team with great depth that looks like they just did a great job of preparing, and I know Joe and the staff, they’re obsessed with just making sure these guys have all the tools they need for every situation.”
Lee has a long way to go with his new team to even get to a playoff level, much less challenge Boston down the line. Still, Joe Mazzulla gave praise to his former assistant for trying to make the best of a young team that’s been ravaged by injuries.
“I think the spot that he’s in is a long-term, and you chip away at the things that you want to get better at,” Mazzulla said. “But I think over the course of a season, you’ve seen the DNA of what he wants to do and the direction, and I think really the energy, even tonight coaching against him, the energy and the positivity that he brings to a team, I think the team shows significant spurts of his DNA. So like you said, we’re all trying to figure it out, no matter if it’s one year, five years, 10 years, the season is always going to present challenges to a coach, and I think he’s handling it great.”
The Celtics will face off against Lee and the Hornets again on Sunday in the regular season finale for both teams.
