On Wednesday, the Boston Celtics picked up their second preseason victory against the Philadelphia 76ers, 112-101. Notably, Joe Mazzulla benched Dalano Banton after 26 seconds into the second half.
Banton failed to secure a rebound off of a missed jump-shot from Tobias Harris, which deflected into the reach of PJ Tucker. Tucker and Payton Pritchard dived for the loose ball, while Banton lost positioning.
According to The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach, Mazzulla wanted Banton to demonstrate more effort when battling for the loose ball.
“There’s nothing more important than holding people to a high standard, especially when you believe in them and know they can be really, really good. We have a roster of 1 through 17 that I truly believe in. It was just a good learning opportunity. There was a loose ball there and I thought he could have gotten it.”
Mazzulla later praised Banton’s ability to be coachable.
“Credit to him that he was able to take coaching and he responded really, really well. He has a chance to be a really good player in this league, and I just love the mentality that he brought to being coached and then responding. That’s super important, and I'm thankful that he allowed me to coach him.”
Ultimately, Banton registered four rebounds and one assist during a scoreless 16 minutes. The Celtics’ next preseason game is set for October 17th at 7:30 p.m. EST against the New York Knicks.
More must-reads: