An old friend of both the Boston Celtics and Charlotte Hornets was in attendance for Friday's preseason matchup.
Kemba Walker was in the building to watch his two former teams face off. The former C's guard played with Brad Stevens as his head coach in Boston from 2019-21, but it's Joe Mazzulla in that role now after replacing the suspended Ime Udoka.
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Mazzulla was an assistant on Stevens' staff during Walker's time with the Celtics. The four-time All-Star caught up with our Abby Chin and shared his thoughts on Mazzulla as a coach and a person.
"He was my personal coach during my time with the Celtics," Walker said. "He's hard-nosed. He tells it like it is. He has great character. He holds everyone accountable equally. He's just not scared, you know? He's not scared.
"And I know everybody was talking trash about him and stuff because they didn't know who he was, but they've got a great coach. But even more importantly, just a special person. He's a special guy to me. So yeah, I've got a lot of love for that guy."
If you ask around in the Celtics locker room, you'll get similar comments about Mazzulla. Several C's players expressed their belief in their interim head coach during Media Day. It doesn't seem like Mazzulla will need to earn his group's trust after already having done so as an assistant with the team since 2019.
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As for Walker, the 32-year-old is currently on the Detroit Pistons roster but is not expected to play for them in 2022-23. He played 34 games for the New York Knicks last season, averaging 11.6 points and 3.5 assists.
Watch Abby Chin's full 1-on-1 with Walker above to hear his answers on Mazzulla, Grant Williams, and the Jays.