Celtics HC Joe Mazzulla checks critics calling out NBA's scoring, cites NFL and others - "Does anyone wanna see less touchdowns?"

NBA champion coach Joe Mazzulla brought up an NFL reference when asked about the fans' concern with the NBA's growing reliance on 3-point shots and the overall increased scoring in the league. Facing the media at the Boston Celtics practice on Wednesday, Mazzulla was asked about what would be his message to fans and critics that say watching teams shoot threes is boring.

“It’s an interesting perspective because in the NFL, people aren’t like, ‘I want to see less scoring.’ They’re not going to make the end zones smaller,” Mazzulla said to reporters.

Touted as one of the NBA's elite coaches, the Boston Celtics head tactician compared the NFL to the NBA.

“Does anybody want to watch a football game and see less touchdowns?” Mazzulla added.

The NFL, which Mazzulla mentioned, and the MLB have instituted rule changes to improve offenses, leading to higher scores. Mazzulla fired back at the critics of the modern NBA game, wherein scoring has increased substantially, and posed a question:

“Scoring is up across other sports. I guess my question would be: Why in basketball is scoring being up an issue, as opposed to other sports?”

Joe Mazzulla's Celtics currently score 119.9 points per game, which is second in the league in offensive rating. Boston leads the NBA in 3-pointers made (19.0) and 3-pointers attempted (51.1). They are shooting at a 37.2% clip and are on pace to shatter league records for 3-pointers made and attempted this season.

The rest of the league is also on pace to do just that. According to Tim Reynolds of the AP, 13 franchises are currently on track to record more 3-point attempts this season compared to last year.

The list includes Boston, Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detriot Pistons, Miami Heat, Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns, San Antonio Spurs, and Washington Wizards.

ESPN's Tim Bontemps reports that the league is aware of the criticisms raised by fans. NBA commissioner Adam Silver said on Tuesday that the league is "looking into it."

“The answer is yes, [we are having] many discussions about the style of basketball [being played]," Silver said, adding, "I would not reduce it to a so-called 3-point shooting issue. I think we look more holistically at the skill level on the floor, the diversity of offense, the fan reception to the game, all of the above.”

Joe Mazzulla on NBA ratings

There is also buzz about the decline of the NBA's viewership early this season. During that same media session, Joe Mazzulla was asked about the issue.

“I add to that, I don’t watch NBA games. I’m just as much of a problem as everyone else,” Joe Mazzulla told Noa Dalzell of SBNation.

Mazzulla noted that as someone around the game all the time, he would prefer to watch something else during his downtime.