Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla speaks on Alex Cora’s Red Sox firing

Apr 27, 2026 - 23:15

The Boston Red Sox are 11-17 in the young 2026 season. They have plenty of time to get back on track with new leadership in the clubhouse. The Alec Cora firing stunned many as it happened so early in the season. The good news is that Cora seems to be on good terms after the decision.

Cora is friends with Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla. Mazzulla is one of the top coaches in the NBA and almost won the 2026 NBA Coach of the Year. Detroit Pistons’ JB Bickerstaff took home the honor after a great regular season.

Mazzulla and the Celtics are up 3-1 over the Philadelphia 76ers. Usually, during a playoff series, you won’t normally hear Mazzulla talk about anything other than the series. In this case, due to the respect Mazzulla has for Core, he responded to a question when asked about the sudden firing.

Joe Mazzulla on Alex Cora’s firing:
“He’s great. I think he does a great job building relationships with the players, navigating the ebbs-and-flows of a long season. Staying even-keeled. Grateful that I've gotten to learn from him. Wherever he goes, I know he'll be good.” pic.twitter.com/qWwtE6MDrf
— Justin Turpin (@JustinmTurpin) April 26, 2026

“He’s great. I think he does a great job building relationships with the players, navigating the ebbs-and-flows of a long season. Staying even-keeled. Grateful that I’ve gotten to learn from him. Wherever he goes, I know he’ll be good.”

The Red Sox won the only game they have played without Cora, but regardless of how the Sox do this season, the ballclub felt that new leadership was needed. There are a lot of games left, and anything can happen during this long stretch of the regular season. Boston has made it clear that it doesn’t matter what you have done in the past. If you can’t produce a winning team in the moment, then your job security is vulnerable.

This could hurt the ballclub during their next managerial search.

The post Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla speaks on Alex Cora’s Red Sox firing appeared first on ClutchPoints.