The Boston Celtics suffered a 121-113 defeat to the Detroit Pistons in their opening NBA game of the season, and nobody was more disappointed than Mitchell Robinson.
The veteran centre moved to Boston in July after winning the championship with the New York Knicks in the last campaign on a three-year, $47.4 million deal.
Robinson would’ve hoped for a good start at his new team this season, but he ended up on the losing side after what he feels was a poor performance from him.
Mitchell Robinson says he didn’t reply to coach Joe Mazzulla because of his own performance
Robinson didn’t have a great game after coming off the bench against the Pistons.
The 28-year-old scored four points, three rebounds and picked up an assist during his 18 minutes on the floor, and he was beyond disappointed with his display.
Shortly after he checked out of the game in the second half, Mazzulla came over and sat next to him on the bench to give him some support.
Robinson has now revealed that his coach even sent him a few messages after the game, but he was so disappointed with his performance that he didn’t even reply to the last one.
He told CLNS: “Joe’s a great guy. He talked me through a lot of things, especially that night. He sent me some text messages and stuff like that.
“I appreciate it, but I didn’t even respond to the last text because I’m still stuck in my head about it. I played like a**. It’s kind of just straightforward. And I can’t have that.
“So I mean, just building that relationship with Joe, he still trusts me and stuff like that. It’s great. It’s awesome. But I’ve still got to do better.”
Robinson’s disappointment is very clear to see, but the fact that his coach still has full faith in him should give him the boost he needs to bounce back.
Up next for him and the Celtics is an interesting clash against Robinson’s old team, the Knicks, who will also be coming into the game following an opening night defeat.
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