I would implore folks to hold off on this conversation until something is official. As long as there's nothing official from the team, or even something more than a vague instagram post from Justin himself, don't think it's worth going down this road.

I would again urge caution in speculating. As I mentioned, I was aware of this through a source who I can't burn. My source was spot on. I don't believe this was a rash decision or result but had been building for a period of time. I frankly don't think JC does anything that is impulsive. He is very thoughtful and analytic and I am told willing to always hear out both sides. I am aware of the reasons but since I cannot independently verify them either through JC or Mazzulla, I will not post them here.

I also presume that JC would have to go through AD to make this happen if Mazzulla was removed from the team. That is standard protocol in any athletic department. I bring this up because it would mean that JC did not take this action alone or without consultation and if this is permanent, he would appear to have the full backing of the administration.

All that aside, transition is often difficult for all involved and we are in a transition year. Some players did not sign up to play for JC while others did. Some players deal with transition better than others and some new coaches deal with returning players better than others. It is often an awkward relationship as everyone is trying to determine where they fit. Add a little adversity to the mix (a few early losses or lack of playing time) and it all becomes a wildcard sometimes.

I personally feel bad that this apparently didn't workout for whatever reason but JC needs to have the players that are invested in his program and Mazzulla needs to feel invested in JC's program. If either of those conditions aren't the case no matter the cause, then it's probably best that both parties part ways and move on.

If Mazzulla has indeed been permanently removed from the team, I wish him well. 

Assuming that Mazzulla is no longer on the team, will the fact that he played only 4 games this season allow him to redshirt this season and allow him to be eligible to play as a transfer next season?

Charley Neisner‏ @charleyneisner 6h
George Washington guard & Bishop Hendricken High School alum, Justin Mazzulla is leaving the program.

Assuming the tweet is considered official (Verbal Commits seems to have also updated):

I want to say the issue was playing time (and not the random rotations thus far). Justin led the team in minutes last year, and playing time down the road with Amir returning (and then Lincoln and Tyler entering the fold the following year) meant he wasn't going to see anywhere close to the minutes he saw last year. However, whatever the actual reason is, it's hard not to think of this as troubling given the positive message JC is trying to put forth.

Justin wasn't just a leader on the court, but off the court as well. He was a good student, and I believe was GW basketball's representative at the A10 mbb summit last year. In addition, Mazzulla was a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). He volunteered for fundraising campaigns to benefit homeless shelters and food banks (not sure how many guys on the team have done that). I talked to him briefly at the open practice, and he is by all accounts a good kid and representative of what we want a GW basketball player to be, even if he did have certain limitations on the court. He was one of the guys you could count on to bring energy - which this team is lacking right now for sure.

The other thing to mention is his relationship with Maceo (as MG'14 pointed out in the UMKC thread). Those who attended the Howard game saw "the best friends challenge" that featured Justin and Maceo. At one point I think one of them said something like "Wherever one goes, the other comes along. We are always together. We are never apart." It was honestly for lack of a better word, adorable. Losing those strong bonds can affect performance. JC has mentioned "player relationships" several times in interviews, and he clearly knows the bond between Justin and Maceo. I can't imagine how Maceo feels right now.

There's not really a positive way to spin this. You could say we have freed up a scholarship for AT now if he decides to come back next year, but it's wrong to think about that right now. Wish Justin nothing but the best and it appears rebuilding this mess is going to take a bit longer.

dmvpiranha wrote:

Assuming the tweet is considered official (Verbal Commits seems to have also updated):

.

Mazzulla is still listed on the roster on the official site. While the twatter post may be correct, it is not official.

Also, this is not "mid-season", this is early season. I find it very weird that he went through the coaching change, summer workouts, preseason and the first four games of the current season before this split. If new coaching regime and Mazzulla were a bad match, that should have been evident before tipoff of the Towson game.

I know GW fans are legendary for their ability to spin facts not yet in evidence but I would again caution commenting on whether or not this was the right move for either party What you all see is the tip of the iceberg. What goes on below the surface may have a significant impact in your thinking. As someone who had this story before anyone here, I can tell you it's a bit more complicated than some have suggested here and its quite possible to argue that this move was best for both parties - a "win-win" when considering long term impacts.

GWRising, a quick point about human nature, which is not at all unique to GW fans.  People always want to learn more information about things that interest them.  And, if you come on here and say I have some information that is of interest but I can't go into any additional detail so as to not break a confidence, I believe everyone here understands that.  However, when you come onto a message board to relay this information and then go on to ask that we don't offer commentary about this news, even if some of this commentary can be categorized as speculation, then I think you're wasting your breath (or whatever the equivalent is when posting a message).  

Let's say I came on here and said that President Trump is about to be impeached and be forced to leave office, and this has nothing to do with Ukraine or Russia.  And, please don't speculate about why this is occurring because I am not at liberty to say.  Would you really expect everyone to stay silent?  Or, would you expect one person to suggest Stormy Daniels and another to suggest that his tax returns were leaked and another to think that it's due to the Emoulments clause and another to point at his foundation?  

It is human nature to speculate when only provided with part of a story.  Not just true of GW fans, essentially true of most everyone.

BM wrote:

This stinks pure and simple.  He's the exact kind of kid you'd want anchoring your program.  Considering he's now a family friend to Maceo, I wouldn't be shocked if he's gone too.

Reevaluating.  Seems like I bought in to the hype.

Agree with this. Don't know what's going on behind the scenes, but as a fan and an observer I'm growing wary of what JC is doing. You can put out all the PR you want glorifying yourself and the program, but something smells fishy about what's happening so far, from the seemingly random minutes being given, to JM leaving. This shouldn't be the type of program where someone who was voted captain by his teammates as a sophomore and made the all-academic team last year (our only all conference selection), should want to leave 4 games into the season.

Gwmayhem wrote:

GWRising, a quick point about human nature, which is not at all unique to GW fans.  People always want to learn more information about things that interest them.  And, if you come on here and say I have some information that is of interest but I can't go into any additional detail so as to not break a confidence, I believe everyone here understands that.  However, when you come onto a message board to relay this information and then go on to ask that we don't offer commentary about this news, even if some of this commentary can be categorized as speculation, then I think you're wasting your breath (or whatever the equivalent is when posting a message).  

Let's say I came on here and said that President Trump is about to be impeached and be forced to leave office, and this has nothing to do with Ukraine or Russia.  And, please don't speculate about why this is occurring because I am not at liberty to say.  Would you really expect everyone to stay silent?  Or, would you expect one person to suggest Stormy Daniels and another to suggest that his tax returns were leaked and another to think that it's due to the Emoulments clause and another to point at his foundation?  

It is human nature to speculate when only provided with part of a story.  Not just true of GW fans, essentially true of most everyone.

Not expecting anyone to stay silent but expecting people to base their opinions on facts and not conjecture. So far there are zero facts out there other than Mazzulla has left the program. Don't know how anyone can have any opinion other than its too bad a situation resulted  in Mazzulla leaving the program or being asked to leave. I think you would agree the how and why are important. Yet we have posters here without knowledge of the how and why telling us things are "fishy" or they are now "wary" of JC. I don't know how you could be anything at this point. Maybe this is yet another example historically of why GW can't have nice things.

The funny thing that I learned long ago about sports is that if GW wins their next 5 games nobody will be giving this a second thought here while if GW loses its next 5 games, people here will say it's because Mazzulla left. That's the world we live in today. Sad but true.