A little over a year after speaking at an influential event in Portland, Maine, Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla has just severed all possible connections. The promotional agreement was between the NBA veteran and Life Surge, a Christian wealth-seminar organization that investigative journalist Pablo Torre has been cracking down on for ethical reasons, beginning with pushing people who attend their services into heavy debt…

Mazzulla, who participated in a Life Surge gathering in September 2025, was scheduled to headline a group event on October 17 at PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford, Connecticut. The organization calls it “a one-day life-changing event where thousands of local Christians gather to learn why and how to create and multiply financial resources for Kingdom impact.”

However, Mazzulla confirms to The Boston Globe that he has canceled his upcoming appearance and has formally “requested that his image be removed from the organization’s website.”

“I’m always looking for partnerships to be able to share my faith,” Mazzulla said of his initial involvement with Life Surge. “It was a platform I thought made some sense for us, and when this comes out, you take your stand and move forward.”

Mazzulla explained that Life Surge originally reached out to his representatives at Creative Artists Agency (CAA) to book him for its national speaking circuit. But after learning how the organization operates, the championship-winning coach immediately made up his mind about what to do next.

“I just completely backed out of it,” Mazzulla said. “I’m not showing up there and obviously don’t support any of the allegations or things that they’re accused of, and [I’m] moving forward.”

Mazzulla emphasized that his primary concern is the individuals who may have suffered financial harm from the organization’s high-pressure, aggressive sales tactics (more on that later).

“It’s an unfortunate situation, but my purpose is to use my platform for a positive impact on faith,” Mazzulla noted. “The risk you take is situations like this happen. The most important thing is to No. 1, focus on the people who were wronged and No. 2, do the best job you can authentically and morally and ethically to share your faith without negatively impacting people.”

Mazzulla’s decision follows a report published by Pablo Torre (Pablo Torre Finds Out) in collaboration with Mother Jones reporter Kiera Butler. Torre, who has spent the past year unraveling the Clippers salary cap circumvention saga, worked with Butler to expose Life Surge’s business model. The organization reportedly markets its gatherings as faith-based financial literacy events aimed at helping attendees “create and multiply financial resources for Kingdom impact.”

While entry-level tickets are priced from $30 to $97, former attendees and investigators revealed that these introductory sessions primarily serve as high-pressure funnels to upsell participants to multi-day courses and mentorship packages called “SurgeU” priced from $10,000 to over $50,000.

In case you were wondering… what if someone cannot pay that much? Life Surge has a solution for that, too.

Central to the allegations are claims that Life Surge delegates third-party brokers who actively help attendees secure low-interest credit cards, home equity lines of credit, or retirement loans on-site to cover the five-figure fees.

The investigation highlighted numerous complaints filed with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), including accounts from vulnerable attendees and fixed-income individuals who reported incurring unmanageable debt after trusting the Christian branding promoted by high-profile sports figures.

According to Yahoo! News, a couple told Mother Jones they borrowed $40,000 on interest-free credit cards after speaking with one of Life Surge’s financial counselors, only to make nothing from the stock market and have to take out a home equity loan to pay off the remaining debt, with the variable interest rate on that loan having increased to 29%.

College football analyst and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow was also featured as one of Life Surge’s primary headliners, with 20+ appearances locked in. Tebow reportedly made $50,000 to $100,000 per session. Like Mazzulla, though, he is re-evaluating his decision to remain associated with the company.

“I think the allegations are extremely, extremely serious, and it’s something that we take very seriously,” Tebow told reporters regarding the findings. “And so, for us, we’re having our team do an investigation, but also pausing our relationship until we can learn more about the facts to be able to understand more.”

In addition to Mazzulla and Tebow, Life Surge’s promotional materials have featured a range of prominent sports figures and entertainers in recent years, including Los Angeles Lakers legend and businessman Magic Johnson, Red Sox legend David Ortiz, Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith, actor Kelsey Grammer, and NFL stars Saquon Barkley and Russell Wilson among others.

How has Life Surge responded to Pablo Torre’s investigation and to Joe Mazzulla parting ways with them?

Life Surge has outright denied the allegations of predatory behavior, and its representative, Richard Lorenzen, said the organization “does not train its representatives to pressure customers into borrowing or taking on debt they cannot afford.”

“We will not apologize for who we are, what we believe, or the work we do,” CEO Jeremy Nosek’s statement read. “We stand behind our people. We stand behind our mission. And we stand behind the work we have done alongside Tim Tebow for years.”

Nosek has yet to address Joe Mazzulla’s recent decision. The coach’s swift exit, however, reflects a growing effort among featured speakers to protect their public platforms and to stand against alleged predatory practices carried out in the name of faith.