Getty Ime Udoka of the Boston Celtics
On November 1, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that suspended Boston Celtics head coach, Ime Udoka, was drawing interest from the Brooklyn Nets after the departure of Steve Nash as their head coach.
According to Wojnarowski, the Celtics would be willing to let Udoka leave for another job. So, if the Nets legitimize their interest in the coach that took the Celtics to the NBA Finals last season, there’s a very real chance that Udoka could be patrolling the sidelines in Brooklyn in the not-too-distant future.
Jacque Vaughn is the acting head coach tonight but expect the Nets to inquire with suspended Celtics coach Ime Udoka, Quin Snyder, among others. Boston will let Udoka leave for another job.
Currently, Udoka is suspended for the entirety of the 2022-23 NBA season, and his longer-term future with the Celtics is anything but secure. As such, if given the opportunity to return to coaching this season, with a roster containing superstar talents such as Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, it seems likely that Udoka would agree to his official departure from the Celtics to make that move official.
Udoka Was Suspended for a Breach of Organizational Policy
On September 22, Udoka was suspended by the Celtics for one season because of a breach in organizational policy, noting that the impressive head coach had undertaken a consensual relationship with a female staff member.
Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka is likely facing a suspension for the entire 2022-2023 season for his role in a consensual relationship with a female staff member, sources tell ESPN. A formal announcement is expected as soon as today.
Udoka led the Celtics to a 53-31 season during his first year with the team, giving them a win percentage of 62.2% during the regular season and allowing them to finish second in the Eastern Conference. Once the postseason began, Udoka’s stock rose further as he guided the Celtics to the NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Golden State Warriors.
Furthermore, the Celtics saw numerous players develop under Udoka’s tutelage, with Jayson Tatum becoming an All-NBA first-team selection, Marcus Smart winning Defensive Player of the Year, and Robert Williams making an All-NBA Defensive second team.
Tatum Found Out About Udoka’s Suspension on Twitter</h2/> On September 23, Tatum attended the Celtics’ media day and fielded some questions about Udoka’s suspension. When asked about how he found out about Udoka’s suspension, Tatum provided a shocking revelation — he found out via Twitter, just like the millions of Celtics fans worldwide.
“I guess I feel like everybody else. It’s a lot to process. Unexpected. … If you read the statement and watch the press conference, apparently there are a lot of things they can’t speak about. I think I’m in the same boat, as I don’t know. So, it’s hard to answer if things were handled in the right way, because I don’t know. … S***, I found out on Twitter like everybody else,” Tatum said.
It will be interesting to see whether Tatum and fellow star wing Jaylen Brown are consulted about Udoka’s potentially taking charge of a direct conference rival and asked whether they would support support such a move or would rather Udoka see wait out his suspension before returning to Boston’s sidelines.
Of course, if Udoka decides moving on from Boston is in the best interest of his career, there will be little Tatum, Brown or anyone else within the franchise can do to keep him sitting on the sidelines for the duration of the current season.