Ime Udoka

Nets Notes: Irving, Udoka, Simmons, Durant, Curry

November 5th, 2022 at 9:21am CST by Luke Adams

In an in-depth report for ESPN, Ramona Shelburne and Adrian Wojnarowski go into more detail on Wojnarowski’s earlier assertion that Nets owner Joe Tsai faced pressure from the NBA and from Nets management to take a more punitive approach following Kyrie Irving‘s promotion of an antisemitic film and initial refusal to apologize.

As ESPN’s duo outlines, Tsai hoped the incident could become a teachable moment for Irving, but ultimately gave up and decided to suspend Irving following his media session on Thursday. Irving’s refusal during that session to apologize or outright deny that he held antisemitic views convinced the Nets owner that Kyrie’s joint statement with the team and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) had been insincere.

Another source of frustration for Tsai, according to ESPN’s report, was that he wasn’t able to communicate directly with Irving, with communication being channeled “completely” through Kyrie’s stepmother and agent Shetellia Riley Irving.

When Tsai and the Nets ultimately decided to suspend the star guard for at least five games, the team sent an email to Irving’s agent describing the steps he needed to take to be reinstated, including taking training sessions on the dangers of hate speech, per Shelburne and Wojnarowski.

Although it has been Irving’s off-court behavior that dominated headlines in the last week, the situation seemed to affect him on the court as well. According to Shelburne and Woj, teammates and opponents privately described Irving as “disengaged and seemingly ‘in another world'” on Tuesday when he went scoreless for three quarters vs. Chicago.

Among the other recent developments in the Irving saga? Nike has suspended its relationship with the seven-time All-Star, according to Nick Friedell of ESPN; the Nets and the ADL sent a letter to Jeff Bezos and Amazon leaders asking the website to either remove the book and movie that Irving promoted from its platform or add more details about the misinformation it contains (Twitter link via Shams Charania of The Athletic); and Irving’s former teammate LeBron James said he doesn’t condone Kyrie’s comments, telling reporters that they “caused some harm to a lot of people” (link via Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times).

Here’s more on the Nets:

Brooklyn continues to work through the final stages of vetting the potential hiring of Ime Udoka as head coach, sources tell Shelburne and Wojnarowski.
An MRI on Ben Simmons‘ troublesome left knee came back clean, the Nets said on Friday, per Friedell at ESPN.com. While that MRI didn’t show any serious damage, Simmons has experienced some swelling and had the knee drained this week. He has been ruled out at least through Saturday’s game.
Wojnarowski said on Friday during an appearance on NBA Today that he believes Simmons has been a “source of frustration” for Kevin Durant and others on the Nets (video link via Clutch Points). “He has been unable – now he’s unable – to stay on the floor with a knee injury, but prior to that, he has shown that he is a long way away from being back to being an impactful player,” Wojnarowski said. “I think it’s a big part of the reason why the Nets are at the very bottom of the league defensively.”
If the instability in Brooklyn continues, the Nets will have to be concerned about the possibility that Durant revives the trade request that he dropped in August, Wojnarowski said in another TV appearance on Friday (video link). In the latest episode of his Lowe Post podcast (video link), ESPN’s Zach Lowe suggests that other teams will be hoping for that outcome: “The vultures are going to circle on Durant. Those vultures expect the Nets to put on a strong face for a while. To not rush it, to posture – probably honestly – that, ‘No, he has four years left on his contract. … We control the situation, we’re trying to win, we don’t want to do this.'”
While neither Wojnarowski nor Lowe expects Durant to request a trade again in the near future, Howard Beck of SI.com argues that the Nets should blow things up anyway and move on entirely from the Durant-Irving era in Brooklyn.
Seth Curry, who has played just once this season as he returns from left ankle surgery, is expected to be available on Saturday vs. Charlotte, tweets Brian Lewis of The New York Post.

Nets Notes: Irving, Simmons, Tsai, Udoka, Snyder

November 4th, 2022 at 10:00am CST by Luke Adams

Neither Kyrie Irving nor Ben Simmons will be available for the Nets this weekend, as Irving begins to serve a suspension levied against him by the team and Simmons remains sidelined due to a knee issue. Still, while Irving has disappointed the franchise off the court and Simmons hasn’t looked like his old self on the court, a trade involving either player is unlikely to happen anytime soon.

ESPN’s Zach Lowe said on the most recent episode of his Lowe Post podcast that Irving is essentially “radioactive” as a potential trade candidate (hat tip to RealGM): “Even if you drop the price to nothing, the baggage is just too much.”

As for Simmons, Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports stated on his own podcast – Please Don’t Aggregate This – that he doesn’t believe the former No. 1 overall pick has any trade value either.

“I was talking to the team who has designs to rebuild Monday night when I was at Barclays Center,” Fischer said, per HoopsHype. “And like I asked that question, and I was told pretty point blank that they would have been interested in him before the season started and seven or eight games later now that interest has dissipated.”

Here’s more on the Nets:

Addressing the apology to the Jewish community that Irving posted on Instagram late last night, Nets general manager Sean Marks said today that it was “a step” in the right direction, but that he still wants to have Irving meet with the team and Jewish leaders before being reinstated, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter links). Marks added that Brooklyn has not considered waiving Irving.
Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt also referred to Irving’s apology as an “encouraging step,” but said the ADL still isn’t accepting Irving’s donation, as he first announced on Thursday (Twitter links).
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said on Friday during an appearance on Get Up (video link) that Nets owner Joe Tsai had initially hoped Irving’s misstep could be a “teachable moment,” without any significant team discipline required, while Nets management and the NBA had pushed Tsai to be more punitive. Following Irving’s repeated refusal to apologize or to clarify that he isn’t antisemitic, Tsai realized a more serious step was necessary.
Although Marks has denied that any decisions have been made about the Nets’ next head coach, the team is believed to be in the final stages of negotiations with Ime Udoka, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, who notes that Marks and Udoka have the same representatives at CAA and says he expects those talks to conclude in the coming days. Despite Quin Snyder being considered a potential target for Brooklyn following Steve Nash‘s exit, the team had no substantial contact with Snyder to gauge his interest in the job, sources tell Fischer.
In a roundtable for The Athletic, Alex Schiffer, Jay King, and Jared Weiss discuss why the Nets would hire Udoka following his ugly exit from Boston. Meanwhile, Ian O’Connor of The New York Post argues that rushing into a deal with Udoka will be Brooklyn’s latest losing bet.

Celtics Notes: Smart, Udoka, Mazzulla, R. Williams, G. Williams

November 2nd, 2022 at 2:52pm CST by Luke Adams

Celtics guard Marcus Smart remains frustrated that he and his teammates don’t know the whole story about why head coach Ime Udoka was suspended for the entire 2022/23 season, and he was surprised to learn on Tuesday that Udoka might be headed to the Nets, writes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Smart said that he had been given the impression that Udoka would be back with the Celtics next season.

“I guess it was deemed that whatever happened was enough for him not to be the coach here, but I guess not enough for him (not) to be a coach anywhere else, obviously,” Smart told Himmelsbach. “… (Udoka’s) name got slandered and slaughtered and it was, ‘He’ll probably never coach again.’ And a couple of months later now he’s possibly going to be the coach of one of our biggest rivals? It’s tough. It makes no sense. But we can’t control that. We have to control what we can and I love the team here. I love the coaching staff. I love Joe (Mazzulla).”

Smart acknowledged that he recognizes why Celtics management can’t necessarily be fully open about the circumstances of Udoka’s suspension, but said that doesn’t make the situation any easier or any less confusing.

“It really doesn’t matter what we say (to the front office),” Smart said. “We can voice our opinion, but I’m sure it’s going to be, ‘Yeah, we hear you.’ And that’s it. I’m sure they know how certain people feel. But it is tough, because there’s only so much that they can say. It’s a tough spot for everybody. It just sucks all around.”

Here’s more on the Celtics:

The Celtics’ brass is “fully invested” in Mazzulla and is happy with the work he has done as the head coach since replacing Udoka, tweets Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. That’s a key reason why the team seems comfortable moving on from Udoka.
Jared Weiss of The Athletic considers what’s next for the Celtics and Udoka if the team lets him leave for Brooklyn. As Weiss notes, the C’s would be able to get Udoka’s contract off their books and would no longer have to worry about what to do when his suspension ends, but the team would probably have to prepare some turnover on its coaching staff, especially if Mazzulla wants to bring in some of his own assistants.
The Celtics had the NBA’s top defense a year ago, but only rank 22nd so far this season. While that number should improve, Boston’s ceiling on defense is limited until Robert Williams returns, writes Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com. “Without Rob Williams, they’re a very good team, but they’re in that second tier,” a source told Bulpett. “With Rob Williams, they’re a top defense and a championship level team. That’s what he does for them.”
Celtics forward Grant Williams sat down with Shams Charania of Stadium (video link) to discuss several topics, including not signing a rookie scale extension before the regular season began.

Nets Notes: Durant, Nash, Simmons, Irving, Udoka

November 2nd, 2022 at 9:24am CST by Luke Adams

Nets forward Kevin Durant said on Tuesday night that he was surprised to learn of Steve Nash‘s exit from his position as Brooklyn’s head coach, as Nick Friedell of ESPN writes.

“You’re always shocked when a move like this happens,” Durant said after the Nets’ loss to Chicago. “But it’s normal in the NBA. It’s about getting ready for the game tonight. It’s a quick turn always in the league, especially during the season. You’ve got practice, games coming up, so you can’t think too much about it. It was on my mind for a little bit today.”

As Friedell notes, Nets general manager Sean Marks told reporters earlier in the day on Tuesday that he hadn’t consulted with Durant and/or Kyrie Irving before making the decision to part ways with Nash. Durant’s comments seemed to confirm that was true.

Asked why he felt like things didn’t work out with Nash in Brooklyn, Durant didn’t blame his former head coach for the team’s shortcomings, even though offseason reports indicated that he had pushed for Nash’s firing.

“We didn’t have a healthy team. We just didn’t play well,” Durant said. “And that’s what happens in the league. S–t happens. That doesn’t take away from Steve’s basketball IQ, how he teaches the game. I don’t think that takes away from anything. It just didn’t work out.”

Asked in Miami about Nash’s departure, Steve Kerr – one of the NBA’s longest-tenured head coaches – essentially agreed with Durant’s assessment, referring to Nash as “brilliant” and suggesting that the former MVP could thrive in a more “stable environment,” according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link).

“Erik’s got a (solid situation) here,” Kerr said, referring to Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra. “I’ve got one in Golden State. We’re really lucky. You throw either one of us in that situation, we wouldn’t have done any better than Steve. That’s the truth.”

Here’s more on the Nets:

Ian Begley of SNY.tv, who previously reported that the Nets had briefly engaged in “cursory” trade talks with a Western Conference team, says those discussions were about a veteran shooter, adding that Ben Simmons‘ name came up. While Begley cautions that those talks may not have advanced beyond the exploratory stage, he says Brooklyn was rumored to be “aggressive” in its pursuit of shooting.
Like the NBA did on Saturday, the National Basketball Players Association issued a fairly toothless statement on Tuesday, condemning antisemitism in general terms without mentioning NBPA vice president Irving by name or specifically rebuking his promotion of an antisemitic film on social media.
During Tuesday’s TNT broadcast, broadcaster and former NBA star Reggie Miller called out the players’ response to the Irving situation, expressing dissatisfaction that there has been silence from players who haven’t hesitated to speak out on other social justice issues, writes Ryan Glasspiegel of The New York Post. “The players have dropped the ball on this case when it’s been one of their own. It’s been crickets,” Miller said after lauding the players’ criticism of owners like Donald Sterling and Robert Sarver. “And it’s disappointing, because this league has been built on the shoulders of the players being advocates. Right is right and wrong is wrong.”
If the Nets move forward with their reported plan to hire Ime Udoka as their new head coach, it could be another landmine for the franchise, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post, who notes that the full story on Udoka’s off-court conduct in Boston still hasn’t come out publicly. As Lewis relays, a league insider told NetsDaily that Udoka “repeatedly” sent inappropriate messages to women on the Celtics‘ staff.
Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports makes the case that the best play for the dysfunctional Nets would be to trade Durant.
ESPN’s Brian Windhorst passes along all of Sean Marks‘ noteworthy statements from his Tuesday media session, attempting to read between the lines of those comments.

New York Notes: Udoka, Durant, Irving, Marks, Rose, Hartenstein

November 1st, 2022 at 5:49pm CST by Dana Gauruder

If you’re wondering what the Nets superstars think of Ime Udoka, whom the team plans to hire as its head coach, SNY.TV’s Ian Begley previously reported that Kevin Durant is a huge fan of Udoka, which is why Durant was interested in playing for the Celtics after making his trade demand this summer, SNY’s Danny Abriano relays. When Udoka was an assistant with the Nets, he had no qualms about challenging Durant and Kyrie Irving and they respected his blunt style.

We have more on the New York teams:

At least one executive interviewed by Heavy.com’s Steve Bulpett’s believes Udoka will be walking into a “no-lose” situation. “Things look so bad there, no one’s going to blame a new coach if it doesn’t get fixed.” the executive said. “We’ll see what Ime can do, but that just isn’t working on any level right now. They’ve still got a ways to go to get where they need to be on a basketball level, but you have to wonder whether they’ll ever have the chance to see that through. Kyrie just always seems to find a way to take the air out of the balloon.”
Irving didn’t speak to the media on Tuesday and GM Sean Marks said he wants to let Irving “simmer down” and not create more “fuss” over his controversial social media posts and retweets, Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic tweets. Marks noted Irving’s last media session “didn’t go well.”
Marks said Durant and Irving had “zero input” on the mutual parting of ways between Steve Nash and the organization, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets.
Derrick Rose has only attempted three free throws in six games and his injury history could be the explanation, Fred Katz of The Athletic writes. The Knicks point guard reworked his game to avoid contact, even when he drives into the lane. The thinking is the less he gets hit, the better, even if it means fewer trips to the line.
Isaiah Hartenstein, one of the Knicks‘ offseason free agent additions, has been “terrific” so far this season, head coach Tom Thibodeau said on Sunday, per Peter Botte of The New York Post. “We knew he would be,” Thibodeau said. “He gives you rim protection. He can shoot, he can pass.” Hartenstein has played increased minutes in each of the team’s last two games due to Mitchell Robinson‘s foul trouble and has performed well, recording 12 points and nine rebounds on Sunday.

Nets Plan To Hire Ime Udoka As Head Coach

November 1st, 2022 at 1:19pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets intend to hire Ime Udoka to replace Steve Nash as their head coach, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Udoka is technically still the Celtics‘ head coach, but he has been suspended for the 2022/23 season after allegedly engaging in an improper relationship with a female subordinate. Boston granted Brooklyn permission to speak to Udoka and will allow him to leave freely, sources tell Charania.

In the wake of Nash’s departure from the franchise, Charania initially reported (via Twitter) that Udoka had emerged as the “strong frontrunner” for the Nets’ job, adding that the team was still doing its due diligence, but had begun talking to the Celtics’ coach. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN subsequently stated (via Twitter) that Brooklyn could hire Udoka within the next 24-to-48 hours.

A former assistant in San Antonio and Philadelphia, Udoka spent a season on the Nets’ staff under Nash in 2020/21 before being hired by the Celtics. Brooklyn’s hope, Wojnarowski tweets, is that Udoka will be able to tighten up the club’s defense and command the respect of the Nets’ stars, including Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

According to Chris Mannix of SI.com (Twitter link), the Nets have been vetting Udoka for the last few days, presumably gathering more information about his conduct that led to his suspension – and now his potential exit – from the Celtics.

Wojnarowski said several weeks ago that Udoka would face a “difficult pathway” back to his job with the Celtics after being replaced by this season by Joe Mazzulla. Wojnarowski’s report indicated that an independent investigation into Udoka’s conduct found that he used “crude language” toward the female subordinate prior to beginning an improper relationship with her, which was said to be a significant factor in the length of his suspension.

In his first season as a head coach, Udoka led the Celtics to a 51-31 record and a spot in the NBA Finals. Given his job performance on the court, the fact that Boston appears willing to let Udoka go to a division rival without any compensation speaks to how the team felt about his off-court behavior.

The Nets have been at the center of many of the NBA’s biggest stories in recent months, including Durant’s extended offseason trade saga, Irving’s promotion of an antisemitic film on social media, and Ben Simmons‘ struggle to recapture his All-Star form following a 16-month layoff. Hiring Udoka following his ugly exit from the Celtics figures to only add to the drama in Brooklyn.

Until Udoka’s hiring is official, Jacque Vaughn is reportedly expected to serve as the Nets’ interim head coach, starting on Tuesday night when the team hosts the Bulls.

Steve Nash Out As Nets’ Coach

November 1st, 2022 at 11:56am CST by Arthur Hill

The embattled Nets have decided to make a coaching change after their 2-5 start. Steve Nash is being replaced as head coach, with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Shams Charania of The Athletic reporting that Nash and the team have agreed to part ways (Twitter links).

“We want to thank Steve for everything he brought to our franchise over the past two-plus seasons,” general manager Sean Marks said in a press release announcing the move. “Since becoming head coach, Steve was faced with a number of unprecedented challenges, and we are sincerely grateful for his leadership, patience and humility throughout his tenure. Personally, this was an immensely difficult decision; however, after much deliberation and evaluation of how the season has begun, we agreed that a change is necessary at this time. We wish Steve, Lilla and their family all the best in the future.”

Assistant coach Jacque Vaughn will take over as acting head coach for tonight’s game against the Bulls, tweets Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Vaughn also served as the team’s interim coach when Kenny Atkinson was fired in 2020, and he was widely considered to be the favorite to become the permanent head coach before the team opted for Nash.

The Nets are expected to consider suspended Celtics head coach Ime Udoka and former Jazz head coach Quin Snyder, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link). He adds that Boston is willing to part with Udoka if he receives an offer. Brooklyn’s front office has “quietly done due diligence” on the circumstances that led to Udoka’s suspension, reports Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated (Twitter link).

[UPDATE: Nets Plan To Hire Ime Udoka As Head Coach]

Nash’s status became an issue this summer amid Kevin Durant‘s trade request. In a meeting with team owner Joe Tsai to try to resolve their differences, Durant reportedly expressed a lack of confidence in Nash and Marks and asked for them both to be dismissed.

Nash attempted to smooth things over with Durant and told reporters at media day that their relationship was solid. However, the team’s slow start led to a growing realization that some type of change had to be made, and management decided to start with the head coach.

Nash tweeted out a statement thanking Tsai and Marks for the chance to coach the team and called it “an amazing experience with many challenges that I’m incredibly grateful for.”

“It was a pleasure to work with the performance team, front office and players everyday,” Nash wrote. “I’m especially grateful to my coaching staff and video room who are a talented group with so much character and professionalism.”

Nash compiled a 94-67 record in two-plus seasons with Brooklyn, but he was only able to win one playoff series. The Nets were swept out of the playoffs by the Celtics in the first round last season.

Celtics Notes: G. Williams, Udoka, Christian, Hauser

October 6th, 2022 at 11:44am CST by Luke Adams

After Larry Nance Jr. agreed to a two-year, $21MM extension with New Orleans, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype talked to four NBA executives who expect Celtics forward Grant Williams to command in the range of $12-13MM per year on his own long-term deal.

However, speaking to Scotto on the HoopsHype podcast, Jared Weiss of The Athletic suggested that he wouldn’t accept less than $15MM annually on a rookie scale extension if he were Williams.

As Weiss observes, the fourth-year forward projects to have a significant role in the Celtics’ rotation with Danilo Gallinari likely out for the season, and – unlike Nance – Williams is still just 23 years old and has plenty of time to continue improving.

According to Scotto, Williams has dropped from about 280 pounds to 265, and seems poised to have a big year. If that’s the case, he could potentially exceed $15MM per year as a restricted free agent next summer should he forgo an extension before this year’s October 17 deadline.

Here’s more on the Celtics:

On that same HoopsHype podcast, Scotto said he spoke to four executives about the Ime Udoka situation, and all four expressed skepticism that Udoka will ever coach the Celtics again.
As the Celtics consider adding another assistant to fortify interim coach Joe Mazzulla‘s staff, one candidate to keep an eye on is Jarrell Christian, who coached the Maine Celtics last season, says Scotto. Christian has since been named Maine’s general manager, but that typically hasn’t been a full-time position, Weiss notes, with various members of the Celtics’ scouting department filling that role in past seasons.
Even after a nightmarish September in Boston, John Hollinger of The Athletic is bullish on the Celtics’ chances of being one of the NBA’s best teams, projecting them to win 55 games and claim the No. 1 seed in the East. However, Hollinger believes the C’s will probably need a “peak” version of Robert Williams to make it back to the NBA Finals.
While Jayson Tatum and Sam Hauser may have a good-natured difference of opinions over which player is the better three-point shooter, Tatum praised his fellow forward and stressed Hauser’s importance after Wednesday’s game. “I tell him all the time: If people left me that wide open and all I had to do was catch-and-shoot, I would make a lot more shots as well. So I tell Sam he should send me a thank you card for being on the floor together,” Tatum joked after Hauser made 8-of-13 threes in his first two preseason appearances. “Sam is obviously a great shooter and his game has come a long way. I’m happy for him. I’m happy he’s getting these opportunities, and he’s obviously making the most out of it. We’re going to need him.”

Celtics Players Know Few Details About Ime Udoka’s Situation

October 3rd, 2022 at 10:05am CST by Arthur Hill

The Celtics have been guarded about releasing information on the actions that led to the suspension of head coach Ime Udoka, and the players haven’t been told much either. After interim coach Joe Mazzulla handled his first preseason game Sunday, Marcus Smart told Steve Bullpet of Heavy that the team hasn’t been informed about what actually happened.

“That’s the thing, we don’t know anything,” Smart said. “So I don’t know what they can and can’t talk about or what the legal reasons are. That’s not my business, and I don’t want it to be. They made a decision. Whatever they feel, they have every right. That’s why you have your lawyers and things like that. So whatever they can say, they’ll say.

“But it’s just tough, because we don’t know what they can say because of that reason. So it’s tough on both sides. But we’re here to play basketball. We’ll let those guys figure it out, and we’ll go from there.”

Udoka will sit out the entire 2022/23 season as punishment for having an affair with a staff member. At a press conference last month, team owner Wyc Grousbeck said a law firm that investigated the matter discovered “a volume of violations” that Udoka allegedly committed. He also suggested that Udoka will face “a significant financial penalty,” but didn’t offer any specifics on the case.

A report last week from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski stated that the law firm found Udoka used “crude language” toward a female subordinate before their affair began. It cited “the power dynamic” as an important factor in the suspension, but provided little other information.

Former NBA player Matt Barnes seems to be among the most informed sources on the case, recently retracting his defense of Udoka and telling an interviewer that Udoka will be lucky to ever coach in the NBA again. Bulpett states that Smart shrugged and laughed when asked if it’s frustrating that a media member might know more about the details than he does.

“I mean, it’s just what it is,” Smart said. “It’s not weird to me, you know? Somebody that’s not close to the situation in terms of being on the team, I guess it’d probably be a little bit easier for him to get more information than us. So I’m not surprised. It’s how these things can go. So we just have to wait and let it run its course and let everyone do their job and wait until they can tell us what they can tell us.”

After Sunday’s debut, a 134-93 win over the Hornets, Mazzulla said he was “grateful” for the opportunity to coach the Celtics and thought the team responded well to its first preseason test, writes Steve Hewitt of The Boston Herald. Players were supportive of their new coach as they face the task of trying to win the East again without Udoka on the sidelines.

“I thought he was terrific. I thought he was great. I thought he was composed,” Malcolm Brogdon said of Mazzulla. “I thought he had some excellent out of timeout plays. I thought he did an excellent job. It’s going to continue to get tougher for him, continue to get tougher for us as we get to the regular season and teams start really scouting us we play high-level competition, but I think me and all my teammates have the utmost confidence in him to be ready for that and keep us motivated and continue to prepare us the right way.”

More Details Emerge In Ime Udoka Situation

September 30th, 2022 at 6:43pm CST by Rory Maher

New details have emerged regarding head coach Ime Udoka‘s suspension from the Celtics for the entire 2022/23 season. Sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that the independent law firm that investigated Udoka listed “the power dynamic associated with a superior’s improper relationship with a staff member” to be the main policy violation.

In addition, the report from the investigation found that Udoka used “crude language” toward a female subordinate before beginning an improper workplace relationship with the same employee, which played a significant factor in the suspension’s severity, Wojnarowski writes. The language Udoka used “was deemed especially concerning coming from a workplace superior,” according to Wojnarowski, who adds that Udoka is likely facing a “difficult pathway” to reinstatement for the 2023/24 season.

Sources tell Wojnarowski that Boston would allow Udoka to pursue other coaching opportunities if he becomes a candidate in the future. Rival teams have been trying to gather information to get a better picture of what led to the suspension “in preparation for possibly evaluating him” for coaching jobs, Woj adds.

Owner Wyc Grousbeck previously stated the report uncovered “a volume of violations” and Udoka would face “a significant financial penalty” as part of the suspension.

“This felt right, but there’s no clear guidelines for any of this,” Grousbeck responded when asked whether Udoka should have been dismissed. “This is really a conscious, gut feel and being here 20 years.”

After a rocky start to the ’21/22 season, Udoka’s first as a head coach, he led a dramatic turnaround that saw Boston reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 2010, ultimately falling to the Warriors in six games. Joe Mazzulla was named interim head coach in place of Udoka.

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