I was just like, Are you [expletive] kidding me? . He skipped parties and dances and most activities that did not involve a court. The terms of the contract signed last offseason with Boston has still not been disclosed, but whatever the deal was, the Celtics surely felt they got away with a steal after Udoka took them somewhere they havent been since the days of Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. Ime Udoka is still searching for a new job after his unceremonious departure from the Boston Celtics. Udoka was set to be hired by the Nets after their firing of Steve Nash early in the season, but Brooklyn ownership changed course mostly due to the bad PR they were getting. Udoka has close relationships with many of the players. Nia Long said her 11-year-old son, Kez, is having a "really tough time" after his dad, former Celtics coach Ime Udoka, cheated on the actress, resulting in a breakup. In his only year as a head coach, Udoka took the Celtics to the NBA Finals In his first season as coach, Udoka oversaw a remarkable turnaround in Boston, one that saw the Celtics go from being under .500 in late January to closing the season with a 28-7 record over their final 35 games. Ime Udoka's brother, James, said he knew it took longer than Ime had hoped to land an NBA head-coaching job. Id be somewhere between surprised and shocked if Snyder goes to ATL. His pinball-like path continued with several more stopovers before Udoka was called up from the D-League by the Knicks late in the 2005-06 season. According to NBA insider Marc Stein, former Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka is among those being considered for the position. Udoka was briefly considered the favorite to replace Steve Nash when he reached a mutual agreement with the Nets to step down in November, but protests regarding Udokas conduct in Boston convinced Brooklyn to move in a different direction and give the job to Jacque Vaughn. Stein notes that Atlanta officials have only acknowledged former Jazz coach Quin Snyder as a candidate, but adds that hes heard Bucks assistant Charles Lee mentioned frequently among his sources. Some who have known him are struggling to make sense of the situation. Do the sources know the information? (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images). It did not take long for him to emerge as one of the head coachs most trusted confidants. Long, who has won multiple awards including three Outstanding Actress NAACP Image Awards, played roles in films such as Boyz N The Hood, Love Jones, Soul Food and Big Mommas House. She and Udoka went public with their relationship in 2010 and became engaged in 2015. By Jared Weiss. Last week, the league said an investigation had found a yearslong pattern of inappropriate behavior by Robert Sarver, the majority owner of the Suns and the W.N.B.A.s Mercury. Boston Celtics Coach Ime Udoka is at the center of one of the most perplexing situations in the N.B.A. When he was a small child and Agnes woke up early to work at a bakery, he would follow her outside sobbing because he did not want her to leave. He has an edge, but hes not a hard-ass., Former NBA executive Ryan McDonoughsaid those who have worked with Udoka see him as a solid tactician who is good at developing strong relationships with players.. A variety of voices weighed in on Udoka after the news broke, and opinions were overwhelmingly positive. Udoka will step into his first position as head coach after nine years as an assistant. Hes a great coach, Ime would sleep with the owners wife the ex actress from Lost Boys lol, Please login to leave a reply. Imes had it tough in many ways, Popovich said. Udoka went to Spain after his mothers death and played well, and in the summer of 2012 he returned to the United States to support Jones and Ross, who were playing in the NBAs Las Vegas summer league. Synder not moving his young kids to magic city and take that job.. Hawks could only wish Thats funny to hear that name swirl around in those rumors.. Hes too good of a coach to walk in to that toxic situation He will be the Spurms coach when Pops retires.. Let him go coach in GLeague or something! There are certain people you run across in life where you could expect this to happen, said Nesland, Udokas college teammate. With the team thriving under his successors leadership, there was no reason at all to keep Udoka as a potential fallback plan. Hes been a force of both continuity and change during a season where the Celtics look to be significantly improved from even the squad that just made the NBA Finals. Ahead of the 2006-07 season, Udoka signed with the Portland Trail Blazers, where he started 75 games. Hes a fundamentally sound teacher because hes comfortable with himself, he knows the material and players read it.. He had surprising success in his first season, leading a team of rising young stars to the N.B.A. His father, Vitalis, came to Oregon from Nigeria to attend Portland State and chase the American dream, but he found that it was not that simple. Team officials learned during the summer that there was a situation, Grousbeck said, which led them to retain a law firm to investigate Udokas conduct. Keep me in mind.. This is the way with Ime Udoka. Jackson was among Udokas earliest hires last season, and Moser joined the Celtics this season. Popovich said he knew most of Udokas backstory, but very little of it had been, Still, he remains relentlessly determined to, Dan Shaughnessy: Danny Ainge says he wasnt pushed out by the Celtics when he retired, and other picked-up pieces from the sports world. Food boxes arrived from local charities, and whenever Mary Gossart, a close family friend, brought vegetables from her garden, the family acted as if it was a feast. The Atlanta Hawk are considering Ime Udoka for their head coaching vacancy, sources tell Marc Stein of Substack. When is Steph Curry returning to Golden State Warriors? Udoka is the fifth coach in the past 25 years to reach the NBA Finals in his first season as a head coach and the first since Nick Nurse in 2019. The Celtics introduced Ime Udoka as the team's new head coach at a press conference on June 28, 2021. (Only Sanders and Carr didnt win a championship during their stints.) He was getting ready for the second game a few days later when his mother called and said something had happened to their father. The Hawks are considering Ime Udoka as a potential replacement for Nate McMillan, sources tell Marc Stein (Twitter link). Added Budenholzer, who is currently the coach of the Milwaukee Bucks: One of the toughest, smartest, strongest players that I have been around. Ime Udoka is still searching for a new job after his unceremonious departure from the Boston Celtics. The job, he said, was not one size fits all. Finding stability remained a challenge, however. Presumably Udoka has no intention of getting into a brawl, but hes up to the task if you ask his former Nigerian mens national teammate Gabe Muoneke. But there was never a doubt that I was going to try.. In the summer of 2014, forward LaMarcus Aldridge, a prize of the free agent market, met with the Spurs and several other teams in Los Angeles. The offer was rescinded. By Staff and wire reports Published June 28, 2021 Updated on June 28, 2021 at 10:48 am. But he only talked about them because he was being asked about them. They briefly lived in a motel after being evicted from their home before Ime was born. This is the way with Ime Udoka. Twelve months ago, Brad Stevens handed Ime Udoka the coaching keys to the Celtics after being promoted to team president. The Brooklyn Nets considered hiring Quin Snyder after they fired Steve Nash and changed their mind on pursuing Ime Udoka, according to NBA insider Marc Stein. finals last season in his first year in the role. Grousbeck cited privacy reasons in declining to elaborate on the nature of Udokas misconduct. The following year, after president of basketball operations Isiah Thomas had taken over as the teams coach, he summoned Udoka outside the Wynn Casino during the Las Vegas summer league. They have definite similarities. As they walked off the plane afterward, Aldridge turned to Udoka and told him he was coming to San Antonio. Despite his personal struggles, Udoka never wanted people to feel sorry for him. Other candidates for the Hawks opening reportedly include Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson and Milwaukee Bucks assistant Charles Lee. Whether they feel the same now is a different story. To be able to comment you must be registered and logged in. According to ESPNs Adrian He spent two productive years with the Spurs, then played for the Kings for one season before returning to San Antonio, where he spent half a season before being released. The event came days after ESPN reported last week the team had hired Udoka to replace Brad Stevens as head coach. The Celtics truly came together as a team under Mazzullas predecessor, so when they suspended Udoka it could have easily thrown a monkey wrench into the rapidly approaching 2022-23 season. Lebron injury update: What do we know about James leg? The start of this season has been slightly bumpy for the Celtics, who entered Saturday nights game against the Knicks in the middle of the pack in the Eastern Conference, just like last year. He and his sister should come quickly. Follow Boston.com on Instagram (Opens in a New Tab), Follow Boston.com on Twitter (Opens in a New Tab), Like Boston.com on Facebook (Opens in a New Tab). Udoka, 45, coached the Celtics to the N.B.A. Udoka is engaged to actress Nia Long, who played And he was like, I know Im being a good mentor to some of the younger guys, but am I really cut out to be a coach? Memory said. The Celtics will open their season at home against the Philadelphia 76ers on Oct. 18. To even mention Steve Nash in an open NBA coaching position article should be a crime. Ime and Mfon rushed to their parents apartment, where they found Vitalis Udoka unconscious on the floor. Udoka did not play in the preseason opener. Now Udoka and the Celtics are just four wins away from lifting the Larry OBrien trophy. About 10 games into the season, Udoka tore his ACL again. 7 things to know about Ime Udoka, the new Celtics head coach Last season, they came within two games of winning their first championship since 2008. His favorite cinematic moment is when Django said, "Y'all want to see somethin? Udoka earned the respect of many of the Celtics players before joining forces at TD Garden when he was an assistant with the US National team in 2019. Can we corroborate the information? The Hawks recently parted ways with head coach Nate McMillan after a series of moves to improve the roster around point guard ESPN's Tim Bontemps contributed to this report. Now you can watch the entire NBA season or your favorite teams on streaming. Ime Udoka previously coached for the Spurs, Nets, and 76ers before landing the head coaching job with the Celtics. was something to celebrate, even though it wasnt a surprise. The actress Nia Long, with whom Udoka has a young son, asked for privacy in a statement to TMZ. The team announced the suspension is effective immediately. In the 2021 offseason, Udoka took over as the Celtics head coach, after working nine years as an assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Nets. Its his authenticity, his ability to be tough and yet very warm, and its his experience, said Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens. Udoka suspended by C's for 2022-23, apologizes, NBA Power Rankings: Kevin Durant's return could rock the West, V. Bryant settles crash photos suit for $28.85M, Sources: Lakers to reassess LeBron in 2 weeks, Irving: Need to scale back self-imposed pressure, Jokic sixth player in 100 career triple-double club, Driven Giannis 'OK' if people take him for granted, Durant to debut for Suns on Wed. vs. Hornets, Pels say injured Zion progressing, set for imaging, What NBA Finals runs from LeBron, Giannis can teach Jayson Tatum, Meet the man scouring Nigeria for the next generation of NBA and NFL talent, Roundtable: Early takeaways from Kyrie Irving joining Luka Doncic in Dallas, Sources: Udoka likely facing season-long ban, Supplemental Privacy Policy for Singapore. Id ask him if he thought something was going to work, and hed tell you straight up. Celtics fall from top spot in NBA with loss to Knicks, Damien Woody on Patriots recent struggles: I know this has to be eating Mr. Kraft up. coach in the Portland area with Memory and another childhood friend, Kendrick Williams. I went to practice the following day and everybody was looking at me like, Why are you here? Udoka said. The Celtics truly came together as a team under Mazzullas predecessor, so when they suspended Udoka it could have easily thrown a monkey wrench into the rapidly approaching 2022-23 season. In an interview last season, Udoka said he learned to coach players as individuals at the A.A.U. Doubt it. "I am sorry for putting the team in this difficult situation, and I accept the team's decision. Finally, he decided: Im going to take it. level. According to NBA insider Marc Stein, former Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka is among those being considered for the position. The Spurs, Nets, and I accept the team 's decision emerge as one of the season. Include Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson and Milwaukee Bucks assistant Charles Lee you must be registered and logged in keep as! You could expect this to happen, said he knew it took longer Ime! 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