Brooklyn Nets Set to Hire Suspended Celtics Coach Ime Udoka to Open Head Coach Position: Reports
Mar. 15, 2025Ime Udoka.Photo: Ezra Shaw/Getty
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On Tuesday, after the Nets parted ways with head coach Steve Nash,Shams Charaniaof The Athletic andESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowskisaid that the NBA team was readying to hire Udoka, 45.
Udoka, who held an assistant coaching position with the Nets before the Boston Celtics hired him last season, was suspended in September after news brokethat he allegedly had a consensual intimate relationshipwith a woman on the Celtics staff.
The affair between the engaged head coach and the staffer was considered a violation of team guidelines.
After he was suspended, Udoka apologized to the team and his family.
Ime Udoka.Matt Stone/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald/Getty
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“I am sorry for putting the team in this difficult situation, and I accept the team’s decision,” the statement continues. “Out of respect for everyone involved, I will have no further comment.”
Udoka has been in a relationship with longtime girlfriend,Fatal AffairactressNia Long, since they met in 2010. The two share a 10-year-old son, Kez Sunday, and confirmed their engagement in May 2015.
Paul Archuleta/FilmMagic
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Udoka is a former professional basketball player who has had a successful second career as a coach in the NBA. He spent seven years with head coach Gregg Popovich at the San Antonio Spurs, with the team winning a championship in 2014.
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Since leaving the team in 2019, Udoka served as an assistant coach for the Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets. He joined the Celtics in 2021 as a head coach and led the team to the 2022 NBA Finals in his first year at the helm. This was set to be his second season with the franchise.
During last season’s NBA Finals, Boston fell in six games to the Golden State Warriors. But it was a major improvement for the team, which was making its first Finals appearance since 2010.
Nash, meanwhile, was relieved of his duties for the Nets after a frustrating start for the star-studded team. Brooklyn’s 2-5 record is underwhelming for a team boasting top-tier NBA talent like Kevin Durant, Ben Simmons and Kyrie Irving.
source: people.com
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