The Brooklyn Nets made headlines this week for multiple reasons, the most recent being their hiring of former Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka.
Udoka had been serving a season-long suspension by the Celtics in the wake of the revelation of an improper relationship with a subordinate in the organization. While Udoka was still under contract with the Celtics, the team was not going to keep him from possibly pursuing other coaching opportunities.
The news of Udoka's move to a conference rival, just one season after guiding the Celtics back to the Finals, predictably did not sit well with some of the Celtics players, most notably Marcus Smart.
Jaylen Brown, however, remarked how pleased he was to see Udoka get another head coaching opportunity with the Nets.
According to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe, Celtics interim head coach Joe Mazzulla has encouraged his players to confide in him regarding anything they might be feeling following Udoka's departure.
Mazzulla on players' reactions to Ime situation:
"I care about how they’re processing things. I care about what they’re going through. I hope that they know we can always talk about anything…The most important thing for me is that they feel they can be heard & can talk to me."— Adam Himmelsbach (@AdamHimmelsbach) November 2, 2022
With a couple of new additions such as Malcolm Brogdon as well as some internal development from players like Grant Williams and Robert Williams III, the Celtics were considered a favorite to return to the Finals and contend for the franchise's 18th championship. Instead, the suspension of Udoka threw all of that into question.
Joe Mazzulla was named the interim head coach immediately after the team suspended Ime Udoka. He was initially hired as an assistant under former head coach Brad Stevens back in 2019. He has led the Celtics to a 4-2 record to begin the 2022-23 season.
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