Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka had a special message for all three teams that they eliminated in the playoffs en route to their NBA Finals matchup against the Golden State Warriors. The C's drew first blood in the series with their astounding Game 1 win over the Dubs on Thursday and it was the perfect time for Udoka to flex his muscles a bit.
The 44-year-old shot-caller believes that the Celtics are a special team because of the fact that they're a solid group:
“We look at ourselves as a unit. A complete team. We look at the other teams, Brooklyn with Durant, Bucks with Antetokounmpo, Miami with Butler. We pride ourselves on being a team that plays together,” Udoka said.
Ime Udoka: "We look at ourselves as a unit. A complete team. We look at the other teams, Brooklyn with Durant, Bucks with Antetokounmpo, Miami with Butler. We pride ourselves on being a team that plays together."
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) June 3, 2022
Udoka's statement was pretty cryptic, but it's not hard to read between the lines here. It seems like the Celtics coach had a slight dig at their past opponents, particularly with how they rely so heavily on their one superstar.
To be fair, the Celtics have their own cornerstone stud in Jayson Tatum, but the fact that the Celtics still prevailed in Game 1 vs. the Warriors despite a rather subpar game from their All-Star forward serves as a testament to coach Udoka's statement here.