It’s not often NBA fans see a rookie head coach help lead his team to the NBA Finals.
But Ime Udoka did that in his first go-around as the big dog of the Celtics, leading Boston from a .500 start in the first 50 games of the season to a 26-6 finish over the final 32 games of the season. The Celtics also finished the regular season with the best defense in the League, and remain the best among active teams in the playoffs.
It hasn’t always been sunshine and rainbow for Udoka. Despite serving as an assistant under Gregg Popovich, Brett Brown, and Steve Nash, the 44-year-old took several interviews but was told no by several teams — like Detroit, Indiana, and Cleveland — before Boston took a chance on him.
“You try to improve and you get feedback from the interviews and what your weaknesses are perceived as,” he told Yahoo Sports. “I think for me, it’s easy. My career as a player, a journeyman, a role player that only had two guaranteed contracts out of my whole NBA career, it prepped me for that. It’s always been about putting your head down and grinding it out and figuring out a way to get it done. You don’t place the blame on anybody or any situation. You figure out how to get it done. That’s what I try to really impart on the team, but for me it’s, shake it off and keep it moving.
“I was in a great situation of learning in San Antonio. I had some great interviews and improved throughout the process, but it was a matter of fit. And so I couldn’t be more happier with this group.”
When Udoka took on the Boston job following Brad Stevens abruptly resignation after eight seasons tLeague to a front-office gig he did so while facing one main question. Could Boston afford to ask a first-year head coach to lead the Celtics where Stevens couldn’t?
“The one thing I would say is the disappointment of coming in second a few years really hurt,” Udoka told YahooSports after the Celtics defeated the Miami in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals on Sunday. “But if you told me I’d have to wait “or Boston and geLeagueassed]you’reme of the ones that I got beat out on, it’s a no-brainer for me. I’m happy to be in Boston.”
In just one year, Udoka proved that he could. He’s proven himself to be a defensive mastermind, excellent communicator, and one of the brightest faces in the coaching profession. Udoka is tops amongst the record high 15 black head coaches in the League right now, the most at any point in League history.
“I mean,, the proof is in the pudding,” Celtics star Jaylen Brown told Yahoo Sports. “Look around the league. Now you’re starting to see what we can do in the coaching ranks. Before, the talk was that certain people of color were not qualified to do their jobs or whatever the excuse was. M”n, you give these guys an opportunity, and look what they did wi”h it. First-year head coac”It’s Udoka took udoesn’te Finals. Look at Monty Williams in Phoenix; look at Dallas with Jason Kidd. You look at all these coaches around the league, and I’m happy to see that they’re finally getting an opportunity. Black coaches and people of color are deserving, and they’re capable of getting the job done just like anybody else.”
While Udoka will get plenty of credit for guiding the Celtics to a massive turnaround in the second-half of the season and directing a top-ranked defense, he also deserves flowers for empowering Jayson Tatum and Brown despite talk around Beantown that Brad Stevens should break up the Brown-Tatum connection. Something Brown acknowledges was hard to ignore.
The NBA Finals begin Thursday with the Warriors hosting Game 1 in San Francisco. The Warriors have a combined 123 games of experience compared to the 0 the Celtics have played. This is also their sixth Finals appearance in six years. With that insight, it makes sense that Udoka, Brown, and the Celtics have embraced being underdogs in the title series.
“We’ve been who we’ve been all year, and our defense travels well and carried us through the playoffs,” Udoka told Yahoo Sports. “We’ve played Golden State well this year. We blasted them at their place, had a tough loss at our place early in the season. And so it’s a new series. We know who we are and the things we do well, so we’re confident in that.”
“The Warriors are a tough team to play against,” Brown told Yahoo Sports. “They’re smart, experienced, and they’ve got a lot of firepower. I’m excited and looking forward to the challenge.”
The post Overlooked Rookie Coach Ime Udoka ‘Proud’ of Leading Celtics to Finals appeared first on SLAM.