Agitated since the revelation of his “consensual, extramarital affair” with a Boston franchise staffer, Ime Udoka was under a heavy penalty from the Celtics. Penalty that fell last night: the Greens coach is banned for the entire 2022-23 season!
just yesterday morning, just after the revelations dropped shortly before, the question arose as to what the penalty would be for the Boston coach for his violation of the Celtics’ franchise code of conduct. It’s official, we won’t see Ime Udoka on the NBA bench this season. As noted by leading experts overnight, the 45-year-old has been suspended for the entirety of the upcoming campaignwhich obviously represents a real earthquake for this Boston team that stayed in a Finals participation against the Warriors at the end of Udoka’s first season on the bench.
The Boston Celtics have suspended head coach Ime Udoka for the entire 2022-23 season.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 23, 2022
If Ime thereby avoided the dismissal scenario, it’s a very strong call from the Celtics. Very firm but necessary in the eyes of the Boston franchise to 1) show that this type of behavior cannot be accepted within the organization 2) ensure that the suspension is severe enough that the C’s can completely turn the page once that has been purged. Because the best way for these types of cases to continue to haunt the franchise is not to take the necessary measures at this time T. So although for some it may seem very harsh as a sanction, its status and responsibilities within the team. force the Celtics to be uncompromising.
It will inevitably surprise some people, and that’s normal, but it’s image and public relations. When you are a representative and public figure of a team/league/institution, there are lines not to cross under penalty of being labeled.
Bonus in Puritan America.
— TrashTalk (@TrashTalk_fr) September 22, 2022
So what’s next for Boston? According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the Celtics will leave Joe Mazzulla take control of the group for the next season. As we already underlined yesterday when his name was mentioned among the candidates for the (temporary) succession of Udoka, Mazzulla is young and inexperienced at the height of his 34 years. He joined the Celtics in 2019 as an assistant coach when Brad Stevens was still on the bench before he entered the front office, and remained on the staff when Ime arrived in the 2021 offseason. Head coach that literally falls on him, right? can Joe Mazzulla keep the Greens atop an increasingly competitive Eastern Conference? It’s sure to be tense for him, especially since the Celtics could evolve without Robert Williams III at the start of the season and they still haven’t replaced Danilo Gallinari after his big knee injury. All that to say we had an easier first job as head coach…
Sacred rebound in Boston a few days before the start of training camp and less than a month before the first game of the regular season. Considered one of the great favorites for the 2023 NBA title, the Celtics will now have to advance without the same certainties they thought they had. And it could be expensive given the competition in the East…
Text Source: ESPN