By Shams Charania, Kelly Iko and Jared Weiss
The Houston Rockets are hiring former Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka for the same role, league sources told The Athletic on Monday. Here’s what you need to know:
- Udoka, 45, replaces Stephen Silas, who was fired earlier in April after compiling a 59-177 record during his three-year tenure.
- Boston suspended Udoka for the entirety of the 2022-23 season for violations of team policies and ultimately hired interim coach Joe Mazzulla as his permanent replacement.
- The Rockets were expected to have a list of about eight head-coaching candidates, The Athletic previously reported. In addition to Udoka, the list was expected to include ex-Raptors coach Nick Nurse — who was fired last week — Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson, former Lakers coach Frank Vogel, former Hornets coach James Borrego and Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin.
The Houston Rockets are hiring Ime Udoka as their new head coach, sources tell me and @KellyIko.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 24, 2023
The Athletic’s instant analysis:
Why this makes sense for Houston
At the end of the day, Udoka ticked all the boxes that the Rockets were looking for in their next leader. Someone that has the ability to relate to young players and veterans alike but also demands respect both in the locker room and on the floor. Udoka is a defensive-minded individual whose creativity, aggression and execution propelled the Celtics to the NBA Finals.
Expect that same level of intensity with this young, relatively inexperienced roster. Players like Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Sengun need organization and real leadership. The Rockets are in a pivotal period and Udoka appears to be the best candidate to bring Houston out of a rebuild and back into winning ways in the near future. — Iko
What the Rockets are getting in Udoka
Hiring Udoka makes perfect sense on the court and in the locker room. He revolutionized the Celtics’ basketball culture by holding everyone accountable and proved himself to be an effective coach throughout a Finals run. Everything about this hire from a locker room perspective looks great, but it comes at a cultural price beyond those confines.
Udoka lost his job in Boston for an inappropriate workplace relationship that neither he nor the Celtics addressed transparently. The Celtics said he committed multiple workplace violations and then declined to answer any questions to provide any more insight when he was first suspended. When he was eventually fired, they simply cited a “violation of team policies.”
Though there have been some details reported about a relationship with a female subordinate, there is still plenty of unknown to this story and it will be hard for the Rockets to justify his hire to their employees and fans without a clear-cut explanation. Saying they conducted due diligence and then trying to sweep everything under the rug won’t cut it, especially since this team isn’t likely to let winning distract from the problem happen without a drastic roster overhaul.
That especially comes in the context of the fallout of Udoka’s initial suspension, when female staffers in the organization were harassed online as internet trolls recklessly tried to piece the story together.
There were real consequences for Udoka’s actions that reverberated far beyond his domain within the organization. Though many of his former players continued to advocate for him as a great coach and a person they love, this scandal put an indelible stain on his career. The Rockets are giving him a chance at redemption after he spent the past seven months in complete radio silence. Now he has to face the music. — Weiss
Backstory
Silas was hired as coach shortly before the Rockets traded Russell Westbrook ahead of the 2020 season. Just weeks later, star James Harden was also traded, flipping the Rockets from a contending team into a rebuilding one.
The Rockets haven’t seen the playoffs since the 2019-20 season, when the team lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals.
Before his suspension, Udoka was heading into his second season at the helm after taking over in June 2021 for Brad Stevens, who became president of basketball operations. The Celtics went 51-31 in the regular season last year and made it to the NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Golden State Warriors. Udoka was previously an assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs, Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets.
The Nets initially planned to hire Udoka as their coach after his suspension was announced, The Athletic reported in November, but instead promoted longtime assistant and interim coach Jacque Vaughn.
Required reading
(Photo: Kyle Terada / USA Today)
Rockets hiring former Celtics coach Ime Udoka, per sources: Why the move makes sense for Houston - The Athletic
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