The Boston Celtics named Joe Mazzulla as their everlasting head coach on Thursday, they usually have fired Ime Udoka, based on an individual with information of the state of affairs who was not approved to debate it publicly.
Udoka had been suspended since September for unspecified “violations of staff insurance policies.” Based on two individuals with information of the state of affairs who weren’t approved to debate it publicly, Udoka had a relationship with a feminine subordinate.
Mazzulla, 34, who had been an assistant in Boston for the final three years, was named the interim coach in his stead. With him on the helm, the Celtics haven’t skipped a beat since going to the N.B.A. finals final season. They’re coming into the All-Star break this weekend with the league’s greatest file at 42-17.
“As he has proven, Joe is a really gifted coach and chief,” Brad Stevens, the Celtics’ president of basketball operations, mentioned in an announcement. “He has a novel means to provoke a room round a mission. We’re grateful for the work he has accomplished to assist get us up to now, and excited that he has agreed to steer us into the longer term.”
The Celtics mentioned in an announcement that that they had agreed to a contract extension with Mazzulla, however they didn’t disclose the phrases of the deal.
Udoka had been a extremely revered assistant for almost a decade earlier than the Celtics employed him in 2021. He led final yr’s staff to a 51-31 file and a shock journey to the N.B.A. finals, the place Boston misplaced to Golden State in six video games.
However simply days earlier than coaching camp started this season, the Celtics suspended Udoka with the obscure clarification of staff coverage violations, resulting in an avalanche of social media hypothesis in regards to the staff’s feminine workers members as rumors swirled.
“I need to apologize to our gamers, followers, the whole Celtics group and my household for letting them down,” Udoka mentioned in an announcement after the suspension was introduced.
Mazzulla, a former faculty basketball participant at West Virginia College, was handed the reins. The Celtics began the season 18-4 and have been among the many greatest groups within the N.B.A. on each ends of the ground.
