Ime Udoka To Nets? Landing Spot For Coach Now Far Less Likely

It wasn’t too long ago the Brooklyn Nets had both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant all while Ime Udoka was reported to be the “frontrunner” and nearing an agreement to become the next head coach of the franchise.

But now, after shipping both Irving and Durant out of town before the NBA trade deadline, the Nets confirmed Udoka would not be coming to Brooklyn in the near future. The organization on Tuesday announced it had stripped the interim title from Jacque Vaughn, promoting him to head coach while extending him for multiple seasons following the 2022-23 campaign.

Among other things, it means Udoka had one potential landing spot eliminated in his future coaching search.

Udoka, who initially was suspended by the Boston Celtics days before the start of the current campaign, reportedly no longer works for the franchise in any capacity. Much like the Nets, the Celtics elevated their own interim coach, Joe Mazzulla, last week before the NBA All-Star break. Mazzulla now will serve as Boston’s head coach beyond the 2022-23 campaign and the promotion meant the end of Udoka’s tenure with the Celtics.

After rumors initially swirled in November that Udoka was thought to be a candidate for the Nets job, following the firing of head coach Steve Nash, reports then surfaced how “strong voices” inside the organization, including women in leadership, were urging owner Joe Tsai to back off Udoka.

Udoka was suspended by the Celtics in September for violations of team policy. Those violations reportedly stemmed from him making “unwanted” comments and using “crude language” while engaging in an improper relationship with a Celtics female staffer.