Ime Udoka reaches deal to be Houston Rockets' next coach, per reports
Ime Udoka has reached a deal with the Houston Rockets to become their next coach, ESPN and The Athletic reported.
Udoka replaces Stephen Silas, who was not retained after Houston’s 22-60 season, the team's third consecutive season without much improvement under Silas.
Udoka led the Boston Celtics to the Eastern Conference title and an NBA Finals appearance last season, but just before the start of training camp for 2022-23, the Celtics suspended Udoka the entire season for “violations of team policies,” which included inappropriate workplace conduct.
He was let go when the Celtics gave Joe Mazzulla a contract extension on Feb. 16.
It was expected Udoka would be a hot coaching candidate. Early in the season, when the Brooklyn Nets fired Steve Nash after seven games, they considered hiring Udoka, who was a Nets assistant in 2020-21. But public and private criticism swayed the Nets to look elsewhere.
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With head coaching openings in Houston, Toronto and Detroit, the Rockets moved fast to hire Udoka.
In his one season with the Celtics, Udoka was 51-31 and earned a reputation of being a no-nonsense coach who got players to buy into his offensive and defensive philosophies. He wasn’t afraid to confront players or call out their mistakes, but he also earned their respect with his basketball acumen.
“He does a really good job of just obviously telling us what we did wrong and what we need to do better, but making sure everybody believes in ourselves in the group and getting ready for the next one,” Celtics star Jayson Tatum said during last season’s conference finals.
Udoka has a significant task ahead of him. The Rockets won 17, 20 and 22 games the past three seasons and ranked at or near the bottom of the league in major categories, including 27th in offensive rating and 29th in defensive rating.
The Rockets have some potential in young players Jalen Green, Kevin Porter Jr., Alperen Sengun and Jabari Smith Jr.
Houston also has the best chance, along with Detroit and San Antonio, of winning the draft lottery and getting the No. 1 pick in the June draft.