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Joe Mazzulla is being rewarded for leading the Celtics to the best record in the NBA entering the All-Star break, increasing the uncertainty surrounding Ime Udoka’s future with the team.
Thursday morning, the Celtics (42-17) removed the interim tag from Mazzulla, making him the 19th head coach in franchise history and extending his contract. Mazzulla served as Boston’s assistant for the previous three seasons.
The 45-year-old was suspended for the full 2022-23 season due to an inappropriate contact with a female staff member. Udoka appears to be on the verge of leaving the company. Since 2010, Udoka has been in a relationship with actress Nia Long, with whom he shares a son. Long said that the Celtics never attempted to contact her about Udoka’s affair.
Udoka has neither resigned nor been dismissed, and it is unknown what he or the Celtics will do once the 30-day suspension finishes on June 30, though it is certain he will not return as head coach.
In November, after firing Steve Nash seven games into the season, the Nets considered hiring Udoka, a former assistant for Brooklyn, as their head coach. However, women within BSE Global, the Nets’ parent company, as well as public attention prevented this. Jacque Vaughn was ultimately named the head coach of the Brooklyn Nets after briefly holding the role in an interim capacity.
Udoka, a former player for the Spurs, Kings, Trail Blazers, Knicks, and Lakers, served as an assistant in San Antonio for seven seasons under Gregg Popovich until joining the 76ers as an assistant in 2019. After one year, he moved to Brooklyn and was named Celtics head coach for the 2021-22 season, during which Boston lost the NBA Finals to the Warriors.
Prior to joining the Celtics in 2019, Mazzulla served as head coach at Division II Fairmont State.
»Joe Mazzulla becomes Celtics head coach with Ime Udoka’s future uncertain«