Rockets’ Ime Udoka Says Celtics Players ‘Lied’ About Being in the Dark on His Suspension

The former Celtics coach had some interesting comments on his suspension from the team.

The Boston Celtics suspended former head coach Ime Udoka just a week before training camp of the 2022-23 NBA season, and the aftermath was filled with question marks. His suspension was for the entirety of the season due to “violations of team policies,” per the Celtics. 

It was later reported by The Athletic’s Shams Charania that Udoka had an “improper” relationship with a female staffer.

Players spoke then about their lack of information on the situation, including Jayson Tatum saying he found out on Twitter and hadn’t talked to Udoka. The now-Houston Rockets coach addressed the topic of players being left in the dark following their matchup with the Celtics on Saturday, Jan. 13, and said at least “some of them knew.”

“I would say they lied to you guys. They knew, or some of them knew. Obviously, if I had talked to them, they wouldn’t share stuff publicly. So who needed to know knew,” Udoka said, according to The Athletic’s Jared Weiss.

Ime Udoka and the Rockets are in the mix for a playoff spot as the midway point of the 2023-24 NBA season approaches / Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports

It’s a surprising comment from Udoka. But it would also make sense that if players did know anything, they wouldn’t say much publicly about it, especially during an ongoing investigation by the team. Udoka reportedly attended the wedding of former Celtics guard Marcus Smart, along with Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Joe Mazzulla and general manager Brad Stevens, according to Andscape’s Marc J. Spears.

Ultimately, Mazzulla was promoted from interim head coach to full-time coach, as the Celtics parted ways with Udoka. The former Celtics coach was then hired by the Rockets on April 24, 2023, after his new team investigated with the league office and the Celtics before making an offer, as ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported.