The Boston coach was passed over by 10 teams in the last five years, but now is heading to the NBA Finals.
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Celtics coach Ime Udoka (left) and point guard Marcus Smart
Over the course of the last five NBA seasons, Celtics coach Ime Udoka has gotten pretty good at job interviews. As well he should—he has probably had more than any coaching candidate in the league, and was repeatedly denied a head-coaching job. Fortunately for the Celtics, none of those other potential situations worked out, and for years, Udoka remained one of the most respected assistant coaches in the NBA without getting the promotion to a head-coaching role. That changed, of course, last summer and Udoka has proven to be the right fit for a Celtics team that has responded to his tough-love approach.
“So many teams blew it with him,” said one Eastern Conference executive. “His experience, his demeanor, his intelligence—he was a great candidate for a lot of years but no one took the plunge on him. And this team, it is perfect for him. He is perfect for them. They have the right weapons but they needed a guy like him, they needed an a**-kicker. They were soft, they needed to be toughened up. That’s what he does and they responded.
