Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown credited their suspended coach Ime Udoka for the impact he had on the squad and how it played a role in this season’s successful run.
The Boston Celtics have been the team to beat this season. They are perched on top of the Eastern Conference standings with a 22-7 record and are looking to go the distance after their 4-2 defeat to the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals last season.
Tatum (30.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 4.1 assists) and Brown (26.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists) have been pivotal in the Celtics’ success so far.
The pair have already been labeled as the best duo in the league this season and have been thriving under interim head coach Joe Mazzulla. That said, both players haven’t forgotten what Udoka brought to the table last year.
Jayson Tatum Says Ime Udoka “Deserves As Much Credit As Anybody”
Despite starting off 20-21 last year, Boston made a historic comeback to finish the regular season 51-31, and they had Udoka to thank for it. Safe to say, Mazzulla hasn’t tinkered with most of last season’s principles but has introduced some extra spunk and motivation for the side to go the distance.
Speaking to The Athletic, Tatum was all praise for Udoka and revealed the impact he had on the team. Earlier, he had also spoken about how frustrating it was with the offseason controversy that hit the team.
“Ime deserves as much credit as anybody. Ime deserves a lot of credit for how he got us playing, and Joe [Mazzulla] has stepped up and found his own voice and obviously has got us rolling now. But I feel like Ime, especially last year, righted the ship to get us playing the right way.”
This was seconded by Brown:
“I think Ime did a good job when he came in and built the system around us. Like, he built it around our individual talent of what we did well and what (were) our superpowers. Like, Rob (Williams), gave him the freedom to make plays. He let me and Jayson be who we are, but in a combination of moving the ball and doing other things. Defensively, he told us, ‘See a play, make a play.’ The system was built around us and that was just a different coaching style than we were used to previously.”
With a good 53 games left in the season, the Celtics are aware that they need to play some quality basketball to make their postseason transition a lot easier. They are aware of teams switching to the next level in the playoffs, and Udoka’s teachings will serve as good lessons as they stake the claim for another championship.
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