The Brooklyn Nets parted ways with Steve Nash on Tuesday after a 2-5 start to the season, and Nash admitted that the players don’t listen or respond to him as before on the court. This was expected to happen, but what wasn’t was that the front-runner for the job was a controversial figure.
Right after the news of Nash leaving the Nets organization was revealed, we learned about a preliminary list of candidates to take over for the Canadian head coach. Ime Udoka was named as a top candidate to take the job, even amid his yearlong suspension at the Boston Celtics.
Many people have talked against that move, but the Nets will have the final decision on this whether they like it or not. Still, more figures around the league keep expressing their opinion on this situation, and one of Udoka’s players had some things to get off his chest.
Marcus Smart Isn’t Happy With Ime Udoka To Nets Rumors
Marcus Smart was confused after he heard rumors of his head coach possibly joining another team. The point guard didn’t like that at all and had some things to say about how this situation was handled and how Ime can join another team this very season.
“Obviously, we wish he was here,” Smart told The Boston Globe Wednesday. “We have no control over that. It definitely sucks. I guess it was deemed that whatever happened was enough for him not to be the coach here, but I guess not enough for him [not] to be a coach anywhere else, obviously.”
“His name got slandered and slaughtered and it was ‘He’ll probably never coach again,’ ” Smart said. “And a couple of months later, now he’s possibly going to be the coach of one of our biggest rivals?
“It’s tough. It makes no sense. But we can’t control that. We have to control what we can, and I love the team here. I love the coaching staff. I love Joe.”
He also touched on the front office and how they would react if any of the players tried to convince them to not allow Udoka to join another team during his one-year suspension.
“It really doesn’t matter what we say [to the front office],” Smart said. “We can voice our opinion, but I’m sure it’s going to be, ‘Yeah, we hear you.’ And that’s it.
“I’m sure they know how certain people feel. But it is tough, because there’s only so much that they can say. It’s a tough spot for everybody. It just sucks all around.”
It seems like the Celtics are ready to move on from Udoka, especially if we take a look at their current record. Despite being under new management with Joe Mazzulla, the C’s are doing just fine, posting a 4-2 record. Tonight, they’ll have a big challenge against the one-loss Cleveland Cavaliers, but it’s fair to say that this team is in the right position to compete in the Eastern Conference once again.
