Ime Udoka

Ime Sunday Udoka (/ˈiːmeɪ uːˈdoʊkə/ EE-may ooh-DOH-kə;[1] born August 9, 1977) is a Nigerian-American professional basketball coach and former player, who is the head coach for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born in the United States, he represented the Nigeria national team during his playing career.

Ime Udoka
Udoka with the Boston Celtics in 2022
Houston Rockets
PositionHead coach
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1977-08-09) August 9, 1977
Portland, Oregon, U.S.
NationalityAmerican / Nigerian
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
High schoolJefferson (Portland, Oregon)
College
NBA draft2000: undrafted
Playing career2000–2012
PositionSmall forward
Number5, 8, 3
Coaching career2012–present
Career history
As player:
2000–2001Fargo-Moorhead Beez
2001Independiente
2002–2003North Charleston Lowgators
2003Adirondack Wildcats
2003–2004Charleston Lowgators
2004Los Angeles Lakers
2004Charleston Lowgators
2004Gran Canaria
2005JA Vichy
2005–2006Fort Worth Flyers
2006New York Knicks
2006–2007Portland Trail Blazers
2007–2009San Antonio Spurs
2009–2010Sacramento Kings
2010–2011San Antonio Spurs
2012UCAM Murcia
As coach:
2012–2019San Antonio Spurs (assistant)
2019–2020Philadelphia 76ers (assistant)
2020–2021Brooklyn Nets (assistant)
2021–2023Boston Celtics
2023–presentHouston Rockets
Career highlights and awards
As player:

As assistant coach:

Career NBA statistics
Points1,635 (5.2 ppg)
Rebounds926 (2.9 rpg)
Assists308 (1.0 apg)
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Men's Basketball
Representing  Nigeria
African Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2005 Algeria Nigeria
Bronze medal – third place 2011 Madagascar Nigeria

Early life

Udoka was born in Portland, Oregon on August 9, 1977. He attended Portland's Jefferson High School.[2]

College career

Udoka played for Utah State University Eastern and the University of San Francisco before transferring to Portland State University where he starred for the Vikings.[3]

Professional career
Udoka with the San Antonio Spurs in 2010

Udoka started his professional basketball career by playing in the NBDL with the Charleston Lowgators who drafted him with 39th overall pick in 2002 NBDL Draft.[4] He was called up to play with the Los Angeles Lakers on January 14, 2004, but was later waived. After a stint in Europe, Udoka returned to the United States and once again drafted in NBDL. This time he was drafted third overall by the Fort Worth Flyers in 2005 NBDL Draft.[5] He averaged 17.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per game with the Flyers.[6] On April 6, 2006, Udoka was signed by the New York Knicks. Udoka was waived by the Knicks on September 11, 2006.

Udoka was the last player invited to his hometown Portland Trail Blazers' training camp before the 2006–07 season, getting the invitation only after Aaron Miles failed a physical. Despite the death of his father during the preseason,[7] Udoka impressed the coaching staff with his defensive skills and made the team. After having played in only 12 NBA games in his career, Udoka started in 75 games played in the 2006–07 season. He played 28.6 minutes per game while averaging 8.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 0.9 steals.

In 2007, Udoka signed a contract with the San Antonio Spurs.[6][8] He played in 73 games averaging 5.8 points and 3.1 rebounds in 18 minutes. On his second season with the Spurs, Udoka played in 67 games, and started in three. He averaged 4.3 points and 2.8 rebounds in 15.4 minutes.[9]

Following the 2009 season, Udoka became a free agent, eventually re-signing with the Trail Blazers.[10] He was waived by the Blazers on October 22, 2009,[11][12] but signed with the Sacramento Kings on November 4, 2009.[13] He played 69 games with the Kings, averaging 3.6 points and 2.8 rebounds in 13.7 minutes.

On November 24, 2010, Udoka rejoined the Spurs,[14] but he was waived on January 5, 2011 after playing only 20 games.[15]

On December 15, 2011, Udoka signed with the New Jersey Nets.[16] However, he was waived on December 23, 2011.[17]

In January 2012, Udoka signed with UCAM Murcia of the Spanish Liga ACB.[18]

Coaching career

San Antonio Spurs (2012–2019)

In August 2012, Udoka joined the San Antonio Spurs as an assistant coach for Gregg Popovich. Udoka would win his first championship as the Spurs defeated the Miami Heat in the 2014 NBA Finals, 4–1.[19]

Udoka was also the key for LaMarcus Aldridge's decision to join the Spurs in 2015. Both Udoka and Aldridge played together with the Trail Blazers during Aldridge's rookie season.[20]

Philadelphia 76ers (2019–2020)

On June 26, 2019, Udoka was hired as an assistant coach of the Philadelphia 76ers.[21] Udoka's head coach on the 76ers, Brett Brown, also coached under Gregg Popovich for the Spurs, and Udoka and Brown were on the same staff in the 2012–13 season.[22]

Brooklyn Nets (2020–2021)

On October 30, 2020, the Brooklyn Nets hired Udoka as an assistant coach.[23]

Boston Celtics (2021–2023)
Udoka in 2021

On June 28, 2021, Udoka was hired as head coach of the Boston Celtics, becoming the fifth head coach of African origin in Boston Celtics history.[24][25][26][27] Though the Celtics began the season 18–21, Udoka led them to a 51–31 record, finishing as the second seed in the Eastern Conference. The Celtics won the Eastern Conference title and made their first NBA Finals appearance since 2010. The Celtics lost in six games to the Golden State Warriors.[28]

On September 22, 2022, the Celtics suspended Udoka for the entirety of the 2022–23 season for violations of team policies,[29] pertaining to an improper intimate relationship with a female Celtics staff member.[30][31] Though the relationship was originally believed by the organization to be consensual, the woman later accused Udoka of making unwanted comments towards her.[32] He issued an apology after the suspension was handed out, but chose not to resign from his position as a result of the violation, though Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Udoka was not guaranteed to stay with the organization following the 2022–23 season.[33] Assistant coach Joe Mazzulla took his place as the interim head coach.[34] On February 16, 2023, Udoka's time with the Celtics came to an end when Mazzulla, who had led the Celtics to a league-best 42–17 record at the NBA All-Star break, was named the team's permanent head coach.[35][36][37]

Houston Rockets (2023–)

On April 25, 2023, Udoka was hired as head coach by the Houston Rockets.[1]

National team career

Udoka was a player on the Nigerian national team. At the 2006 FIBA World Championships, he led Nigeria in scoring, assists, and steals.[27] Udoka also played for Nigeria in the 2005 and 2011 FIBA Africa Championships, winning a bronze medal in both tournaments.[38]

Udoka has served as an assistant coach for USA Basketball under his Spurs head coach, Gregg Popovich. Udoka's coaching role on the 2019 FIBA World Cup team helped him build relationships with Celtics players Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart, who advocated for his hiring as the new Celtics head coach.[39] Udoka also coached for Team USA under Popovich at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, along with Celtics assistant Will Hardy.[40]

Personal life

Udoka's father was of Nigerian descent,[7] which qualified Udoka for Nigerian citizenship. His older sister, Mfon, played in the WNBA. Udoka's mother, who died in late 2011, was an American from Illinois.[41]

In November 2011, Udoka's then-girlfriend, Nia Long, gave birth to their first child.[42] The couple became engaged in May 2015,[43] but they split in 2022 after his cheating on her with a Boston Celtics staff member came to light.[44][45][46]

NBA career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2003–04 L.A. Lakers 407.0.333.000.5001.3.5.5.22.0
2005–06 New York 8014.3.375.333.5002.1.8.1.02.8
2006–07 Portland 757528.6.461.406.7423.71.5.9.28.4
2007–08 San Antonio 73018.0.424.370.7593.1.9.8.25.8
2008–09 San Antonio 67315.4.383.328.6092.8.8.5.24.3
2009–10 Sacramento 69213.7.378.286.7372.8.8.5.13.6
2010–11 San Antonio 2006.5.238.000.500.9.7.4.0.7
Career 3168018.1.417.356.7052.91.0.7.25.2

Playoffs
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2008 San Antonio 16014.8.465.400.7142.91.1.7.15.4
2009 San Antonio 5020.8.350.125.4004.6.8.8.23.4
Career 21016.2.440.354.5833.31.0.7.15.0

Head coaching record
Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost W–L % Win–loss %
Playoffs PG Playoff games PW Playoff wins PL Playoff losses PW–L % Playoff win–loss %
Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
Boston 2021–22 825131.6221st in Atlantic241410.583 Lost in NBA Finals
Houston 2023–24 ––––––––
Career 825131.622 241410.583 

References
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  2. "Source: Celtics hire former Trail Blazer Ime Udoka as new coach". kgw8.com. June 23, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
  3. "Celtics hire Ime Udoka as next coach". www.nba.com. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
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  5. "2005 NBA D-League Draft Board". NBA.com. November 3, 2005. Archived from the original on December 2, 2010. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
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