Ime Udoka suspended for the 22-23 season

HomeRunBaker

bet squelcher
SoSH Member
Jan 15, 2004
30,096
Yeah, the players aren’t going to care about what they consider to be “front office dirty laundry.” Their reality is that a new coach is going to have to win over the locker room in very short order.
Mazzulla is already well liked by the teams core as a young ex-player from what I understand.
 

BigSoxFan

Member
SoSH Member
May 31, 2007
47,087
Can’t even imagine how screwed we’d be if we had done the Durant trade for a short window and then lost Ime.
 

Gdiguy

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
6,231
San Diego, CA
Manager/subordinate relationships are strongly discouraged where I work and can lead to reassignment or termination of the manager. I wouldn't call it a blanket ban, but it's clear the manager will be subject to action. And there is no requirement to disclose intra-company relationships (that would be weird, to be honest). However, the company does have special policies for the top execs regarding fraternization .
The argument would be that if you require disclosure and have a policy for dealing with it (reassignment, independent employee review, etc) rather than just termination, you encourage up-front and honest disclosure that ensures that things don't get really bad; whereas if the policy is 'immediate termination', it's much more likely that something that happens is covered up or not known until it creates a really big HR problem (e.g. the subordinate is let go for an unrelated reason and then suddenly brings up the relationship)
 

OurF'ingCity

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 22, 2016
8,469
New York City
Yeah, I highly doubt the players give a shit that Ime slept around.
Probably true, but players in today’s NBA are very sophisticated. If the vast majority of the posters in this thread understand why it’s a bad look not to punish Ime for this, I think it’s pretty belittling to the players to not assume they get it too. If I were a player, even if I thought there was nothing wrong with what Ime did in a vacuum I’d probably still think he’s a fucking moron for even creating this situation in the first place.

The one possible exception to this, though, is if there does end up being the perception that Ime was punished more harshly than otherwise because the other person in the relationship was connected to ownership in some way. That’s a situation where I could see the players being legitimately frustrated.
 

ifmanis5

Member
SoSH Member
Sep 29, 2007
63,740
Rotten Apple
If they had kept this quiet and in house I can see them ride this out. But once the story is out and it's an open topic for never ending questions and distractions, they have to cut it off.
Rest of the league laughing. It's a joke at this point. Organizations can't have that. They'll be fine with another coach who doesn't have this baggage.
 

Marciano490

Urological Expert
SoSH Member
Nov 4, 2007
62,312
The argument would be that if you require disclosure and have a policy for dealing with it (reassignment, independent employee review, etc) rather than just termination, you encourage up-front and honest disclosure that ensures that things don't get really bad; whereas if the policy is 'immediate termination', it's much more likely that something that happens is covered up or not known until it creates a really big HR problem (e.g. the subordinate is let go for an unrelated reason and then suddenly brings up the relationship)
Of all the speculation, this seems plausible - if the women is married, I’d imagine they didn’t disclose the relationship, which might be doing some added work on the suspension.

Yeah, I think too much is being made of a long forgotten assault in his past.
With Patricia, not great to have half our major franchises with that sort of history in the upper coaching ranks.
 

Light-Tower-Power

ask me about My Pillow
SoSH Member
Jun 14, 2013
15,947
Nashua, NH
Yeah, Ime is definitely done in Boston. And the Celts will be fine with Mazzulla and Vogel.
Agree. They’re far too talented for this to completely derail their performance on the court, and by all accounts Mazzulla is well liked. I’m more concerned the Jays start to become frustrated with this organizational dysfunction. Three head coaches in three years isn’t great.
 

Swedgin

Member
SoSH Member
Jun 27, 2013
701
Actually, I would not be surprised if the "leak" is a trial balloon. Float a possible one year suspension, see what the public (and player) reaction is and adjust accordingly.

As someone who practices labor and employment law, an undisclosed physical relationship with a subordinate employee is a real problem. Exposure exists both with to involved employee in the event the relationship (physical or employment) sours, and to co-workers. As others have explained, if you create an environment where sleeping with the "boss" is perceived as the way to get ahead, you have substantial exposure to your other (especially female) employees. I have been involved in both kinds of claims, these are not just hypotheticals. As an organization, these are reasons you discipline/terminate the leader. Another reason is the incredibly poor judgment the behavior reflects. That being said, the approach an organization adopts always takes into account the senior employee's value to the organization.

As is true in all workplaces, the dynamic with the players is a real and relevant consideration, particularly if they know the staffer and have witnessed interactions between the two. I have been involved in situations where the folks in closest proximity to the situation saw the lower level employee as an active participant or the pursuer in the relationship, and felt a popular, effective leader was being unfairly punished for a personal indiscretion.

Long way of saying, these situations are a mess for employers. You are always choosing among least bad options.
 

Erik Hanson's Hook

Member
SoSH Member
Jun 20, 2013
1,079
This is crazy talk imo. Playoff time, late 4Q……Tatum turns the ball over bc he’s thinking about Ime’s extracurricular activities.
Strawman alert.

No, I do not think that Tatum will be missing specific 4th quarter shots because of Ime's extracurricular activities.

I DO believe, however, that teams who ultimately end up winning championships do not have this type of stuff swirling around them. It's an aggregate thing, that builds up into meaningless media questions and exhaustion. Seen Steve Kerr deal with this type of stuff? Nope.

If you're trying to win a championship, no news is goods news. And this is not good news.
 

CaptainLaddie

dj paul pfieffer
SoSH Member
Sep 6, 2004
36,684
where the darn libs live
You should absolutely not care about what the players think if you’re going to enforce employment policies for misconduct. Unless you are fine consecrating a dysfunctional work culture where the views of those with status/power determines how those policies are applied, and that dysfunction plays out in a range of destructive legal and cultural ways.
The Isiah Thomas Knicks say hello. Yep.
 

ifmanis5

Member
SoSH Member
Sep 29, 2007
63,740
Rotten Apple
Actually, I would not be surprised if the "leak" is a trial balloon. Float a possible one year suspension, see what the public (and player) reaction is and adjust accordingly.

As someone who practices labor and employment law, an undisclosed physical relationship with a subordinate employee is a real problem. Exposure exists both with to involved employee in the event the relationship (physical or employment) sours, and to co-workers. As others have explained, if you create an environment where sleeping with the "boss" is perceived as the way to get ahead, you have substantial exposure to your other (especially female) employees. I have been involved in both kinds of claims, these are not just hypotheticals. As an organization, these are reasons you discipline/terminate the leader. Another reason is the incredibly poor judgment the behavior reflects. That being said, the approach an organization adopts always takes into account the senior employee's value to the organization.

As is true in all workplaces, the dynamic with the players is a real and relevant consideration, particularly if they know the staffer and have witnessed interactions between the two. I have been involved in situations where the folks in closest proximity to the situation saw the lower level employee as an active participant or the pursuer in the relationship, and felt a popular, effective leader was being unfairly punished for a personal indiscretion.

Long way of saying, these situations are a mess for employers. You are always choosing among least bad options.
Thanks for this insight.
 

OurF'ingCity

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 22, 2016
8,469
New York City
Agree. They’re far too talented for this to completely derail their performance on the court, and by all accounts Mazzulla is well liked. I’m more concerned the Jays start to become frustrated with this organizational dysfunction. Three head coaches in three years isn’t great.
Again I think it’s a little belittling to the players to think they don’t get the nuances of the situation. Brad left because the team was underperforming and he was more suited for a front office role. Ime left (or was suspended) because he made an idiotic, short-sighted, selfish decision. If we get that, the players surely do too.

Plus, they made the Finals last year. At least so far, any “organizational dysfunction” has had no impact on the on-court performance.
 

Myt1

educated, civility-loving ass
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Mar 13, 2006
41,574
South Boston
Again I think it’s a little belittling to the players to think they don’t get the nuances of the situation. Brad left because the team was underperforming and he was more suited for a front office role. Ime left (or was suspended) because he made an idiotic, short-sighted, selfish decision. If we get that, the players surely do too.
I mean, they can be frustrated by things with nuances they understand, right? I get frustrated by stuff I understand all the time.
 

Light-Tower-Power

ask me about My Pillow
SoSH Member
Jun 14, 2013
15,947
Nashua, NH
Again I think it’s a little belittling to the players to think they don’t get the nuances of the situation. Brad left because the team was underperforming and he was more suited for a front office role. Ime left (or was suspended) because he made an idiotic, short-sighted, selfish decision. If we get that, the players surely do too.

Plus, they made the Finals last year. At least so far, any “organizational dysfunction” has had no impact on the on-court performance.
Well, regardless of the players’ thoughts on how Ime’s situation is being handled, things are still pretty dysfunctional right about now, and dysfunction isn’t well known for keeping star players happy.
 

Gash Prex

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 18, 2002
6,823
Fair or unfair, there will be a racial component to the Ime issue, and given the perception of Boston - it won't be pretty. I do not think there is nearly enough information available to make any statements one or another, but its an aspect of this story.

There is bound to be a lot of frustration and anger on this matter no matter how its resolved. Some of it will be justified and some of it will be disappointed Celtics fans taking their frustration out on...somebody.
 

EvilEmpire

paying for his sins
Moderator
SoSH Member
Apr 9, 2007
17,178
Washington
I think the only way this torpedoes the team this year is if Ime's coaching is a difference maker on the court and whoever is in the seat, with whatever additional support the Celtics hire, can't collectively do what Ime does.

I don't think it is likely. Too much talent on the team.
 

Petagine in a Bottle

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 13, 2021
11,921
I think the only way this torpedoes the team this year is if Ime's coaching is a difference maker on the court and whoever is in the seat, with whatever additional support the Celtics hire, can't collectively do what Ime does.

I don't think it is likely. Too much talent on the team.
I think how Ime reacts will also be key. If he’s defiant and / or not conciliatory, it will be bad.
 

Deathofthebambino

Drive Carefully
SoSH Member
Apr 12, 2005
41,946
Again I think it’s a little belittling to the players to think they don’t get the nuances of the situation. Brad left because the team was underperforming and he was more suited for a front office role. Ime left (or was suspended) because he made an idiotic, short-sighted, selfish decision. If we get that, the players surely do too.

Plus, they made the Finals last year. At least so far, any “organizational dysfunction” has had no impact on the on-court performance.
I don't think the issue will be the reason the C's miss specific shots, but in the grand scheme, saying this should have no bearing on the team is the equivalent of saying "the head coach doesn't matter." If that's true, then fuck it, put me in to coach.

People can say "Mazzulla is well liked." I mean, I'd be shocked if any assistant coach would last very long if they were actively disliked, but being the head coach who determines playing time, enforces rules and is the hammer to the player's nail is a very different position. The players may like Mazzulla, but when he benches Marcus Smart for firing up an airball, or screams at Jaylen for missing a rotation on defense, will they listen to him? Will they tune him out?

Chemistry matters. We certainly have a long list of coaches that were initially well liked that weren't so well liked anymore, don't we?
 

RedOctober3829

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 19, 2005
55,298
deep inside Guido territory
I don't think the issue will be the reason the C's miss specific shots, but in the grand scheme, saying this should have no bearing on the team is the equivalent of saying "the head coach doesn't matter." If that's true, then fuck it, put me in to coach.

People can say "Mazzulla is well liked." I mean, I'd be shocked if any assistant coach would last very long if they were actively disliked, but being the head coach who determines playing time, enforces rules and is the hammer to the player's nail is a very different position. The players may like Mazzulla, but when he benches Marcus Smart for firing up an airball, or screams at Jaylen for missing a rotation on defense, will they listen to him? Will they tune him out?

Chemistry matters. We certainly have a long list of coaches that were initially well liked that weren't so well liked anymore, don't we?
Yeah it's a pretty big deal especially a week before fucking training camp opens up.
 

Jimbodandy

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 31, 2006
11,403
around the way
The issue isn't harm to the subordinate; that's merely the worst case plausible outcome. The existence of the relationship impacts every interaction between the two, and also between the subordinate and others who know about the relationship. It necessarily corrupts rational decision making. And it puts the organization on its heels if anybody in the orbit suffers an adverse employment action that can in any way be linked to the relationship, whether the link is real or imagined.
I'm definitely want to be clear about what I'm saying here. If Ime could have hurt the prospects of the other person is what's important, not whether he did. Any intimate arrangement where one party doesn't fully have the ability to say no without worrying about actual repercussions should be taboo IMO and has been everywhere that I've worked. Whether the cheerleaders or copy repair people report directly to Ime or not is irrelevant, if there's a power imbalance. I think that we're 100% in agreement on this.

That said, I don't think that the personal friend of an owner is in that position, nor would be the VP of finance.
 

Light-Tower-Power

ask me about My Pillow
SoSH Member
Jun 14, 2013
15,947
Nashua, NH
At the end of the day I still cannot believe how much of a fucking imbecile Ime is for even putting the team in this position, regardless of the eventual outcome. It’s truly mind boggling. He didn’t even have to keep it in his pants, he just had to keep it away from anyone associated with the team. This is why we can’t have nice things.
 

OurF'ingCity

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 22, 2016
8,469
New York City
I don't think the issue will be the reason the C's miss specific shots, but in the grand scheme, saying this should have no bearing on the team is the equivalent of saying "the head coach doesn't matter." If that's true, then fuck it, put me in to coach.

People can say "Mazzulla is well liked." I mean, I'd be shocked if any assistant coach would last very long if they were actively disliked, but being the head coach who determines playing time, enforces rules and is the hammer to the player's nail is a very different position. The players may like Mazzulla, but when he benches Marcus Smart for firing up an airball, or screams at Jaylen for missing a rotation on defense, will they listen to him? Will they tune him out?

Chemistry matters. We certainly have a long list of coaches that were initially well liked that weren't so well liked anymore, don't we?
Oh, I completely agree with this and didn't mean to suggest that the coach doesn't matter. I think it's almost a guarantee that whoever they get to replace Ime won't be as good of a coach - I mean Ime took a team to the Finals in his first year as a coach, hard to top that.

My only point was that if I were a player I don't think I'd be specifically pissed at the organization/ownership (knowing what we do know, anyway). But there's no doubt this could have larger ripple effects if the new coach sucks or just doesn't coalesce with the team - that was basically what happened with Stevens and we saw some of the negative effects of that. But this ultimately falls on Ime, IMO - in other words, I think one can both acknowledge this may very well harm the team's success and acknowledge that it's right for the Celtics to suspend/fire Ime for what he did.
 

sonofgodcf

Guest
Jul 17, 2005
1,646
The toilet.
I don't think this tanks the season, and a small part of me wonders if there could be a silver lining to an Ime suspension/absence this year. I think Ime did a tremendous job last season, getting buy-in and consistent effort on the defensive end and working through some growing pains on offense to allow Tatum/Brown to become better facilitators. The blueprint is there for how this team succeeds, and he deserves a lot of credit for it.

But, I thought he was significantly outcoached in the Finals, and really, in the Conference Finals as well. The C's really should have blown the doors off of Miami and Golden State, and instead were pushed to seven in one series and bounced in the other because they failed to make good adjustments (imho). While I'm sure he will learn and improve, maybe this will turn out to be a Jackson/Kerr transition if we're lucky.

I mean, they can be frustrated by things with nuances they understand, right? I get frustrated by stuff I understand all the time.
Hot take of the thread right here.
 

HomeRunBaker

bet squelcher
SoSH Member
Jan 15, 2004
30,096
Strawman alert.

No, I do not think that Tatum will be missing specific 4th quarter shots because of Ime's extracurricular activities.

I DO believe, however, that teams who ultimately end up winning championships do not have this type of stuff swirling around them. It's an aggregate thing, that builds up into meaningless media questions and exhaustion. Seen Steve Kerr deal with this type of stuff? Nope.

If you're trying to win a championship, no news is goods news. And this is not good news.
What exactly will be swirling around this team next spring after Ime has been out of his role for 8 months? Obviously not ideal that you replace your Head Coach with last years 2nd Asst but I’m sure there will be many more greater challenges from now until June that this team will face.

An NBA coach isn’t nearly as impactful as an NFL coach who which sometimes gets lost this time of the year. The NBA is a players league. KC Jones even has a couple of rings from watching his players play. I’ve always placed a typical Head Coaches value at that of a 7th/8th man rotation player and their pay is commiserate with that level of impact. I don’t see any reason why something like a Mazzulla/Fogle bench can’t be effective.
 

Van Everyman

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 30, 2009
26,993
Newton
What exactly will be swirling around this team next spring after Ime has been out of his role for 8 months? Obviously not ideal that you replace your Head Coach with last years 2nd Asst but I’m sure there will be many more greater challenges from now until June that this team will face.

An NBA coach isn’t nearly as impactful as an NFL coach who which sometimes gets lost this time of the year. The NBA is a players league. KC Jones even has a couple of rings from watching his players play. I’ve always placed a typical Head Coaches value at that of a 7th/8th man rotation player and their pay is commiserate with that level of impact. I don’t see any reason why something like a Mazzulla/Fogle bench can’t be effective.
I mean, it worked out ok with Paul Westhead
 

Was (Not Wasdin)

family crest has godzilla
SoSH Member
Jul 26, 2007
3,721
The Short Bus
What exactly will be swirling around this team next spring after Ime has been out of his role for 8 months? Obviously not ideal that you replace your Head Coach with last years 2nd Asst but I’m sure there will be many more greater challenges from now until June that this team will face.

An NBA coach isn’t nearly as impactful as an NFL coach who which sometimes gets lost this time of the year. The NBA is a players league. KC Jones even has a couple of rings from watching his players play. I’ve always placed a typical Head Coaches value at that of a 7th/8th man rotation player and their pay is commiserate with that level of impact. I don’t see any reason why something like a Mazzulla/Fogle bench can’t be effective.
I can't believe they'd ditch Ime for Jared, given his history.
 

sean1562

Member
SoSH Member
Sep 17, 2011
3,620
How long has Patrick Lynch been the SVP with the Celtics? Did he marry his wife before she got a job with the Celtics or did they meet while they were both working for the team?
 

Patriot_Reign

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 21, 2011
1,150
It's kind of shocking how long the Celtics have dragged this out today. Social media is filled with theories of who the female partner(s!) might be, including at least a couple references to women who today deleted their social media accounts or turned off commenting on their IGs. Really unfair to everyone not involved that they have to be under this scrutiny and guessing game when they've done nothing wrong.

Wonder if they're trying to work out some sort of contract buyout with Ime and he's dragging his feet?
 

NDame616

will bailey
SoSH Member
Jul 31, 2006
2,312
By this logic he shouldn’t even be an assistant coach.
The media/sponsors pay way more attention to the head coaches than the assistants. Now that this came to light it wouldn't surprise me if he loses his job, fairly or not.

I think hiring him would be a mistake
 

bosockboy

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
19,862
St. Louis, MO
It’s really helpful to have Al is an on the court leader here as well. As respected a veteran as there is and can help guide the players through this.
 

fairlee76

Member
SoSH Member
Oct 9, 2005
3,631
jp
At the end of the day I still cannot believe how much of a fucking imbecile Ime is for even putting the team in this position, regardless of the eventual outcome. It’s truly mind boggling. He didn’t even have to keep it in his pants, he just had to keep it away from anyone associated with the team. This is why we can’t have nice things.
Yes. As much as I appreciate all the nuanced employment law discussion and folks' in HR sharing their experiences on how these situations affect workplace culture, I keep coming back to how mind-boggling it is that Ime could not resist this particular impulse with one of the only people that should have been off-limits as a romantic partner.

And I am worried about the backlash becoming a problem if the perception intimated in Richard Jefferson's tweet of "white owner in Boston goes overboard upon learning of Black coach's affair" becomes the takeaway here.

Also holding the line until more details come out.
 

Leather

given himself a skunk spot
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2005
28,451
It's kind of shocking how long the Celtics have dragged this out today. Social media is filled with theories of who the female partner(s!) might be, including at least a couple references to women who today deleted their social media accounts or turned off commenting on their IGs. Really unfair to everyone not involved that they have to be under this scrutiny and guessing game when they've done nothing wrong.

Wonder if they're trying to work out some sort of contract buyout with Ime and he's dragging his feet?
If the affair is with a co-worker’s wife, it’s a big ball of string to untangle. Especially if the husband had any adverse employment actions while the affair was going on. Or if the wife had any promotions over other people, etc. Before they can really wrap their arms around it, they might need to interview a dozen employees just to make sure nothing *did* occur. The last thing they want is to announce a punishment and then look like they were covering up something when it turns out there’s more to the story, or get sued based on an improperly lenient response.
 

Ed Hillel

Wants to be startin somethin
SoSH Member
Dec 12, 2007
43,558
Here
He was arrested for striking a woman in the neck at a bar.
And also involved (while in college I think) in a fight at a Pirates game, think it was a bunch of college bros throwing down type of thing.
Is there more detail on this? Was it for striking? Choking? Grabbing the back of a woman’s neck and turning her towards him? The only articles I’ve seen on this are nebulous.
 

amfox1

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Aug 6, 2003
6,808
The back of your computer
Is there more detail on this? Was it for striking? Choking? Grabbing the back of a woman’s neck and turning her towards him? The only articles I’ve seen on this are nebulous.
https://www.espn.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/14785/joe-mazzulla-cited-for-public-urination
https://www.timeswv.com/sports/father-says-mazzulla-getting-treatment/article_84aa5402-9510-5fbc-8b5f-e52c80b9be17.htmlhttps://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/27/sports/ncaabasketball/27mazzula.html

Don't see this as an issue. Seems like Mazzulla needed some help, got it and that's been the end of the problems.
 

DJnVa

Dorito Dawg
SoSH Member
Dec 16, 2010
53,840
Globe also says it was a consensual relationship with a female staffer.

I think this is weird as fuck if that's all there is to it.
Well, he was also told to stop doing something against policy, and didn't. There's judgment issues x 2 at play.
 

jasail

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 23, 2010
1,189
Boston
This is why running a pro sports team would be so hard. To be really good you need to have some truly talented players on your team and you have to keep them happy--which might not line up with how you'd run a functional organization is most any other part of society. Like what if Jayson Tatum and Brown think this is a horrible mistake and it pushes them towards trying to leave the league? What do free agents think about playing in a city with a bad reputation on race for a team with a (perhaps undeservedly) bad reputation on race when that team suspended its black coach for having a consensual affair--and you've got to know that a lot of the league knows about various owners, GMs and coaches (many of them white) who had affairs and didn't lose their jobs. Creating an attitude conducive to keeping not just professional athletes, but the handful of difference making professional athletes, happy is not for the faint of heart.
This by a thousand. Ime was the head coach hand picked by the team's star players. Now, after his first season when they reach the finals, the owners are hitting him with a huge suspension for behavior that (despite the poor judgement) is not that uncommon. They are putting a ton of faith in Mazzulla on getting a young team to ignore the noise and stay focused. If he fails and the players are unhappy, good luck to this team and this ownership group moving forward. And this is giving the C's the benefit of looking at this situation color blind, but the racial aspects are not going to make it less toxic.
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 24, 2002
48,205
Someone made a good point on Twitter (ew...) that each bit of speculation on who Udoka was involved with may be exposing an innocent person to unwarranted scrutiny.

Aside from the obviously afflicted parties, it cant be an easy day to be a woman and working for the Celtics today.
 

Jimbodandy

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 31, 2006
11,403
around the way
Someone made a good point on Twitter (ew...) that each bit of speculation on who Udoka was involved with may be exposing an innocent person to unwarranted scrutiny.

Aside from the obviously afflicted parties, it cant be an easy day to be a woman and working for the Celtics today.
Post 1 of this thread was like 9:30 last night, and the team hasn't said shit.

Even if Udoka's suspension is valid--which is in doubt--the team has handled this poorly. A lot of people are squirming today, and most of them don't deserve it.