Brooklyn Nets assistant coach Ime Sunday Udoka is reportedly finalizing his agreement to become the head coach of the Boston Celtics.
According to ESPN, the Nigerian-American was considered for the role after receiving support from NBA players Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart. He will be replacing Brad Stevens, who now is president of basketball operations for the Celtics.
In the span of seven years, Udoka was a professional basketball player for teams like the Knicks, Blazers and the Lakers; each team reportedly released him before his contract was up.
For years, there have been talks about the lack of Black head coaches in the NBA. Currently, out of 30 coaches, there are only seven that are Black. However, earlier this week, some NBA history played out with three out of the Final Four teams’ head coaches being Black. Those coaches are hoping that this will help fill some of the several current head coach job openings available.
As of yet, no details have been made public about Udoka’s deal.
Besides becoming the head coach, the 43-year-old is also getting praise for having actress Nia Long as his long-term fiancée. Long is known for movies like “Love Jones,” “The Best Man” and “Friday.” She’s one of the “it girls” of the ’90s that many people have professed as their crush. Although her engagement to Udoka is not new news, it seems some fans are either just now finding out or they’re just ecstatic because it’s Nia Long.
One person wrote, “Nia Long becoming the First Lady of the Boston Celtics means the offseason is automatically a win.”
Someone else wrote, “Love the Ime Udoka hiring. The man locked down Nia Long. That’s a winner.”
“Me buying season tickets for the Celtics just to look at Nia Long the whole game,” said another fan.
“NIA LONG COURTSIDE???!! LET’S GO”
The two have been together since 2010 and welcomed their son Kez Sunday in 2011. Long also has a 20-year-old son named Massai Zhivago Dorsey II. In 2015, Udoka and Long, 50, got engaged.
