Ime Udoka said the word relationship seven times during his introductory press conference as the 18th head coach in Celtics history, and he wasn’t talking about Nia Long. Brad Stevens, Wyc Grousbeck and Steve Pagluica welcomed Udoka, Long and their family to Boston on Monday.
Udoka touted his past work with Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart on Team USA in 2019, while hinting at a role working with Tatum on this summer’s Olympic roster. Udoka coached Al Horford with the 76ers and knows Payton Pritchard “from when he was a young kid in Portland.