Marcus Smart denies rumors that the players of the Celtics “never got over.” Ime Udoka’s termination

“No, no,” Smart responded to the claim on Tuesday morning, as seen in a video from CLNS Media. “We are the ones out there having fun, whether Ime was present or not. We need to go play outside. Joe is excellent at placing us in the appropriate situations.

They devise a plan of action. We are responsible. A coach can only do so much for you as a player. You have to eventually examine yourself and come to certain realizations.

Prior to Monday night’s Western Conference Finals, the Celtics team has been irritated by the severity of the sentence and the lack of clarity around Udoka’s suspension from last autumn, according to a report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

“These athletes rejected the organization’s justification for taking such action. They believed that to be an extreme exaggeration,” Wojnarowski stated. Many others outside the situation believed it to be an overreaction and an HR issue.

“With this squad and speaking with management, I believe they never received the answers; they never received more information on this than the general public did,” Wojnarowski continued. That does not imply that they do not recognize Joe Mazzulla as their head coach. However, this is a squad that has a close relationship and genuine faith in Ime Udoka. I believe that a lot of that frustration came back this season in a few cases. Initially, the Rockets hired Udoka as head coach, and then the Brooklyn Nets almost did.

Due to repeated club rule infractions, including an alleged improper contact with a female team employee, Udoka was suspended indefinitely by the Celtics just prior to the commencement of training camp. In the end, Boston fired Udoka in February and appointed Joe Mazzulla as temporary head coach before lifting the interim designation.

ESPN reports that Udoka used foul language toward the female subordinate before they started dating, according to an independent law firm’s inquiry. Udoka was announced as the Houston Rockets’ new head coach last month following his departure from the Boston Celtics.

Despite being only 34 years old when he was promoted to head coach, Mazzulla has received a lot of flak for his performance throughout the postseason, particularly because Boston is currently in danger of losing to the Miami Heat 0-3.

After Boston’s dreadful performance at Kaseya Center in Game 3 on Sunday night, Mazzulla was mostly held accountable.

Mazzolla remarked, “I just didn’t have them ready to play.” “I just didn’t have them carry out the appropriate strategy. I failed to prepare them or give them the proper attitude. Making sure they’re connected and prepared to play is my responsibility, and I failed to do so.

After the Celtics’ crushing loss, Mazzulla attempted to lay most of the responsibility on himself, which did not surprise Smart in the least. However, in keeping with his remarks on Udoka, Smart emphasized that Boston’s present situation is all the fault of the players on the floor.

That is Joe, according to Smart. “He is an adversary. He aspires to perfection and to do everything correctly. But Joe isn’t to blame. Joe is unable to enter the game and check himself out. We are responsible. Although Joe took it graciously, not everything is his fault.