"I was wrong for jumping out there without the information" – Former NBA champion opens up on his comments over Ime Udoka's case, believes eventually all information will be disclosed
Ime Udoka received immediate repercussions for allegedly having an inappropriate relationship with an unnamed female co-worker. The Celtics head coach, credited with bringing the team to the Finals last season, was suspended for the 2022-23 season for violating team policy.
After learning about the suspension, former NBA player Matt Barnes initially defended Ime Udoka on social media. But within 24 hours, a source called Barnes to give him more context about the situation.
After finding out the facts, the former champion relinquished his statement and admitted he was wrong about Udoka. Matt Barnes said:
“I was wrong for jumping out there without the information.”
The original social media post featured Barnes criticizing the team's decision to suspend Udoka so quickly. Barnes commented on how situations like this happen often around the league. He initially thought it was a personal matter, and not worthy of a suspension.
Upon realizing the caliber of the situation, Barnes deleted his initial post and quickly changed his tune. The focus now seems to be on who Ime Udoka slept with, and the dynamic of their relationship.
Barnes explained himself by saying:
“My overall take was I spoke too soon without knowing the facts … My point of view was if this was a basic situation where you know he had slept with someone in the organization, I thought it was very harsh.”
Barnes continued:
“I thought like this is very common, not only in the NBA but across all corporate businesses … But then after I made my post, someone literally called me maybe two minutes later and told me what happened. So I had to back pedal man … If what I heard is true, you on your own bro, I can’t back that.”
Matt Barnes says the Ime Udoka situation is deep, messy, and uglier than most imagined
Barnes posted a video reel to his Instagram apologizing for joining the Ime Udoka conversation too early. He has also deleted the video in question.
In any case, the video reel gives a little more insight:
“I erased what I posted because this situation in Boston is deep. It’s messy, it’s 100x uglier than any of us thought and that’s what I erased what I said. Some things happened that I can’t condone … It’s not my place to tell you what happened.”
Matt Barnes says that “after finding out the details” regarding the situation involving Ime Udoka in Boston, that it’s “deep, it’s messy and it’s 100 times uglier than any of us thought.” https://t.co/8FYbtjKXdL
One can only speculate on the details until they are released to the public. Regardless of the situation, it seems clear that Ime Udoka was in a committed relationship and that he cheated on his spouse.
Ime Udoka has been in a relationship with award-winning actress Nia Long since 2010. They share a 10-year-old son named Kez. Though the pair has explained they have no plans to marry, it was not due to a lack of commitment.
Nia spoke out about the situation in an emailed statement to Boston.com. She wishes for her “privacy be respected”, and explained that her children are her main priority.
The Celtics have promoted assistant Joe Mazzulla to become the head coach in Udoka's absence.