NBA rumors: Raptors interest in Ime Udoka is embarassing step backward

The Toronto Raptors appear to be happy with head coach Nick Nurse on the surface, but Shams Charania reported months ago that he could be on the hot seat in the offseason. There are very few replacements out there that have a proven history of success, one of them being former Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka.

Udoka, a longtime Spurs and 76ers assistant, took the Celtics to the Finals in his first season with the club, but he was suspended for an improper relationship with a female member of the Celtics organization and eventually replaced by interim name Joe Mazzulla.

While the Brooklyn Nets considered him, the bad optics eventually went with bringing him in eventually steered them away from that path and prompted them to make Jacque Vaughn the head coach. Udoka might be one of the most radioactive names in the business, but that won’t stop Toronto from getting involved.

According to Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com (who has covered the Celtics forever), the Raptors and Houston Rockets could have interest in hiring Udoka during the offseason. Not only would Udoka not be a needle-mover on the court, but he stands to tarnish the team’s culture by bringing in an avalanche of controversy.

NBA Rumors: Toronto Raptors interested in Ime Udoka.

Mazzulla has the Celtics playing 52-23 basketball at the moment, and he’s earned himself a contract extension for his performance on the job. The fact that Boston has actually been a better regular season team with Udoka sitting out raises questions about how valuable of a coach he really is.

Nurse is by no means a perfect coach, and the Raptors shouldn’t rule out a chance in coaching if they genuinely believe that he is not the right guy for the job. However, what tangible benefit would Toronto, a franchise that has often stayed out of the limelight, get by bringing in someone plagued with controversy?

There is a big difference between paying a debt to society like Udoka must do and hopping right back into the game with minimal questions asked. Whatever merits he has as a coach would be washed away by all of the negative controversies dangling around him at the moment.

Udoka may never get a premier head coaching job in the NBA again, and few can argue that it wasn’t deserved when you look at what exactly he did in Boston. Coming to Toronto would be a completely unnecessary PR nightmare that the team should avoid at all costs.