Celtics Coaching Search: 3 Candidates Invited for 2nd Interview

The Celtics have been searching for a new coach since Brad Stevens took over the role of president of basketball operations after Danny Ainge retired from his role.

It hasn’t taken long for Brad Stevens to settle into his new position. He recently traded Kemba Walker to the Oklahoma Thunder for Al Horford and Moses Brown.

It was reported that both Kemba and the Celtics were unhappy and wanted a “breakup”.

The only thing that is missing now for the Celtics is a new head coach, and Brad Stevens is already on the case, inviting three candidates back for a second interview.

Brooklyn’s Ime Udoka, Milwaukee’s Darvin Ham, and Clippers’ Chauncey Billups are among head coaching candidates who Boston hopes to interview for a second time, sources tell ESPN. Celtics’ search continues to focus on the assistant ranks. (@Wojespn) on Twitter.

So without further ado, let’s get into the three candidates and who would suit the Celtics best.

Ime Udoka (Brooklyn Nets)

Ime Udoka has been an assistant coach since he ended his playing career in 2012, he has been an assistant coach at the San Antonio Spurs, the Philadelphia 76ers, and is currently the assistant coach at the Brooklyn Nets.

Udoka started his coaching career as an assistant to none other than Greg Popovich, the experience from this will definitely be noticed by the Celtics as he spent seven years alongside Popovich.

Udoka then left the Spurs to make way for a new adventure in Philadelphia, where he became Brett Brown’s assistant for the 2019/20 season.

After things didn’t quite go to plan in Philadelphia, Udoka turned to Brooklyn to be Steve Nash’s assistant. He is currently competing for an NBA championship while helping to coach the ‘big three’ of the Nets.

Udoka would be a good fit for the Celtics as he brings bags of experience and a new voice to the table.

Darvin Ham (Milwaukee Bucks)

Darvin Ham has been in the coaching game for a while now, starting his coaching career in 2008 as the assistant coach of the Albuquerque Thunderbirds, and then being promoted to the Head Coach in 2010.

Ham then made a switch from the G League to the NBA, becoming the Lakers assistant coach where he worked with players such as Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol in a player development role, a pretty good thing to have on your resume.

Ham then had a five-year spell in Atlanta with the Hawks, where he and the other coaching staff lead the 2015 Hawks to a divisional title and the first seed in the Eastern Conference. But only to be beaten 4-0 in the conference finals at the hands of Lebron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers.

Ham finished his spell in Atlanta in 2018, where he decided to work under Mike Budenholzer in Milwaukee, leading the Bucks to their best record since 1972.

Ham brings plenty of experience working under great coaches and helping to develop some of the best players the game of basketball has ever seen. He should definitely be considered by Brad Stevens to be the new Celtics coach.

Chauncey Billups (Los Angeles Clippers)

Chauncey Billups is not unknown in Boston. the five-time all-star started his career with the Celtics as he was drafted number 3 overall in the 1997 NBA draft.

Now, there isn’t a lot to talk about when it comes to Billups’ coaching career, as he only started in November 2020 when he was hired to work under Tyronn Lue as the assistant coach of the Los Angeles Clippers.

Billups has, however, just helped take the Clippers to their first Conference Finals in franchise history.

Despite Billups’ lack of coaching experience, he should definitely be considered to be the new Celtics coach.

Celtics Coach: Concluding Thoughts

I think that any of these three candidates are good enough to be the new Boston Celtics coach, however, if I were Brad Stevens, I would probably opt for Ime Udoka or Darvin Ham, purely based on their previous coaching experience.

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