Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics defeated the Chicago Bulls 123-119 on Friday at TD Garden to improve to 5-3 on the season, and despite DeMar DeRozan finishing with 46 points, three rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block, it was Jayson Tatum who caught the attention of fans.

Tatum recorded 36 points, 12 rebounds, six assists, one steal and one block in 40 minutes. The remainder of Boston's starting lineup—Marcus Smart, Derrick White, Al Horford and Jaylen Brown—combined for just 46 points.

Malcolm Brogdon had a solid game off the bench, finishing with 25 points, two rebounds, four assists and one block, but Tatum's performance was unforgettable Twitter praised him for an MVP-caliber night:

Tatum is in the midst of a hot start to the 2022-23 campaign. He entered Friday's contest averaging 30.1 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.4 blocks through Boston's first seven games while shooting 52.9 percent from the floor and 37.9 percent from deep.

The three-time All-Star will likely face some stiff competition for the MVP award. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Dončić and Ja Morant have all been mentioned as contenders early on.

Tatum will look to continue his MVP-worthy campaign Saturday when Boston faces the Jalen Brunson-led New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart won't be happy to see Ime Udoka coaching the Brooklyn Nets.

Udoka was suspended by the Celtics for one year as a result of an improper workplace relationship with a female subordinate, but he is now "likely" to take over as coach of the Nets, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

"His name got slandered and slaughtered and it was 'He’ll probably never coach again,'" Smart said of Udoka Wednesday, per Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe. "And a couple of months later, now he's possibly going to be the coach of one of our biggest rivals?"

"It's tough. It makes no sense," Smart added. "But we can’t control that. We have to control what we can, and I love the team here. I love the coaching staff. I love Joe."

Joe Mazzulla has served as the Celtics' interim coach this season and has guided the team to a 4-2 record.

The Celtics provided little information about the circumstances that led to Udoka's suspension, but Wojnarowski reported in late September that the coach likely had "a difficult pathway back to his reinstatement" after an independent probe from a law firm found "he used crude language in his dialogue with a female subordinate prior to the start of an improper workplace relationship with the woman."

NBA insider Ethan Strauss reported an NBA agent believed the coach was "done" in the league.

It creates significant question marks for the Nets if they hire Udoka.

"Obviously, we wish he was here," Smart said. "We have no control over that. It definitely sucks. I guess it was deemed that whatever happened was enough for him not to be the coach here, but I guess not enough for him [not] to be a coach anywhere else, obviously."

The Nets are seeking a new head coach after firing Steve Nash following a 2-5 start to the 2022-23 season. Jacque Vaughn served as acting coach for Tuesday's loss to the Chicago Bulls.

Udoka led the Celtics to the 2022 NBA Finals in his first year with the organization after serving as an assistant coach with the Nets in 2020-21.

Grant Williams wanted to land a long-term contract extension with the Boston Celtics before the start of the 2022-23 season, but he's not sweating his impending free agency.

"For me, it was a disappointment," Williams told Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium. "But you know how much you've worked. You let your work show, and who knows? You might be able to get a better deal than you were in the contract negotiations in the first place."

Williams will be a restricted free agent next July since he and the Celtics failed to reach a rookie extension before the start of the regular season. The fourth-year forward is off to a stellar start to the 2022-23 campaign, averaging a career-high 9.6 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting a jaw-dropping 69.6 percent from the floor.

That level of historic efficiency won't continue—his 66.7 percent mark from three-point range would blast every conceivable NBA record—but he's slowly developed into a quality two-way role player. Williams has enough length and quickness to overcome his 6'6" frame at the 4, using his on-court smarts and switchability to provide solid team defense while stretching the floor on the offensive end.

Contracts like Williams' tend to be the most difficult to negotiate. He's decidedly not a max player and almost certainly will never develop into one. That said, he's 23 years old and has improved in all four of his NBA seasons. Williams wants to be paid like someone who will continue that developmental trajectory, while the Celtics are understandably wary of breaking the bank for someone who tops out as a role player.

The most likely scenario is Boston allows Williams to hit restricted free agency and allows the market to dictate his worth.

Suspended Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka has emerged as the "strong front-runner" to fill the Brooklyn Nets head coaching vacancy, according to Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Udoka is "likely" to be the hire and it could be finalized in the next 24-48 hours. Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated added the sides are in "advanced discussions" about a contract for him to take over.

Chris Haynes of NBA on TNT reported the Celtics won't seek compensation from the Nets if they hire Udoka:

General manager Sean Marks later told reporters at a press conference the team has not made any decisions regarding its next head coach.

Wojnarowski originally reported Udoka and former Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder were among the early candidates for the job.

Earlier Tuesday, the Nets announced they mutually parted ways with Steve Nash, who had led the team's coaching staff since September 2020.

Brooklyn named Jacque Vaughn as its acting head coach beginning with Tuesday night's home game against the Chicago Bulls while the coaching search takes place.

In September, Celtics governor Wyc Grousbeck announced Udoka was given a one-year suspension for multiple violations of team policies.

An independent investigation determined those violations included Udoka using "crude language in his dialogue with a female subordinate prior to the start of an improper workplace relationship with the woman," per Woj.

The 45-year-old Oregon native remains under contract with the Celtics, so the team would have to give its permission for him to interview with another organization, but Boston is willing to let him leave to accept another job, according to Woj.

Udoka guided the C's to a 51-31 record and an appearance in the 2022 NBA Finals during his first season as a head coach. He finished fourth in Coach of the Year voting.

He previously spent one season as an assistant with the Nets in 2020-21 under Nash following prior stints on the San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers staffs.

Snyder stepped down in June after eight years with the Jazz. It was his first NBA head coaching job after prior opportunities in that role at the college level with Missouri and in the G League with the Austin Toros, the San Antonio Spurs' affiliate.

"It was just time," Snyder told reporters. "I tried to give a voice to that, but it really isn’t any more complicated than that. It was just time. This was something I labored over. I had thought about it for a period of weeks."

He guided Utah to a 372-264 regular-season record with six straight postseason appearances during his tenure.

His 30-year coaching career also includes time as an assistant in the NBA, college and Russia's VTB United League.

The Nets, led by the high-profile trio of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons, are off to a rocky 2-5 start in large part due to their 28th-ranked defense (120.3 points allowed per game).

Udoka and Snyder are both defensive-minded coaches who could help Brooklyn's star-studded roster begin turning things around at that end of the floor.

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum says he was "terrified" and struggled to accept the news that he and then-girlfriend Toriah Lachell would welcome a child in 2017.

In an interview on In Depth with Graham Bensinger, Tatum said Lachell told him of the pregnancy when the 2016-17 school year was nearing its end. Having finished his freshman season with Duke, he was focusing on the NBA draft.

"I was selfish at first, honestly," he said (h/t the New York Post's Ryan Glasspiegel). "I was more worried about getting drafted than I was about being a dad, because my whole life I had dreamed about going to the NBA and the best day of my life was two months away. I didn’t tell anybody—I didn't tell my teammates, the coaches, anything."

The three-time All-Star wanted to keep the news private lest it adversely affect his draft stock.

"I didn't want it to impact where I got drafted," he said. "I thought that if teams knew I was about to have a kid, they were gonna think I wasn't focused and that they wouldn't pick me, so I was terrified. I didn't want anybody to know, which was extremely selfish."

Tatum, whom the Celtics selected third overall, eventually told head coach Brad Stevens since he might need time off from the team to be with Lachell. He described Stevens as "real supportive."

Jayson Tatum Jr. was born in December 2017, and Tatum announced his birth in January 2018. Nicknamed "Deuce," his son has become a fixture at Celtics games and makes occasional appearances at press conferences.

Tatum told the Boston Globe's Nicole Yang he's focused on his career and improving as a player, but from the outset he "was going to be the best father I could." The 24-year-old also said he hopes to be an example for others.

"I think it's the coolest part for me," he said. "If I am a role model for young fathers around the world, that's great. I think we need more role models like that—just to have more male fathers be present and show that you can do both."

Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams has been suspended one game without pay for making contact with an official during Tuesday's 120-102 loss to the Chicago Bulls.

Per an official announcement from the NBA, Williams' suspension is for "recklessly making contact with and directing inappropriate language toward a game official" prompting him to receive a technical foul and be ejected from the game in the fourth quarter.

There were back-to-back plays early in the fourth quarter when Williams was called for a charge when the Celtics had the ball and a blocking foul when Zach LaVeine was attempting to drive to the basket.

After being whistled for the defensive foul, Williams immediately got to his feet and the side of his body made contact with the official. The contact didn't appear to be intentional, but he was called for a technical foul and ejected.

Head coach Joe Mazzulla was also tossed from the game in the third quarter. Nikola Vučević took exception to being called for a foul against Jaylen Brown, including acting like he was going to slam the ball onto the court, but the officials allowed it to go without giving him a technical.

Mazzulla was unhappy about the no-call and received a double-technical foul while making his case to the officials.

The ejections for Williams and Mazzulla were part of a disappointing night for the Celtics. The defending Eastern Conference champions were off to a fantastic 3-0 start, including wins over the Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat.

It looked early on like the Celtics were going to cruise to an easy victory against the Bulls. They started the game on a 12-0 run and led by as many as 19 points in the first quarter.

Chicago flipped the script in the second quarter with a 35-15 scoring advantage to take an 11-point lead into halftime. The Celtics were held to 48 points in the second half to take their first loss of the season.

Williams, who averaged 12.7 points in the first three games, was held scoreless on three field-goal attempts in 18 minutes on Wednesday.

The Celtics will play Friday's game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at TD Garden without Williams.

Los Angeles Rams star Aaron Donald announced Tuesday that he is parting ways with Kanye West's Donda Sports marketing agency, denouncing West's "recent comments and displays of hate and antisemitism."

Minutes later, Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown announced that he is also parting ways with Donda Sports, writing that he will "always continue to stand strongly against any antisemitism, hate speech, misrepresentation, and oppressive rhetoric of any kind."

On Oct. 9, West, who legally changed his name to Ye, tweeted that he would "go death con 3 on Jewish people." He claimed that it was not antisemitic because "black people are actually Jew also." The tweet was removed and Twitter locked his account.

The since-deleted tweet was one of a number of troubling actions the Grammy-winning rapper has taken over the last month.

West was criticized for wearing a "White Lives Matter" T-shirt at his fashion show in Paris—the phrase was coined as "a racist response to the civil rights movement Black Lives Matter"—and also posted a screenshot of a conversation he had with Sean "Diddy" Combs on Instagram in which he made antisemitic remarks.

West also filmed an appearance on The Shop, however, SpringHill Company CEO Maverick Carter said the company had decided to pull the episode after West used the show "to reiterate more hate speech and extremely dangerous stereotypes."

Donda Sports, West's marketing agency, signed Donald and Brown in May. The deals didn't impact their representation, only their marketing contracts and off-field and off-court ventures.

Donald was the only known NFL player to have signed with Donda Sports, though former NFL wide receiver Antonio Brown was named president of the organization in February. Jaylen Brown was also the only known NBA player to have teamed up with Donda Sports.

Brown's decision to part with Donda Sports comes after he said in an interview with Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe on Monday that he was going to stay with the organization:

"The reason why I signed with Donda Sports, it represented education, it represented activism, disruption. It represented single-parent households, and a lot more people are involved in something like that.

"A lot of people that I work with, work with their families, build love and respect for, spending time in the summer. A lot of people involved. That’s what the organization from my vantage point from Donda Sports represented."

Donald had not commented on the situation until he announced his decision to part ways with the organization.

A number of businesses have also cut ties with West over the last week, including Adidas, which produced his Yeezy sneakers, Vogue and Balenciaga. On Tuesday, Foot Locker announced it would no longer "be supporting any future Yeezy product drops" and it had told "retail operators to pull any existing product from our shelves and digital sites."

Rapper Kanye West, who legally changed his name to Ye, has been in the spotlight again after repeatedly making antisemitic remarks, but Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown said Monday he will not part with West's marketing agency.

West formed Donda Sports, which is a marketing agency geared toward off-field endeavors that signed Brown and Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald. Donda Sports does not represent Brown as agents, as the Boston forward remains with Jason Glushon when it comes to NBA contracts.

"First, I don't condone any hurt, harm, or danger toward any group of people or individuals whatsoever," Brown said, per Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. "I've been a member of my community, trying to uplift my community, and I'm going to continue to do that."

While he pointed out he doesn't "agree with everything that everybody does" when it comes to West, he said he is remaining with the agency the rapper created for reasons outside of any individual relationship.

"A lot of time goes into creating an entity or organization," he said. "The reason why I signed with Donda Sports, it represented education, it represented activism, disruption, it represented single-parent households, and a lot more people are involved in something like that. A lot of people that I work with, work with their families, build love and respect for, spending time in the summer. A lot of people involved."

According to CNN's Lisa Respers France, West's Twitter account was suspended after he posted a since-deleted antisemitic tweet. He was also seen wearing a shirt that said "White Lives Matter" at a fashion show, which is a phrase classified as a "hate slogan" by the Anti-Defamation League.

According to Justin Tinsley of Andscape, SpringHill Company CEO Maverick Carter said an episode of The Shop in which West made an appearance was canceled because he used the show "to reiterate more hate speech and extremely dangerous stereotypes."

Creative Artists Agency ended its relationship with the 45-year-old.

"He's someone who's obviously dealing with a lot of adversity that's in front of him right now and everybody can see it and it's public," Brown said of West. "But a lot of people in the world are dealing with adversity and things that are going on that's in front of them and they need help. It's a lot going on right now."

Brown has been a prominent voice in the NBA when it comes to fighting against prejudice and systemic racism and has rarely hesitated to call for social justice. Perhaps most notably, he drove 15 hours to protest in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd in 2020.

He signed with Donda Sports in May, and that relationship will apparently continue despite West's actions.