Nets GM denies team is set on hiring suspended Celtics coach Udoka

The Brooklyn Nets intend to name Ime Udoka as their new head coach, sources told The Athletic's Shams Charania.

Brooklyn reportedly began discussions with Udoka shortly after mutually parting ways with Steve Nash earlier Tuesday. The Boston Celtics, who suspended Udoka for the entire 2022-23 season for violating team policies, granted the Nets permission to speak with the 45-year-old, according to Charania.

Nets general manager Sean Marks subsequently denied that the club had chosen its next head coach or was already closing in on hiring Udoka.

"I really don't think it's up to me right now to give a list of candidates who we're talking to. ... I will reserve that for when those decisions are made," Marks told reporters Tuesday evening, according to YES Network. "I couldn't give you a timeline of that. Obviously, there's a reason why we made this move when we did because time is ticking.

"We do want this process to be a thorough one. We're not going to skip steps. We'll do our due diligence like on anybody."

Udoka's season-long ban reportedly stemmed from an improper relationship with a subordinate female employee in the Celtics organization.

An inquiry by an independent law firm discovered that Udoka used crude language with the woman prior to the start of the relationship, which contributed to the length of his suspension, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

His hiring in Brooklyn could be finalized within the next two days, Wojnarowski reports.

The Nets - including stars Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant - are familiar with Udoka, who spent the 2020-21 campaign as an assistant on Nash's staff in Brooklyn. He left the franchise the following summer when he was hired as a head coach for the first time by the Celtics.

In his debut year behind the bench, Udoka took the Celtics to the NBA Finals after posting a 51-31 regular-season record. They lost the series in six games to the Golden State Warriors.