Ime Udoka’s Straycation And How Media Has Changed

Back in July 2015, New York Football Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul lost a digit in a fireworks accident. At the time, information was scant and only Adam Schefter was able to get the scoop on exactly what happened and the medical info necessary to accurately report on the incident. Just how did Adam get this information? Well, he got a picture of the actual medical record and promptly tweeted it, immediately invoking questions about potential HIPAA violations and the overall handling of a story relying on personal medical information.

There was no HIPAA violation because HIPAA does NOT apply to journalists. That means someone in the hospital went out of their way to take a picture of the medical record with the intent of releasing it to the public through their own posts or through a journalist or another channel. Unfortunately for the person with the initials “FC” their medical record was also shared with the world. Jason Pierre-Paul sued ESPN and Adam Schefter for making his medical information public. In early 2017, the suit was settled with ESPN commenting in a press release at the time:

“ESPN continues to firmly believe that its reporting about Mr. Pierre-Paul’s July 2015 injury, including the use of a medical chart that definitively described the seriousness of the injury and resulting treatment, was both newsworthy and journalistically appropriate.”

The entire incident reinforced and spotlighted the vicious ‘win at all costs’ nature of the sports news gathering business, with many sports fans’ opinion of Schefter being ruthless to be at the top of his profession now confirmed. While it might not have broken the law, tweeting a picture of an actual medical record with a non-newsworthy individual’s medical info also being present was over the line in the eyes of many fans.

Those fans would only need to wait seven years for ESPN and the media landscape in general to completely reverse their position and practice.

Enter Ime Udoka

Boston Celtics rookie head coach, Ime Udoka, led the young Celtics squad to the NBA Finals in the 2021-2022 season, ultimately losing to the Golden State Warriors 4-2. Udoka managed to gain the trust and respect of the entire team in the “Player Empowerment Era” where players routinely sign extensions and ask to be traded the next year. Jayson Tatum called Udoka his “favorite coach ever” even after playing under legendary Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. After one NBA season that saw Udoka lead his team to the Finals in his first year, widespread recognition of his coaching prowess, approach and stability persisted throughout the summer of 2022. That is, until September 21, 2022 when ESPN’s Adam Schefter NBA equivalent, Adrian Wojnarowski, tweeted:

(Side Note: who the fuck puts a picture of themselves over the subject of their information with “BREAKING NEWS”?)

This unleashed a torrent of speculation that was actually heightened by the next (and basically ONLY) additional bit of information to come out:

From here, the general public consumed the story and its’ developments with very few confirmed facts and mostly innuendo from media figures. The only information the Celtics were sharing was provided by team governor Wyc Grousbeck, who noted the punishment was “well-warranted” and “backed by substantial research and evidence and fact.” One notable set of contrasting reactions from former NBA player Matt Barnes seemed to really pique interest. Initially, Barnes defended Udoka’s actions but then deleted his Instagram post and said:

HOLY SHIT! There is so much to evaluate and consider from his statement. From the shocking “it’s 100 times uglier than any of us thought” to him owning his actions and being the minuscule minority in the media to acknowledge sharing of information about the situation behind the scenes. Surely, after hearing something that salacious we would have much more information about what happened nearly a year later, right? No. The only other information to come out was his reported “unwanted comments” made to the same person he had an alleged “consensual affair” with. The story soon lapsed from memory as no new information trickled out until Udoka was hired as Houston Rockets head coach on April 24, 2023.

WTF

How are we supposed to square what Matt Barnes and Wyc Grousbeck said with the Rockets actions hiring Udoka as head coach? What could explain both the outflow of personal betrayal of the Celtics initial reaction with the Rockets organizational decision? Why were prominent members of the media openly acknowledging they heard things but wouldn’t report on them? How did we go from Adam Schefter tweeting out a medical record selfie to discussing Ime Udoka’s actions and Andrew Wiggins reasons for being away from the team being verboten? Has there ever been a similar situation in the past?

The only incident that comes to mind is the rumor of LeBron James Mom, Gloria, allegedly being in an “affair” with Delonte West. Everyone had heard the tale but extensive reporting never materialized. Even so, it was at least COVERED by some prominent voices in sports. Why is there not only no coverage of what happened but also an expectation that speculating about the circumstances would result in punitive social consequences? Were the details so salacious that public consumption would have ruined Udoka, the Celtics, the woman or all three? There was plenty of virtue signaling but few details, even though most discussions about the situation centered around some form of “I heard it’s really bad” without any further details. Why was that the case? And why do we as the public just accept it?

In a current media environment where both leading presidential candidates refuse to participate in primary debates, the culprit who brought in cocaine to the White House will never be found, and the sitting president essentially never takes questions, maybe it shouldn’t really be that surprising the only foregone conclusion regarding Ime Udoka is that we will never fully know the whole story. But why did the media en masse mobilize to protect the identity of the alleged affair partner while simultaneously shuttering any discussion of the affair’s details? Were the Celtics and media figures not reporting on the details to protect Udoka? The Celtics organization? The speculated affair partner or all of the above? Two people who were decidedly not taken into account when considering how this story would be presented were possibly the two most affected: Udoka’s fiancee Nia Long and their young son, Kez.

“I think the most heartbreaking thing about all of this was seeing my son’s face when the Boston Celtics organization decided to make a very private situation public,” the actress said, adding “It was devastating, and it still is. He still has moments where it’s not easy for him. If you’re in the business of protecting women — I’m sorry, no one from the Celtics organization has even called to see if I’m OK, to see if my children are OK. It’s very disappointing.”

Are we as a society petrified of potential backlash for violating ever-changing social mores that we would rather allow speculation to run rampant (thereby affecting MORE people who may not have anything to do with the affair) in service of saving an employee/executive or owner of the Celtics’ feelings? Where was that consideration from ESPN when it mattered most in posting a completely unrelated person’s medical record in the JPP accident? Was the media’s lack of coverage/speculation actually in service of Nia and Kez? WE HAVE NO IDEA! In the absence of facts and information, speculation rules. The Celtics were providing no real specific information while at the same time chastising anyone who speculated about the potential identity of the affair partner or details surrounding it. Even the face of ESPN, Stephen A., said:

“Ime Udoka’s actions, his transgressions are not something we need to revisit,” Smith said. “He was wrong, (and) if he had gotten fired no problem. If he had been kept, no problem. But for this organization to handle that situation in the classless fashion that they did as far as I’m concerned, having a press conference where you said nothing nor did anything but bring more attention to Ime Udoka and his transgressions.”

The actions the Boston Celtics took in regard to Ime Udoka were personal. They were personally offended so deeply by their coach’s actions that they presented their decision to suspend him as justified given how egregious the conduct was, without ever acknowledging the conduct. And to top it off, they also lost the team with their decision to suspend and then fire Udoka.

“This team, this locker room, they never got over Ime Udoka’s dismissal as head coach. These players did not accept the organization’s reasoning for doing it. They thought it was a wild overreaction. There were a lot of people on the outside who thought it was an overreaction, it was an HR matter. I think with this team, and talking with management, they never got the answers, they never got any more answers than the public was getting on this.”

The Celtics clearly felt it was in THEIR best interest to rid themselves of Ime Udoka. But what about the rest of the NBA? Is there any reason to expect Udoka’s behavior will not be repeated? Did the Rockets call the Celtics and ask what happened? Or did some in the organization know all the details without needing to inquire?

Much like continuing to donate to Shaun King after his grift has been exposed, it must be a kink that can’t be easily turned off. Did the Celtics know about his reputation and put up with it because of his coaching prowess? Is their reasoning for not releasing details to protect themselves for overlooking red flags during their due diligence in his initial hiring? Isn’t the whole goal of justice to provide appropriate recourse to victims who through no fault of their own were included in these incidents? The way to that is through what journalism used to be. Holding power to account, asking uncomfortable questions and ruffling feathers. Nobody has done that yet. And because of that, what reason do we have to believe that Ime won’t do this again?