Retired basketball player, Udoka Ime, becomes the first Nigerian head coach in National Basketball Association (NBA) history.
Former Nigerian-American professional basketball player, Ime Udoka, 43, has been hired by the Boston Celtics as their new coach.
According to the Associated Press on Wednesday, the hiring was first reported by ESPN even as the deal had not been officially announced by the club.
This makes Ime Udoka to be the first Nigerian to become a head coach in National Basketball.
Udoka is Nigerian by fatherhood, Udoka’s father, who is of Akwa Ibom descent, was born in Nigeria, which qualified him for Nigerian citizenship.
He was a member of the Nigerian national team, for whom he played at the 2006 FIBA World Championships. His older sister Mfon used to play in the WNBA. His mother, who died in late 2011, was an American from Illinois.
