Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka was doused in water by an excited Celts locker room, but he was quick to remind them that there’s no banner up just yet.
When big games are won, coaches are the ones who can expect to be dunked on. Whether it’s water or sports drinks, players show their appreciation by raining drinks down on their coach in light of a victory. Despite an enthralling last-minute clinch of the Eastern Conference in Game 7, Celtics head coach Ime Udoka still isn’t ready to be showered in praise just yet.
The Boston Celtics shared a glimpse of the Celtics locker room after the game, in which Udoka was both celebrated and revered during a motivational speech.
“We already did the water bottle thing earlier,” Udoka said as his players drew in closer.
“F*** THAT!” they scream as they douse Udoka in water once more.
Laughing and thoroughly soaked, Udoka reminds his squad that the Celtics don’t celebrate mediocrity.
“First of all, we don’t hang banners for Eastern Conference championships in this organization,” Udoka said.
Virtually every NBA team besides the two winningest franchises — the Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers — hang banners for divisional and conference championship wins.
“There’s no need for the water celebrations — we’ve got bigger plans,” Udoka said.
Ime Udoka wants Celtics to wait to celebrate when they win the NBA Finals
“Hell of a job though,” Udoka told his locker room as Jaylen Brown held the Eastern Conference Championship trophy. “There’s so many guys to obviously shout out, but what we do well — turnovers, rebounds — all the things that hurt us in certain games, we took care of those in the game. Big block shot, big rebounds, two shots that iced it… we could go down the list. Rob [Williams III] playing through pain.”
“Who are we? Road warriors,” Udoka continued. “We’ve been doing it all year, had to make it interesting. It would have been nice doing it at home, but it’s even sweeter to do it to their a** on the road.”
The Celtics came out with a narrow Game 7 win at 100-96 that left NBA fans asking: does anyone on the Heat want to win besides Jimmy Butler? Although it’s a heartbreaking end to Butler’s impeccable postseason campaign, it’s only the beginning for the Celtics as they face the Warriors in the NBA Finals.