Ime Udoka Took Palms-Off Method To Teaching Jayson Tatum At Olympics

Ime Udoka and Jayson Tatum acquired a head begin on what is perhaps a protracted NBA relationship.

The Boston Celtics head coach revealed to reporters Tuesday how he and the C’s famous person benefitted from the time they spent together on the Tokyo Olympics.

As an alternative of smothering Tatum together with his voice and basketball views, Udoka ceded the accountability of instructing Tatum to Crew USA’s different coaches. In any case, they’ll have numerous alternatives to work collectively in Boston.

“Clearly, we spent a ton of time to form of strengthen our bond,” Udoka mentioned, per The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach. “However I simply form of let him study from the opposite coaches. I hit him with little gems right here and there about issues he can implement when he doesn’t have the ball, like he’ll in Boston. So attempting to work on a few of these issues.”

Udoka’s method is considerably shocking, as many would anticipate him to attempt to coach up Tatum early and infrequently on their Olympic journey. How their relationship unfolds over time in the end will inform whether or not Udoka’s hands-off method proved efficient.

Udoka additionally praised Tatum for the way he got here off the bench for Crew USA and impacted video games in a optimistic manner.

“The bench position (on Crew USA) was one thing totally different for him, however he accepted it,” Udoka continued. “And in case you take a look at his numbers general, I believe (he was the) second-leading scorer behind Kevin (Durant). He did an incredible job and clearly he performed nice within the final sport.”