Ime Udoka Introduction Press Conference Thread

Tilman better clarify asap..... He has been talking for like 3 min and still no mention of Sengun, our franchise player and only hope...

 

the only player we wanted was Paolo.

 

Fertitta:

Exciting day for myself, the Houston Rockets and all of our fans.

3 years ago, which was very painful, RAF, Patrick and said we’re gonna make tough basketball decisions. We don’t want to be mediocre. You seem to be up here or down there and don’t want to be in the middle and if in the middle, stuck there for years. That was the Rockets before James Harden.

We endured this horrible painful process and decided we would go young. Fans have been unbelievable. Media has been unbelievable. You listened to it and believed in it. We appreciate the fans and everyone in the organization for understanding.

We have a bunch of young stars. We have 4-5 guys on pace to be all-stars in a few years. RAF has done an unbelievable job, not perfect but pretty damn good. They know what they’re doing.

We’ve come a long way in the 3 years developing these guys. What Silas did and helped develop these guys, he’s gonna be a great asset to someone else. I can’t thank him enough.

We’re onto the next phase. We’re gonna develop these stars. We have free agent space. There’s nothing like cap space. When you mix these new stars with the free agents, I’m expecting a lot from these guys. It’s exciting. It’s time to get on the right path.

We interviewed some great coaches. It was a tough decision but it wasn’t because one person we felt was an exceptional candidate to take us to the next level. We’re excited to have Ime. He’s everything the Rockets were looking for. We did so much due diligence on him. The respect he has from coaches, executives, front offices, players, we got a glowing report. We’re extremely happy. His ability to coach a team, hold these guys to toughness, respect, accountability, everything I like to run a business. Structure. A guy they can communicate with.

It’s phase 2. It’s getting back in the playoffs, learning how to win again and soon except to tell you how great it is to win a championship.

You had to crawl, now walk, then run. We’re expecting a lot. We have the leadership between RAF, Ime and Patrick.

 

should be in phase 2, but progress-wise still in phase 1; playing catchup.

 

Glad Patrick does a lot..... I feel super confident now...

 

he specifically cited multiple players that they had on their board and didn't get

 

Ime:

Thanks to Tillman, Patrick and Rafael.

Young talent we have. A lot of things attractive. Cap space, chance to grow with these players.

Rafael:

Tillman did a great job expressing why we’re excited. Ime aligns with me and the way I view basketball. I know how Tillman runs his business. Ime will be a great extension of that.

 

Raffy's gonna have to give up the tank

 

first question, yikes

 

Tilman in full on soliloquy mode and then the other 2 had like 20 secs lmao.

 

The resemblance is uncanny.

 

Please say Sengun was the biggest reason you came here... PLEASE

 

Ime said he's sorry for his past and he aint horny no more

(paraphrasing)

 

goes without saying honestly

 

need more parameters to tune the Stone Bot, pretty lame.

 

These questions yikes lol uncomfortable

 

that's slightly interesting; NBA blocked / frowned upon when Nets was interested, but OKed it now with Tilman and the Rockets.

 

that was likely a timing thing more than anything else

 

Until his first interview with Vanessa