Nia Long said the Celtics made her family business public: 'It could have been handled internally'

Nia Long isn’t ready to go into detail about the events that led to the end of her 13-year relationship with ex-fiancé and former Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka. But she does have a thought about how it was all handled.

Reports at the time of Udoka’s suspension in September were that he had an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the Celtics organization. Public comments from the organization only stated that Udoka committed multiple violations of team policies.

But if it seems like the Celtics dealt with the situation the best way they could, don’t be so sure. Long believes there was an alternative way to handle it.

“The Celtics made a choice to make my family business public, and I don’t understand why. It could’ve all been handled internally. I do understand why, but I can’t talk about it. Maybe one day I will,” the Love Jones actress said in an interview with The Cut. “You know, fear drives stupidity, and I’ll leave that right there. I’ve learned that I’m stronger than I ever thought I was.”

Long also said her 11-year-old son with Udoka, Kaz, is having a really tough time, which could understandably be fueling her feelings toward the team. If there was absolutely a way for the Celtics to keep things in house, that’s what she would have preferred.

Of course, that was out of the Celtics’ hands once reports began to surface about a potential suspension for a coach that had just led his team to the NBA Finals, and the reasons behind it. But that begs the question about who was leaking that information to reporters in the first place.

I don’t know the answer, but it seems clear there remains a lot about the situation we simply don’t know and may never know, which is fine, because it’s really none of our business. But if she ever does decide to say more, it doesn’t sound like it’ll paint the Celtics in the best light.