ESPN Analyst Blames Hacker For Brutal Tweet Disregarding Bill Russell and Other Black Coaches in Celtics History
The Boston Celtics are nearing an agreement to hire Brooklyn Nets assistant Ime Udoka as their next head coach. Udoka replaces Brad Stevens, who was recently promoted to team president and will become the Celtics sixth head coach of color in franchise history.
Shortly after the news was reported on Wednesday, ESPN basketball analyst and former NBA player Jay Williams reacted by celebrating Udoka as the Celtics first head coach of color in team history. A brutally inaccurate representation of a franchise which not only had five previous head coaches of color, but in 1966, hired Bill Russell as the first Black head coach in league history.
“the first head coach of color for the @celtics…& even more importantly…he is one talented individual who has paid his dues,” Williams wrote on Twitter.
Jay Williams has apparently never heard of Doc Rivers, Bill Russell, KC Jones, ML Carr and Tom Sanders pic.twitter.com/qiqOSrQlmT
— Sports ReUp (@SportsReUp) June 23, 2021
The tweet was almost immediately deleted, but social media makes it difficult to overcome such a blatant error, few mistakes are erased before screenshots are taken. And a paid ESPN analyst forgetting about five previous head coaches of color on one team is a flagrant blunder. But Williams didn’t accept responsibility for the mistake, blaming a hacker instead.
As it relates to the Boston Celtics tweet that came from my account a couple of hours ago… I did not post that & my passcode has now been changed.
— Jay Williams (@RealJayWilliams) June 23, 2021
Before Stevens, Doc Rivers coached the Celtics and led them to an NBA title in 2008. M.L. Carr coached the Celtics from 1995-1997. K.C. Jones led the Celtics to four straight Finals appearances and two titles during his tenure as head coach from 1983-1988. Tom Sanders was the Celtics interim head coach for 62 games and as previously mentioned, Bill Russell was the first Black head coach in NBA history. Russell won two titles with the Celtics during this three-season stint as player-coach.
If Williams’ Twitter account was hacked, it would have been a bizarre target by the culprit. Williams’ tweet occurred just 47 minutes after NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski announced the Celtics were finalizing an agreement with Udoka. Which means the hacker targeted a C-list celebrity, broke into his account and comprised the callously inaccurate tweet in less than an hour.
Williams’ ESPN colleague Stephen A. Smith has been exceptionally critical of Boston’s decision to promote Stevens, citing the move as an example of White privilege. But that doesn’t excuse the inaccuracy of Williams’ tweet.
