Celtics Players Used to Say They Had 'Mind Control' over 76ers, Ime Udoka Says

Doric SamDecember 1, 2021

Boston Celtics' Jaylen Brown (7) celebrates a basket during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the San Antonio Spurs, Friday, Nov. 26, 2021, in San Antonio. San Antonio won 96-88. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

AP Photo/Darren Abate

The confidence level of Boston Celtics players ahead of Wednesday night's game against the Philadelphia 76ers is high.

First-year Boston head coach Ime Udoka told reporters that some of his players once told him they had "mind control" over the Sixers players.

Jay King @ByJayKing
Ime Udoka said when he was coaching Team USA, some Celtics players involved used to say they had “mind control” over the 76ers.

Udoka was an assistant coach for Team USA during the 2019 FIBA World Cup, which included Celtics players Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart.

It's a curious comment, considering Philadelphia swept the season series against Boston 3-0 in 2020-21 and also won three of four games against the Celtics the previous season.

Wednesday night's matchup will be the first meeting of the year between Boston and Philadelphia. It remains to be seen if the Celtics players will be able to back up their coach's comment.