Nick Nurse Fired as Raptors HC After Winning 2019 Title; Ime Udoka a Rumored Target

After a tumultuous 2022-23 campaign, the Toronto Raptors fired Nick Nurse from his position as head coach Friday.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the decision.

Ujiri explained some of the rationale behind the decision to reporters, per Michael Grange of Sportsnet:

Wojnarowski added that former Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka is a "serious candidate" to replace Nurse.

Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes, citing sources, reported the "Houston Rockets will target Nick Nurse as a strong candidate for their vacant head coach opening."

The decision comes after the 55-year-old Nurse said on March 31 that he was "going to take a few weeks to see where I'm at" at the end of the year. There had been speculation that his job was in question amid Toronto's struggles.

Nurse had spent 10 years with the Raptors organization and the last five at the helm. He led the team to playoff appearances in each of his first four years and a play-in tournament berth this past season, where it was eliminated by the Chicago Bulls.

Still, the former point guard should be commended for the second-half turnaround he helped engineer. The Raptors sat seven games below .500 over halfway through the season, but they found success in February and March to earn a chance at competing in the playoffs.

In his five seasons in charge of the team, Nurse has a career record of 227-163. He helped lead Toronto to its first championship in franchise history in 2019, and he was named NBA Coach of the Year in 2020.

After letting Nurse go, Toronto will embark on a search for the right person to lead the team back to prominence next season.