"He wanted them to trade him"- Former Suns coach Monty Williams hated coaching Jae Crowder and Deandre Ayton
Monty Williams was fired as the Phoenix Suns' head coach following their second-round exit in the 2023 NBA Playoffs. Now that he's signed with the Detroit Pistons, his honest thoughts on coaching certain players have emerged.
Williams' tenure with the Suns was rejuvenating. He played a huge role in the team getting back in the finals back in 2021. However, after their success, Phoenix wasn't able to capitalize on it and struggled to make a return to the NBA Finals. Sadly, other issues caused the team to lose focus.
It was revealed that Williams wasn't fond of coaching Jae Crowder and Deandre Ayton. John Gambadoro shared the details of why it didn't work for Monty and the two players.
"The Jae Crowder situation was all on Monty. He told people he was too difficult to handle and coach. Monty didn’t want Jae. It wasn’t the Suns organization. He didn’t want Jae around," Gambadoro wrote.
Monty Williams reportedly disliked coaching Jae Crowder and Deandre Ayton, per @Gambo987
“He told people [Jae Crowder] was too difficult to handle and coach. Monty didn’t want Jae. It wasn’t the Suns organization. He didn’t want Jae around. As far as Deandre Ayton, Monty didn’t… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/Wwv0xQgRaM
"As far as Deandre Ayton, Monty didn’t want him either. He wanted them to trade him to Indiana for Myles Turner. He didn’t like coaching Ayton.
"When Ayton signed his maximum contract when the Suns matched his offer sheet, Monty wasn’t even there and didn’t show up when Ayton signed it at the arena or call him to say congratulations."
Crowder was traded in the middle of the 2022-23 season as part of the package that made the Suns acquire Kevin Durant.
As for Ayton, he's been in trade rumors for the past three seasons. Unfortunately, Phoenix hasn't pulled the trigger, and the Bahamian center is still with the team. DA finished his fifth season averaging 18.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 1.7 assists for the Suns.
You might also be interested in reading this: "You’ve been through a lot coach" - NBA fans applaud Pistons for including healthcare benefits for Monty Williams' wife as she fights breast cancer
Monty Williams shared his excitement about coaching the Detroit Pistons
Last week, Monty Williams signed a six-year $78.5 million deal to be the new head coach of the Detroit Pistons. After signing the big contract, he shared his reason for joining the Pistons.
"It gave me more excitement when you have a hungry group that wants to get better and they have talent and they have character. How could you not be excited about a group like that?" Williams said.
Detroit finished the 2022-23 season at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. Due to injuries that Cade Cunningham had, the team wasn't able to have a strong finish in their season. Williams believes in the young core of the team and is excited to be their new leader moving forward.
Also read: "He got a BAG" - NBA fans react to Monty Williams signing a whopping $72 million deal to become the new head coach of the Pistons