New York: After only one season, in which they finished with an NBA-worst 14-68 record, the Detroit Pistons dismissed coach Monty Williams.
Owner of the Pistons, Tom Gores, issued a statement saying, “I want to thank Monty for his hard work and dedication. Decisions like these are difficult to make.” “During a season, a coach faces a lot of dynamic challenges, which Monty always handled with grace.” But going ahead, we will set a new route after closely examining our performance and evaluating where we are as a company.
For Williams, the previous season marked the start of a six-year, $78.5 million deal that was, at the time, the highest-paid contract ever awarded to an NBA coach. After the season, the organization began a front office makeover that included the firing of general manager Troy Weaver, the appointment of Trajan Langdon as president of basketball operations, and the current head coaching vacancy.
Williams is fired, capping a very bizarre chain of events. As the Suns’ coach in 2021, he took his team to the NBA Finals, where Phoenix led 2-0 before losing to Milwaukee in six games. He was overwhelmingly voted the NBA’s coach of the year in 2022. He was sacked by the Suns in 2023, and the Pistons have already followed suit in 2024.
Since then, a coaching contract’s total value has been surpassed; earlier this year, Erik Spoelstra received an eight-year agreement from Miami for $120 million.
By all accounts, the Pistons’ season was a complete failure. After a 2-1 start, they lost all of their subsequent games over the following two months.
The season was a complete disaster due to a 28-game losing streak, which was the worst in NBA history for a single season and tied for the most when taking into account many seasons. The Pistons’ roster was often changing, and their longest victory streak was two games, which they accomplished three times. Throughout the season, Detroit utilized 31 different players, 36 different starting lineups, and 39 double-digit loss results.
With Cleveland and the Los Angeles Lakers still looking for a coach, Detroit’s opening is the third one in the NBA that is currently open. The Pistons made their move one week ahead of the NBA Draft, when Detroit is scheduled to choose its fifth choice on June 26. With that selection, the team hopes to bolster its youthful core, which is headed by Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, and Jalen Duren.
The only three Pistons to start at least 60 games in the previous season were those three players, all of whom were 22 or younger.
Gores said, “We are steadfast in our resolve to deliver a championship-caliber team to Detroit.” “We will continue our aim to establish a best-in-class front office that will help us achieve sustained success and we will be thorough and quick in our search for a new head coach to manage our exciting young core of players.”
