Following reports that the Detroit Pistons fired head coach Monty Williams on Wednesday, supporters of the Los Angeles Lakers flocked to social media to express their support for Williams to take over as L.A.’s next head coach.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Wednesday that the Pistons made the surprising decision to part ways with Williams after just one season at the helm despite the fact that he had five years and over $65 million left on his contract.
The Lakers have the most high profile head coaching vacancy in the NBA following the firing of Darvin Ham after a two year stint with the franchise, and posts by several Lakers fans on X suggest that the fan base would love to see Williams leading LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Co. next season:
Los Angeles made an unsuccessful bid to pry Dan Hurley away from UConn, but Hurley decided to stay put in an effort to lead the Huskies to a third consecutive national championship in men’s basketball.
After Hurley chose to turn down the Lakers’ offer, Wojnarowski reported that the Lakers intended to interview former NBA guard JJ Redick, who was expected to move “to the forefront” of the organization’s search with a strong performance.
It was also reported by NBA insider Marc Stein that a source close to the situation said, “You know who is getting the job,” in an apparent reference to Redick.
While Redick is a respected basketball mind who starred at Duke before playing 15 seasons in the NBA, he has no prior coaching experience at any level, so it is fair to question if he is the best fit for a Lakers team that has a sense of urgency to win a title in the next year or two with James approaching 40 years of age.
In Williams, the Lakers would be getting a veteran coach who has been part of NBA staffs since 2005 and served as head coach of the New Orleans Pelicans, Phoenix Suns and Pistons.
The 52-year-old Williams has reached the playoffs five times in 10 seasons as an NBA head coach and owns a career record of 381-404 (.485).
His greatest success undoubtedly came during a four year stint with the Suns from 2019 to 2023, as he went 194-115, led Phoenix to the 2021 NBA Finals and was named 2022 NBA Coach of the Year by virtue of a league best 64-18 record.
However, after falling to the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2021 Finals, playoff success eluded Williams and he Suns, as they were eliminated in the second round in each of the next two years.
As a result, the Suns fired Williams, prompting the Pistons to hire him on a long-term, big money deal.
His first and only season in Detroit was disastrous, though, as the Pistons went 14-68 this past season, which was the worst record in the league.
Of course, the Pistons had a young, inexperienced team that never had a hope of contending for a playoff spot, so it can be argued that Williams would be a better fit with a veterans laden team like the Lakers.
While Williams very well may be the best option available to the Lakers, it is fair to wonder if him becoming available so late in their search will prevent L.A. from seriously considering him for the position.
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