The Pistons apparently took a run at Monty Williams for their head coaching vacancy -- and Williams said no.
After Williams was fired this month by the Suns a year removed from winning NBA Coach of the Year and two years removed from leading Phoenix to the NBA Finals, the Pistons rerouted their coaching search and made a "big-money offer to Williams in hopes that he could be lured straight into a new job," according to NBA insider Marc Stein.
This came after last week's draft lottery in which Detroit lost out in the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes. And it "appears that plan," says Stein, "was unsuccessful."
Williams, who's reportedly still owed $20 million by the Suns, is said to be leaning toward taking a year off before he gets back into coaching. He would have been a big get for Troy Weaver and the Pistons, who have a young roster in need of direction. But neither their money nor their future was enough to pull Williams to Detroit.
As such, the Pistons will move forward with the three finalists they identified before Williams became available: Bucks assistant Charles Lee, Pelicans assistant Jarron Collins and Overtime Elite coach Kevin Ollie.
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