Devin Booker and the Phoenix Suns underperformed yet again during this postseason. Monty Williams just couldn’t get his men over the second-round hurdle, even with Kevin Durant on the side. And due to just this, the head coach has now been fired by the Suns, rather unfairly too, which has in turn, brought a Devin Booker interview from almost a year ago back to the fore.
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Admittedly, Monty Williams and the Suns were beyond unlucky. After all, Durant, who is usually a good postseason performer often couldn’t make a shot to save his life. So, in essence, their trump card simply refused to work against the Nuggets. And once you remember just how much depth the Phoenix Suns gave up for him, you can probably imagine why Kevin’s bad performances doomed the team. Then again, there wasn’t much he himself could have done about it either.
Still, in this fickle world of ours, someone needs to take the blame, no matter what. And the Phoenix Suns decided to hand that role to Monty Williams, and recently fired him as a consequence of it.
However, was it the right move? Devin Booker took an interview just under a year ago, expressing just how much he loved Monty Williams, not only as a coach but as a person too. And now, amidst all the current hoopla, it has been dragged right back into the spotlight.
Devin Booker’s take about Monty Williams from last July
Devin Booker has made significant strides as a player under Monty Williams. And apparently, that was no coincidence. During Williams’ tenure, Booker would never stop praising the man. And during an interview with Cameron Tabatabaie, he explained why he loved to do it so much. Take a look at the tweet by Cameron Tabatabaie below.
Here’s what Devin Booker told me about Monty Williams last July pic.twitter.com/AvNrTc4siA
— Cameron Tabatabaie (@CTabatabaie) May 14, 2023
“He means everything. He’s a real one. He is one of those people that when you’re talking to him, he looks you directly in your eyes, and you feel everything he said.
It’s much bigger than just the sport of basketball. He likes to develop personal relationships, and all the basketball stuff is a bonus. We just share common interests or common love for the game. He really genuinely cares about how you’re doing, and how you are in your day-to-day life.”
Admittedly, when this interview first came out, it didn’t garner all that much attention. After all, this wasn’t new information. There is a reason Monty Williams is unanimously liked by everyone in the NBA community, everybody knows that side of him. And he is absolutely adored for it.
However, now you wonder how radical has the Suns’ thinking gotten, considering they fired such a man, due to a reason that wasn’t his fault. After all, this wasn’t a failure in tactics or coaching. It was simply the plain old bad series.
But beyond that, where will Monty Williams go next?
Monty Williams joins a pool of highly-rated head coaches
Frank Vogel, Nick Nurse, and now Monty Williams are all now available. Further, all three of these men are defensive-minded coaches, something quite a few teams in the NBA could benefit from. And of course, their tactics on the offensive end are elite too.
Admittedly, Williams will likely be looking to take some time off, considering he spent 4 years under such intensive pressure. However, whenever he does return, he is sure to be hounded by lottery teams and competitive teams alike.
