Monty Williams declined a ‘big-money offer’ to be the next head coach of the Detroit Pistons

For the last decade, the Detroit Pistons have struggled to find consistency as a franchise. They announced head coach Dwane Casey would be moving into a front-office role shortly after the end of the season. Former Phoenix Suns head coach Monty Williams was at the top of Detroti’s list as far as candidates went. However, Williams declined a ‘big-money offer’ to be the next head coach of the Detroit Pistons. 

Not only did the Pistons lose out on their top choice for head coach, but they also were unlucky in the NBA draft lottery. Despite finishing with the league’s worst overall record this past season, Detroit fell all the way to the fifth pick in the draft. They had the same odds as San Antonio and Charlotte for the #1 pick.

Monty Williams reportedly turned down a ‘big-money offer’ from the Pistons. 👀 pic.twitter.com/cBdF72jBYz

— theScore (@theScore) May 24, 2023

Monty Williams turned down the opportunity to be the Detroit Piston’s next head coach

In this situation, former Suns’ head coach Monty Williams has the upper hand. He’s owed $20 million over the next three seasons. That gives him the opportunity to be picky about where he wants to be the next head coach. Explaining the reason why he turned down the opportunity to be the Pistons’ next head coach.

Williams spent four seasons as the head coach of the Phoenix Suns, making three postseason appearances. The Suns made the NBA Finals in 2021 but blew a 2-0 series lead and lost their next four games in a row. After that, Phoenix never made it out of the second round.

One could argue that Williams was wrongfully fired by the Suns. When they made their blockbuster trade for Kevin Durant, their team lost some of the depth they had in the past. That put more of a burden on Durant and Devin Booker. When they didn’t play well, the Suns didn’t win.