DETROIT – The NBA offseason has officially begun -- and the Pistons officially introduced their new head coach, Monty Williams, this week.
Pistons owner Tom Gores shelled out the biggest coaching contract in NBA history to get the former Coach of the Year to Detroit after he was let go by the Phoenix Suns following a second-round exit.
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In his introductory press conference, Williams said some interesting things. He was cool, calm -- and transparent. A reporter asked him what the biggest factors were in his decision to take the job.
“The quick answer is Troy (Weaver), the players and the money,” Williams said. “That’s something people don’t talk about. They say it wasn’t the money. I always laugh at that. I say it’s disrespectful when somebody is that generous to me, that kind of money, that should be applauded and should be talked about.”
I like that he brought up the giant, historic, expensive elephant in the room. Of course the money helped -- if WDIV wanted to pay me that much, I’d go anywhere.
Williams was hugely complimentary of the roster and locker room, which he said he spent a lot of time researching.
“Troy talked about he would put that locker room up against any locker room in the league,” Williams said. “He said that right from the jump. I was talking to my mentor, Pastor Bill,” who told him, “You think you’re going to be what they need. I think this is what you need.”
“After looking at the roster and doing background work on everybody – because he’s just that dude – he said, ‘These guys are going to be good for you.’ I’m looking forward to how they’re going to impact me in a good way.”
Williams said his interactions with the players so far have been positive and refreshing. Most of the team showed up to the press event.
“I talked to them and they all looked me in the eye, which is impressive. I text and they get right back to me, which is rare in the NBA,” Williams said. “You see it today. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a press conference and they all show up. The hunger, the desire – they all want it. It gets to you.”
Williams said he called around the league “to get someone to tell me something squirrelly about our guys.” He said he couldn’t find anything. “I feel I have a great group of guys that want to get better.”
It kind of makes you think -- what was going on in Phoenix?! Was Kevin Durant not texting him back? Was Chris Paul not looking him in the eye? Who knows.
Cade Cunningham was in the house -- for what it’s worth, he told media at the event that he’s ready to go, and he’d be playing right now if there were games.
Pistons GM Troy Weaver made it clear that his goal for next season is to take a big leap forward, as he also stated in his open letters to fans at the end of last season, which had the Pistons with the worst record in the league, and the second-worst record in franchise history.
“We’re ready to take a step forward,” Weaver said. “We had a lot of injuries last year that derailed, but we’re ready to take a step forward.”
For Monty -- his goal, besides winning, is to have an impact, he said.
“I want to have success here to the point they think I’m from Detroit the way they think Dave Bing is from Detroit even though he’s from D.C.,” Williams said. “I want to have that kind of impact here. I told the players this morning, I’m going to give everything I have to the job because it is a franchise that has a rich history and that means a lot to me.”
I hope Monty can do it. They’ve made a long-term investment in him, which means he’ll have plenty of time to develop the team’s young core. It’s a good sign that the players showed up, and they seem ready.
I’m sure they’re tired of losing. I’m tired of watching them lose.
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Thanks for reading the Pistons Pivot Newsletter. Feel free to reach out with any comments or ideas you have about the team -- or just to say hello. Until next time,
- Ken Haddad (Contact me: Email | Twitter)
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