Phoenix Suns Hire Monty Williams as New Head Coach

After firing rookie head coach Igor Kokoskov, the Suns have found another head coach they hope will lead their young core to new heights. 76ers assistant Monty Williams is agreeing to terms to become the new head coach in Phoenix, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports.

Williams was the head coach of the Pelicans for five years from 2010-2015, and helped bring Anthony Davis along during his early years. Most recently, he was an assistant with the 76ers under Brett Brown.

Perhaps the biggest impact of this news is that Williams will not be coaching the Lakers, who were targeting him as Luke Walton’s replacement. The reported candidates are now down to Jason Kidd and Ty Lue. Take that as you will.

Williams will have a young core ready for molding in Devin Booker, DeAndre Ayton, and whoever the team picks with their likely top-three pick in this year’s draft. They have tons of talent, but Kokoskov wasn’t able to translate that into wins, although Booker and Ayton improved over the course of the season.

Given Robert Sarver’s tendencies, Williams might only have a season to prove he’s the right guy for this group. I’d say it’s a good bet; Williams is a solid x’s and o’s coach who has experience in player development. This was a solid hire for Phoenix.