At long last, the Detroit Pistons introduced their new head coach.
Monty Williams took the stage alongside general manager Troy Weaver and owner Tom Gores on Tuesday afternoon at the Pistons Performance Center. The three men laid out the winding process that led to Williams signing a historic $78.5 million contract to lead the Pistons from their “restoring” phase to the competing phase.
Ultimately, the Pistons got their guy. Tuesday kicked off a busy month for the team, which will navigate the NBA draft on June 22 before tackling free agency and the Las Vegas Summer League.
He almost took a year off due to his wife’s health
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The Pistons’ courtship of Williams started off cold, but heated up significantly in the days before he signed his record contract. Those within the organization and around the league believed Williams was likely to take a year off after his dismissal from Phoenix.
Williams revealed that he planned to take time off because of his wife, Lisa, who was diagnosed with breast cancer during Phoenix’s playoff run. It was detected early, and Williams said it might have saved her life.
According to a source, the Pistons included levers in Williams’ contract that will provide private jet travel and health care benefits for his wife, along with assistance in finding housing and schools for his children, to reduce the impact of moving cross-country as his family continues to handle her health situation.
“I talked to my wife today about whether or not we should talk about it publicly, but that was a huge part of my decision-making and the patience that Troy and Mr. Gores had with me and with us as we navigated that, told me a lot,” Williams said. “My wife found out she has breast cancer during the playoffs. The reason I bring that up is not to talk about the family, but to make it more of an emphasis that women need early detection testing. We had genetic testing done and scan after scan, and we found it early. That might’ve saved my wife’s life and it might save others.
“As we navigated all of that and talking to Troy, telling him that I couldn’t right now because I have to take care of my family,” he continued. “Then we got great news that we would find out about her situation a lot earlier than we thought we would, and out of the blue, I got a text from Troy after they had their pow wow table, which I thought was totally off of the table. I was with my kid at a tryout. So just all of that was on my plate. Losing my job, family situation and then being a father, traveling with my family, doing a few things. Then out of the blue, I got the text from Troy and it went quickly after that.”
He sees similarities between the Pistons and the Suns
When Williams was hired in Phoenix, the Suns were coming off of a 19-win season. They already had several core players — including Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson — who would help power the team to a quick turnaround and Finals appearance in 2021. Phoenix improved from 19 to 34 wins during Williams’ first season as coach and fell just short of making the play-in tournament in the Orlando bubble.
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It’s easy to draw comparisons between that team and the current Pistons. Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren have star potential, and the team has talented veterans and other young players who could be ready for bigger roles next season.
“There’s similarities for sure,” Williams said. “The young talent that hasn’t had the experiences yet, that it needs to progress. Coach (Dwane) Casey has done an unreal job of navigating a lot of that. And for me to come into it now is a part of this restoration.
“Similarities, yeah but those boxes guys. When I look at the talent we have, I’m careful not to compare and place names on guys because I don’t want them to think they have to be a particular guy. I want them to be the best version of themselves in their unique way. When I got to Phoenix, there were some things that were similar. I’m not trying to redo that. That was there, this is now and we have a chance to restore.”
He isn’t shying away from talking about his record contract
Williams’ six-year, $78.5 million contract that could reach eight years and $100 million is the most lucrative in the NBA. Gores was aggressive in his pursuit and said after the news conference that it was the only offer he made to Williams
Money was a factor in Williams’ decision. He made it clear when asked what factors brought him to the Pistons. And he thinks it should be talked about.
“The quick answer is obviously Troy, the players and the money,” he said. “That’s something that people don’t talk about, they say it wasn’t the money. I always laugh at that. I think that’s disrespectful. When someone is that generous to pay me that kind of money, one that should be applauded, and two it should be talked about. All of us as head coaches could go coach in our hometowns, not travel as much and be home more and have less stress. It was those variables and more.
“I like those challenges. I like the process of building. I like seeing players get better. I like seeing a guy for the first time understand what it’s like to navigate crunch-time situations. That’s a part of the process that I enjoy. There’s a number of other things, but at the end of the day this is a get to and not a got to. These jobs in the NBA as head coaches are privileges and there are only 30 of them, and I look at it that way. We could go on and on about the blessings that go with these positions, whether it’s taking over a contending team or a team that’s on the rise.”
Detroit’s roster has made a strong first impression
The Pistons’ players had their own section at the news conference. All of them, with the exception of Bojan Bogdanovic, were in attendance on Tuesday.
Williams was touched by the gesture, and noted that it’s rare to see players attend the news conference of their new head coach. They’ve impressed him in other ways as well.
“You see the talent for sure,” he said. “You see the size. When I talk to them, they all look me in the eye, which is impressive. I text them and they get right back to me, which is rare in the NBA. You see it today. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a press conference for a coach and all of the players show up. That’s what I see. A hunger, a desire. They all want it.
“It really gets to you when you think about it. I could go on and on about what I’ve seen on film. I’ve also talked to them about what we need. We need to do some things a lot better. They’ve all been willing, they’ve all been receptive. That’s something I’ve seen. I’m affected by that.”
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Monty Williams news conference takeaways: Why he almost passed on the job