PHOENIX SUNS

Suns head coach Monty Williams fired, how are fans reacting

May 13, 2023, 7:56 PM | Updated: 10:28 pm

Head Coach Monty Williams of the Phoenix Suns watches the action against the Dallas Mavericks durin...

Head Coach Monty Williams of the Phoenix Suns watches the action against the Dallas Mavericks during the second half of Game Three of the 2022 NBA Playoffs Western Conference Semifinals at American Airlines Center on May 6, 2022 in Dallas, Texas. The Mavericks won 103-94. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)

(Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)

The Phoenix Suns fired head coach Monty Williams on Saturday evening and the news came as somewhat of a shock to NBA fans.

The move comes after owner Mat Ishbia acquired the team in the middle of this season, and Williams and the Suns were eliminated from the playoffs by 25-plus points at home for the second straight year.

Williams posted a 194-115 record (.628) in four seasons and made the playoffs three years in a row from 2021-23.

The Suns’ head coach is coming off an NBA Coach of the Year Award in 2022 and runner-up in 2021.

Phoenix made a major push for a championship at the trade deadline by acquiring Kevin Durant, thinning its depth in the process and ultimately ended in a similar spot as last year.

To some around the Valley, this was a worry that gained steams as Phoenix took an epic tumble out of the playoffs. To others, it is a “what have you done for me lately” business and Williams was the latest to be fired.

Williams joins the Toronto Raptors’ Dwane Casey (2018) and Nick Nurse (2020), plus the Milwaukee Bucks’ Mike Budenholzer (2019) as head coaches to lose their job shortly after winning coach of the year.

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