Former Suns coach Monty Williams takes head coaching job for son’s prep team in San Antonio

Former Phoenix Suns head coach Monty Williams has accepted a head coaching position at TMI-Episcopal High School in San Antonio where his son Elijah plays, the school announced Sunday.

A 6-foot-6 wing, Elijah started his high school career at Scottsdale Christian Academy and also played for AZ Unity, a Nike EYBL team based in Phoenix. He played at Brother Rice High School in Michigan during the 2023-24 season before transferring to TMI-Episcopal. He is a five-star recruit from the class of 2026, according to 247Sports.

Elijah was one of about 80 high school players that participated in a USA Basketball Men’s Junior National Team minicamp that went from Oct. 11-13.

Monty returns to San Antonio where he got his coaching career started under Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich as a coaching intern during the 2004-05 season.

After being hired by the Suns in 2019, Williams went 194-115 (.628) in four seasons in Phoenix, missing the playoff bubble in the COVID-struck 2019-20 season before going to the NBA Finals in 2021 and losing in the conference semifinals in 2022 and 2023.

After leading the Suns to an NBA-best 64-18 record in 2021-22, Williams was named the NBA’s Coach of the Year. He also received the coach of the year award from the National Basketball Coaches Association in 2022-23.

Williams signed with the Detroit Pistons to a six-year, $78 million contract after he was fired by the Suns.

Williams was fired by the Pistons after one season which saw Detroit lose an NBA-record 28 straight games and finish with a league-worst 14-68 record. 

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