Suns Coach Monty Williams Speaks on Kevin Durant Saga
Phoenix Suns coach Monty Williams is a man of the people.
Williams has earned a strong reputation across the league (both for players and fans) for how he carries himself (and his team) on and off the court.
The reigning NBA Coach of the Year is still in search for Phoenix's first championship, something many believe the Suns would have had a shot at if they acquired Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant.
The Suns were one of two teams to be at the top of Durant's preferred destinations, and Phoenix was considered a major player in the early stages for the future Hall of Fame scorer.
However, the Suns opted to stay pat with their current squad of players rather than trading the farm for KD. It's a move that will surely prove to be pivotal in either direction.
Yet Phoenix is focused on moving forward, and that was the message when Williams joined SiriusXM's NBA Radio and discussed a variety of topics, one of which being Phoenix's pursuit of Kevin Durant:
Monty Williams Dishes on Kevin Durant Saga
“I never talked to any of our guys about that,” said Williams.
“One, people don’t understand how hard trades are to pull off. When I first heard about the Kevin Durant stuff, I was kind of blown away by it just because, you know, we’ve been so blessed here to have guys want to come [to Phoenix]. At the same time, ‘at the expense of what?’ was my thinking. And I like our team. I love our guys.
“But I wasn’t going to have conversations that didn’t need to be had. I think our guys are mature enough to understand that part of our business. I didn’t want to have conversations about stuff that didn’t need to be brought up. Part of it is because I’ve been in the business so long. It’s just hard to pull trades off, so that was my thinking."
He's right: The culture Williams has helped build in the Valley speaks for itself. Years ago, few Suns fans would believe that Durant would have even dreamt of coming to play in Phoenix.
It sounds as if Williams would have been alright in either outcome, although his words were very clear when it came to backing his current stable of players.
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