'Deandre Ayton got Monty Williams fired': Stephen A. Smith says of Suns coach's dismissal

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith blames Deandre Ayton for Monty Williams being dismissed as the head coach of the Phoenix Suns.

"I’m going to say something right here, right now for the national airwaves that people might shun at," Smith said Sunday on ESPN’s NBA Countdown before 76ers-Celtics Game 7. "Deandre Ayton got Monty Williams fired. I’m going to say that."

Smith acknowledged the idea Mat Ishbia is looking to further establish himself as the new Suns team owner by bringing in a coach of his choice as Williams was hired under Robert Sarver in May 2019, but pointed the finger at Ayton for Williams' dismissal.

"Deandre Ayton got Monty Williams fired," Smith repeated as ESPN NBA analyst Jalen Rose was nodding his head in approval while Smith said that.

Smith continued by noting tension between Ayton and Williams that goes back to Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals when the two had a heated exchange on the sidelines during Dallas’ 33-point drumming of the Suns in Phoenix.

"This is the same guy that Monty Williams had a problem with last season that he benched him the postseason for significant minutes," Smith said.

Ayton played just 17 minutes in the 123-90 loss to Dallas, scoring what was then a career playoff-low five points.

When asked after the game why Ayton only played 17 minutes, Williams said, "It’s internal."

Ayton said at the start of training camp he and Williams hadn’t talked since that Game 7.

The two spoke fondly of each other during the season, but Williams ended up sitting Ayton the final 4:57 of Game 3 against Denver. Ayton scored what is now a career playoff-low four points in 26 minutes.

Visibly upset, Ayton was jawing in the direction of the team huddle, didn’t talk with the media after Game 3 but spoke on what happened following Game 4 as the Suns evened the series with two home wins.

"I don't blame Coach," Ayton said. "You're trying to win."

Then Ayton suffered a rib contusion in Phoenix’s Game 5 loss at Denver that sidelined him for Game 6 which the Suns lost by 25 points after trailing by as many as 32 points in the first half.

The next day, Ayton addressed questions about his relationship with Williams after having his exit interview Friday with Suns president of basketball operations and General Manager, James Jones.

"What family don't have ups and downs, especially when both of us are on the same mission," Ayton said. "We really got tight when we were losing and we were going through that stage when it felt like we were losing every game. Guys were out and we were injured."

Ayton is referring to a 14-game stretch in late December through early January when the Suns went 2-12 and were without Devin Booker (groin), Chris Paul (hip), Cam Johnson (knee) and Cameron Payne (foot) during segments of that slump.

"Just knowing what type of coach you are and you knowing me as a man, and me doing the same thing, it brought a better understanding into what we stand for and how we can help out things," Ayton added.

Ayton closed out conversation on the subject by saying his relationship with Williams "has always been good" in his opinion.

"Like I said, which family don’t argue," Ayton added.

Smith continued making his point, saying Ayton not only lacked effort, but thought the Suns were going out of their way to “get him to be on board.”

He then talked about how Nuggets All-Star center Nikola Jokic dominated Ayton in the West semifinal series. The two-time MVP averaged a triple double of 34.5 points on 59.4% shooting (44.4% from 3), 13.2 rebounds and 10.3 assists in the six games while Ayton managed just 10.8 points on 57.8% shooting, 8.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists.

Jokic had three triple-doubles in the series to Ayton’s zero.

"You see that, those are the kind of things that lead to a decision like this being made," Smith said. "I’m going to say it one last time, Deandre Ayton costs Monty Williams his job."

Williams compiled a 194-115 record in four seasons with the Suns, coaching them to the 2021 NBA finals and the NBA’s best record in the 2021-22 season at 64-18, a franchise record for most victories in a single season.

The 51-year-old won NBCA Coach of Year in 2021 and 2022 and was named NBA Coach of the Year last season, but he went 0-3 in elimination games during this recent three-year playoff run for the Suns.

Follow Suns Insider Duane Rankin on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Stephen A. Smith blames Deandre Ayton for Suns firing Monty Williams