Phoenix Suns fans react to head coach Monty Williams being fired, speculate on replacement
Wow.
That's the majority reaction upon the news of Monty Williams' being fired as head coach of the Phoenix Suns, after turning a lackluster franchise into a contender over the past three years. Other began speculating on who might replace Williams.
The utter disappointment about the Suns' home loss by 25 points in the Western Conference semifinals Game 6 to the Denver Nuggets on Thursday had many media members and fans on social media expecting immediate changes to the team.
More: Phoenix Suns dismiss Monty Williams as head coach after embarrassing Game 6 loss
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The 2022 NBA Coach of the Year award winner Williams;, who led the Suns to the 2021 NBA finals, is the first to fall in the anticipated domino effect by Phoenix's new owner Mat Ishbia, who took over as owner in early February and immediately got fans' attention by acquiring Kevin Durant right before the trade deadline.
Here are what many people from the local and national media as well as fans are saying about Williams' sudden departure, and who might be worthy candidates to replace him:
The Suns, league sources say, are expected to explore the feasibility of trying to lure Tyronn Lue away from the Clippers after tonight's abrupt dismissal of Monty Williams as coach.
More NBA from me: https://t.co/A6ycVmnrjq— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) May 14, 2023
this isn’t necessarily surprising given the way the last two seasons ended but damn… Monty brought a culture that made the Suns relevant and respectable again. wishing him nothing but the best. #MoreToDoMoreToCome https://t.co/tbklQSoAjG
— Lina Washington (@LWashingtonTV) May 14, 2023
-- Stop citing the 2-0 lead in the Finals like that season/result was a negative and at ALL compares to the previous two
-- Stop comparing him to Mark freaking Jackson
Could have a little more respect for the guy after what he did for your franchise after the state it was in.— Kellan Olson (@KellanOlson) May 14, 2023
And there you have it,The Suns and Monty Williams parts ways! This was not a surprise as I was told by multiple sources both sides were heading in a different directions 👇 A new era of Suns Basketball is coming and Mat Ishbia is going to be extremely aggressive going forward 💯 https://t.co/8TCps4wG9z
— FLEX From Jersey (@FlexFromJersey) May 14, 2023
If we’re just talking HC’s, I think I’d call Jay Wright.
— Jody Oehler (@radiojody) May 14, 2023
It’s also worth noting the Bucks and Suns both have new ownership, so that probably played a role in Mike Budenholzer and Monty Williams being fired https://t.co/EPh3ETFKsU
— Antwan V. Staley (@antwanstaley) May 14, 2023
It had to be done. As much as I like Monty as a person, this was the right move from a business perspective. #Suns https://t.co/IagIozYTBP
— MRORNG EdD. (@PHXMRORNG) May 14, 2023
WHY!?!? https://t.co/VrkJ0zLzuH
— REL (@relmyers) May 14, 2023
Whaaaat https://t.co/hDMawAEmdn
— Paola Boivin (@PaolaBoivin) May 14, 2023
Tough break for Monty Williams. Back-to-back brutal playoff exits obviously played a factor, but he'll leave Phoenix 4th on the Suns' all-time regular-season wins list and 2nd on their all-time playoff wins list. Instrumental in helping turn this organization around
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) May 14, 2023
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Suns fans react to head coach Monty Williams being fired, speculate on replacement