Monty Williams has experience working under one of the greatest coaches in NBA history, Greg Popovich, and was part of the 2005 championship San Antonio Spurs team. Now before we dub him the next Mike Budenholzer, it is important to note he was only a coaching intern during his time with the Spurs.
Since Monty has left San Antonio he has racked up an impressive coaching resume. In 2005 he joined a Portland Trailblazers and helped rebuild them into a perennial championship contender. By the time his tenure was over, Monty was considered one of the top assistant coaches in the NBA. In 2010 the New Orleans Pelicans (then Hornets) took note and offered him the head coaching job, making him the youngest head coach in NBA history at age 38. In 2013, Williams accepted a role as an assistant coach with USA Basketball where he served under Coach K (Mike Krzyzewski), alongside Tom Thibodeau and Jim Boeheim.
In the 2010-2011 season Monty turned a sub .500 Hornets team into a playoff team. The development may have continued had Chris Paul not demanded a trade. After Paul’s departure the Pelicans spent a few years languishing as a lottery team until Anthony Davis was drafted. This past year the Pelicans improved to a playoff team but were swept out of the playoffs by championship contender The Golden State Warriors in this year’s playoffs, Monty was surprisingly handed his pink slip.
Now the Toronto Raptors are apparently targeting Monty for a position on Dwane Casey’s staff.
Rumbles that Toronto will sound out Monty to see if he'd have any interest in joining Dwane Casey's staff with Raps making changes on bench
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) May 14, 2015
A positive from this is his experience with USA Basketball over the summer already has him familiar with Raptors star DeMar DeRozan. During a disappointing second half of the 2014-2015 season and a humiliating playoff exit, the Raptors showed their lack of grit. This is something that Williams can bring to the table. Furthermore, Casey exposed himself as a coach who also needs to grow in many ways. It remains to be seen if Monty inherited Popovich’s golden coaching touch however, the Raptors can learn from his work ethic. Casey may need new perspectives on coaching and at the very least, if Monty is hired, Casey will start to feel the pressure with another qualified head coaching candidate breathing down his neck.
