Former Suns HC Monty Williams Disliked Jae Crowder, Deandre Ayton
Heading into the 2022-23 season, names such as Monty Williams, Jae Crowder and Deandre Ayton were all in the Valley.
After a roller coaster season that saw Crowder traded, Williams fired and Ayton (again) on the trade block, there's a possibility all three could be out of town when next season begins.
All three figures are polarizing in their own way, and the triangle of relationships wasn't always pretty.
That was the perception from the outside, which was ultimately confirmed by Arizona Sports' John Gambadoro yesterday:
"The Jae Crowder situation was all on Monty. He told people he was too difficult to handle and coach. Monty didn’t want Jae. It wasn’t the Suns organization. He didn’t want Jae around. As far as Deandre Ayton, Monty didn’t want him either. He wanted them to trade him to Indiana for Myles Turner," Gambadoro said on 98.7 FM's Burns and Gambo.
"He didn’t like coaching Ayton. When Ayton signed his maximum contract when the Suns matched his offer sheet, Monty wasn’t even there and didn’t show up when Ayton signed it at the arena or call him to say congratulations. Monty’s a good coach and a player’s coach, but he’s a player’s coach for the players he likes, but he wasn’t in on Jae and Deandre."
Crowder and the Suns agreed to a mutual absence while Phoenix sought a trade partner during the season for the power forward. Crowder was unhappy with being overtaken as a starter by Cam Johnson - yet both were involved in a trade package sent to the Brooklyn Nets for Kevin Durant at the trade deadline.
Williams himself was fired 48 hours after the Suns were eliminated in the second round of the NBA playoffs. He later signed a contract to coach the Detroit Pistons for the most lucrative deal in league history.
Ayton is still in Phoenix, though many anticipate he won't be around long. Trade speculation has followed Ayton for years now, and this summer could finally see the Suns' only No. 1 pick dealt. Phoenix recently acquired Bradley Beal and ideally would like to offload Ayton for more depth.
