Suns HC Monty Williams expresses gratitude towards the organization for honoring his late wife
Phoenix Suns head coach speaks in gratitude for the Oklahoma City Thunder management for the commemoration of his late wife.
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Monty Williams (Image via Blazer's Edge)
Monty Williams has been a recognized name in the NBA. He’s elevated the Phoenix Suns to be a strong threatful team in the Western Conference. In the 2020-21 season, the Suns reached the NBA finals under Williams’ leadership and guidance but missed out on clinching the title. However, the Suns aren’t the first team Williams has coached. Williams started out as assistant coach with the Portland Trailblazers (2005-2010) and then was Head Coach for New Orleans Pelicans (2010-2015). Followed by acting as the assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Thunder (2015-16) and Philadelphia 76ers (2018-19).
It was during his short tenure at Oklahoma City when an unfortunate personal tragedy occurred in his life. His wife, Ingrid Williams, lost her life in a car accident at the age of 44. At the time, OKC was playing some of its best basketball, with Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant leading their roster. The entire organization certainly admired Williams and mourned the loss of his wife. The Thunder management honored Ingrid Williams on her birthday in the game between the Suns and the Thunder.
The Suns’ coach was left overwhelmed with gratitude as the Thunder management left Ingrid’s seat empty. “We lost my wife here in this city and in particular this organisation has wrapped their arms around me and my family and they contiue to do so.” he said. “It really messed me up,” Williams also added to express how he felt after learning of the management’s decision. “It speaks about how blessed I am to do what I do,” he said, adding to his feeling and expression of gratitude.
“For them to do that today really speaks to this organisation and this city. God has blessed me and my kids and we’re here and we’re still rolling and a lot of it is because of good people in this organisation. I just wanted to make sure that they were recognised. It’s kinda hard to not make it a public thing in situations like this. It’s good to give credit to and be grateful for good people that really really cool things.”
Related: “We only had one All-Star,” Devin Booker doesn’t believe Phoenix Suns are a superteam
How strong do the Suns look for championship contention under Monty Williams?
The Suns might be staring right at their first championship, given the formidable offensive performance they have been displaying. Currently in fourth place with 43 wins, the Suns will go into the playoffs keeping in mind nothing but the ultimate gold. In their last two seasons, the Suns came close to lifting the title. As far as reaching the finals in the 2020-21 season, but, they eventually failed to convert it into a championship season.
The dynamic duo of Devin Booker and Chris Paul has made the Suns an authoritative team. A young talented roster has always been on the cards of people’s expectations. This season, especially after the mid-season trade, the Suns have been a team everyone has their eyes on after they brought in Kevin Durant. In the trade move that got the entire league talking, the Suns look quite solid with the addition of the forward.
As of now, the Suns are expectedly to play the Golden State Warriors in Round 1 of the Playoffs. This is according to the current standings-based Playoff Picture. With the Western Conference standings changing almost every day, it’ll be interesting to see who ends up playing the Phoenix-based franchise in the postseason. They would be prepared for any and everyone regardless.
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Ritvik Malhotra
(1085 Articles Published)