All of these players did the Irish proud before making the jump.
Nobody on Notre Dame’s veteran-laden team from this past season will be selected in Thursday’s NBA draft. In fact, given the inexperience across the board on the upcoming season’s roster and under a new coach no less, it could be quite a while before we see another Notre Dame player drafted. On the bright side, that means no early departures except via the transfer portal. Then again, it sure would be nice to have NBA-ready talent in South Bend.
The only way to deal with a challenging present and short-term future is to look to the past. In this case, the way to go about that is to look at former players who heard their names called on draft night over the past several years. Of the 62 former Notre Dame players who have suited up in the NBA or ABA, 41 have entered professional basketball via the draft. Here are the most recent ones:
Good Morning, folks! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for rocking with us today. I hope you’re having a fantastic Thursday so far. I’m sure it’s going much better than Drake’s Thursday is today.
Anyway, that’s not what we’re here to talk about. Let’s dive in on Monty Williams for a second.
Getting fired on your day off is always tough. If you’ve never felt that feeling, I do not recommend it. Generally speaking, at least, anyway. For Monty Williams, it probably wasn’t that bad.
The Pistons fired Williams on Wednesday after just one season with the team. On one hand, the timing was a bit surprising considering that he’d lasted this long after the regular season’s finish. On the other hand, the writing was on the wall.
Williams was the architect of that. And after the Pistons hired a new GM in Trajan Langdon, it was hard to imagine Williams being on that sideline again next season. Detroit just needed a change. Now, it’ll have one.
But here’s the thing: I’m sure Williams isn’t too upset today. As my colleague Charles Curtis writes, he’s still owed $65 million by the Pistons. In other words, he’s being paid $65 million NOT to coach the worst team in basketball next year. That’s about $5.6 million for every Pistons win. Pretty sweet deal if you ask me.
Now, I’m sure as a competitor, Williams would still love to be out there on the sidelines. But as a normal human being, if you’re going to pay somebody $65 million not to work? You take that $65 million every time. Especially when the job sucks.
Losing is never great. But you take that cash and run, Monty. Don’t ever look back.
Rest in peace, Willie Mays
(Photo by Jeff Chiu – Pool/Getty Images)
There are few words that one can say to capture the true breadth of Willie Mays’ impact on the world — not just baseball.
Yes, most of us surely know him as one of the greatest — maybe the greatest? — center fielders of all time. You’d be hard-pressed to find a baseball fan who hasn’t fawned over one of his preposterous catches in the outfield. We all know what The Catch is.
But that catch — among the countless others — isn’t where his story begins. Neither are the 660 homers he hit or the gaudy .301 batting average they came with. Those statistical accomplishments are great, don’t get me wrong. But Willie Mays’ dominance comes secondary in his story.
What comes first is the path that he paved. Mays was among the early Black faces to play Major League Baseball and the first Black player to be named a captain on his team. He started in the Negro League at 16 years old playing for the Birmingham Black Barons before getting in with the Giants in 1951. The rest is history.
He meant so much to so many people. Though Mays may be gone, this doesn’t feel like a time for mourning. Instead, I’d rather celebrate. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said it here more eloquently than I ever could have:
“I am at a point in my life where I want to spend less time mourning the deaths of my friends and heroes and more time celebrating their lives,” Abdul Jabbar writes. “As one of the first Black professional baseball players, Willie Mays endured unimaginable hardships. Because of him, I was able to pursue my own sports career and live a better life. Every Black athlete owes him a debt of gratitude. We walk an easier path because he cleared it for us. Even in passing, Willie has left me with so many wonderful and joyous memories that I can’t help but smile and be grateful.”
He showed little Black kids everywhere that, yes, they belonged, just as anyone else did. And that’s more powerful than any home run off of a bat. Thank you for everything, Willie. You are appreciated.
The Aces haven’t looked like the Aces all year. There are a few reasons why, but the big one is this: Chelsea Gray has been absent.
She’s been missing in action for Vegas since suffering a leg injury in last year’s WNBA Finals.
But have no fear, Aces fans. She’s back. Chelsea Gray finally returned to the court for the first time since last October and — whaddaya know — the Aces look fine again.
She finished with seven assists in 16 minutes and had the Aces’ offense clicking.
The Aces are still 7-6, but the real season begins for Vegas now. The squad is back at full strength for the first time in nearly nine months. This is the team we all expected to see.
Quick hits: Donovan Clingan No. 1? … A bump in the road for Cameron Brink … and more
Monty Williams was fired by the Pistons on Wednesday — should or could the Lakers go after him to fill their head coaching vacancy?
For at least the last few weeks, the Los Angeles Lakers’ head coaching search has mostly been focused on two men: JJ Redick and James Borrego. They made a brief run at Dan Hurley earlier this month, but he turned down their generous offer and decided to stay at the University of Connecticut.
All in all, the available head coaching candidates haven’t been that attractive. There was a faint hope after the Lakers fired Darvin Ham that Tyronn Lue, who they wanted to hire back in 2019, may become available. But Lue instead agreed to a contract extension to remain with the Los Angeles Clippers.
On Wednesday, the Detroit Pistons fired Monty Williams after just one season as their head coach. Williams may not be an elite coach, but he has plenty of experience, and as both an assistant and head coach, he has worked with stars such as Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Joel Embiid, Devin Booker and Chris Paul.
Immediately, some wondered if the Lakers should or would go after Williams. After all, he had also coached Anthony Davis during his time as the New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans’ head coach.
ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith urged L.A. to consider him during an episode of “First Take” on Wednesday (h/t Lakers Daily).
“I also wanna say this,” Smith said in reaction to the news of the Pistons firing Williams. “I know we’ve been talking a lot about J.J. Redick, but with Monty Williams available, that is a situation that the Los Angeles Lakers should look at, okay? So, I would definitely say that as well. They should look at it.”
However, NBA insider Shams Charania said on “The Pat McAfee Show” that Williams doesn’t appear to be a candidate for the Lakers’ head coaching gig.
“Monty Williams was definitely in play with the Lakers in 2019. They went and hired Frank Vogel. It was really down to Ty Lue, they missed out on Ty Lue, they missed out on Monty Williams then they go hire Frank Vogel. There’s been interest there in the past. I have not heard, obviously this has just happened with Monty Williams, there’s been rumblings that this was possible because of the fact that Trajan Langdon got the autonomy to eat whatever money he needs to do for Monty Williams, it’s $65 million. I have not gotten the sense yet that Monty Williams is in the picture here, but he is a two-time Coach of the Year.”
The Lakers apparently would prefer a head coach who is experienced, and they have reportedly been looking to prioritize Davis over LeBron James during this search. That would make it seem as if they should at least consider Williams as a candidate.
Just three years ago, he did a terrific job with the Phoenix Suns, guiding them to the NBA’s best record and an appearance in the NBA Finals. His Pistons had the league’s worst record this year at 14-68, but most of that wasn’t his fault, as they have arguably the worst roster in pro basketball.
Williams was a leading candidate for the Lakers’ head coaching job in 2019 after Luke Walton left. But he instead decided to go to the Suns, leading to L.A. hiring Frank Vogel, who drove them to the world championship in just his first season on the job.
New team leadership has declared Williams an expensive sunk cost.
A year ago, Notre Dame alumnus [autotag]Monty Williams[/autotag] received the biggest coaching contract in NBA history. It turned out to be a very bad investment for the Detroit Pistons, who lost a single-season record 28 straight games en route to finishing a franchise-worst 14-68. That will be the only season Williams sees from the bench.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that the Pistons have fired Williams. This comes less than a month after the hiring of Trajan Langdon as president of basketball operations. The Pistons still owe Williams over $65 million.
One thing Williams and Pistons ownership didn’t agree on as highlighted in the USA TODAY report was how to use second-year guard Jaden Ivey, son of Notre Dame women’s basketball coach [autotag]Niele Ivey[/autotag]. Obviously, that only was the tip of the iceberg.
The Pistons hired Williams after he was fired by the Phoenix Suns, whom he took to the 2021 NBA Finals. His wife also had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Here’s hoping he can take some time off now to focus on the truly important things in life.
Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.
Monty Williams was a big-splash hire for the Detroit Pistons last offseason. Sure, the franchise was rebuilding, but maybe he could bring some of the magic he made in Phoenix with the Suns.
Instead, the Pistons won 14 games in 2023-24. No big deal, right? He had years to work with a young team that could develop.
Nope. On Wednesday, the Pistons fired him. And per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, he had a ton of money left on his contract. Which means the owners of the Pistons will now be paying (checks notes) some $65 million NOT to coach their team.
It’s a head-scratcher given where the Pistons are at. But, uh, good for Williams?
ESPN Sources: After one season, the Detroit Pistons have dismissed coach Monty Williams — who leaves with five years and $65M-plus left on his deal. New President Trajan Langdon will move to make his own coaching hire now. pic.twitter.com/QHKivQS5o2
“He might be the best post-up guy in the league now,” Detroit’s Monty Williams says of Alperen Sengun. “It’s like [Nikola] Jokic, [Joel] Embiid, and him.”
Entering Monday’s game in Houston, the rebuilding Detroit Pistons (3-29) had yet to show the same progress as the Rockets (15-15).
One big reason is the breakout of Alperen Sengun. Known for his crafty moves and offensive creativity, the third-year center is drawing All-Star consideration while leading his team in scoring average (21.1) and rebound average (9.2) per game, and he ranks second in assists (5.1) and field-goal percentage (54%) among qualified players.
Monty Williams, head coach of the Pistons, was asked pregame about the challenge of facing the Rockets. As part of his commentary, the veteran NBA coach spoke glowingly of Sengun, and even made a direct comparison to a pair of recent MVPs at the same position.
“He might be the best post-up guy in the league now,” Williams said of Sengun. “It’s like (Nikola) Jokic, (Joel) Embiid, and him.”
Young center Jalen Duren drew the assignment of defending Sengun on Monday. Detroit entered with some momentum for a change, having snapped an historic 28-game losing streak on Saturday.
Pistons coach Monty Williams on #Rockets center Alperen Sengun:
“He might be the best post-up guy in the league now. It’s Jokic, Embiid, and him.”
Detroit Pistons coach Monty Williams gives his respect to what Philadelphia 76ers star Tyrese Maxey has done on the floor.
DETROIT–The Philadelphia 76ers are led by the reigning league MVP Joel Embiid and he is going to receive almost all of the attention on league scouting reports, but there is also another player on the radar of opponents in preparation for Philadelphia: Tyrese Maxey.
The fourth-year guard out of Kentucky is averaging 26.1 points, 6.8 assists, and 4.1 rebounds. He has used his blazing speed and shooting range in order to make life miserable for the opposition in games.
Before the Sixers knocked off the Detroit Pistons on the road on Wednesday, Pistons coach Monty Williams pointed Maxey out for his improvement and what he does on the offensive end of the floor.
“His speed,” Williams said of Maxey. “His shooting, the speed, the ability to, again, put pressure on the rim. You gotta show him bodies. I’m not sure—I know everybody looks at him as a talent, but I don’t think people understand he’s in bold letters in every scouting report now. It’s Joel and Tyrese and Tobias (Harris), you know what I mean? They have guys that can get it done.”
When Maxey gets going on the offensive end with his shooting, it’s pretty much curtains for the opposition. He has range on his 3-point shot which makes his speed off the dribble that much more of a factor. It opens up a lot on the floor and Williams knows it.
“They have really good role players, and I shouldn’t call them role players, they’re really good players, but in respect to Tyrese, he’s just dynamic,” Williams finished. “He’s probably outside of the 3-level player because of his range now. He shoots that thing from far out and he’s awkward with his finishes. He jumps off that right leg, finishes with his right hand. He’s a big strong kid so he can take some physicality around the basket. What more can you say? He’s a point of attention in our scouting report for sure.”
Brooklyn Nets guard Mikal Bridges gave credit to Detroit Pistons head coach Monty Williams for helping him grow off the court.
Brooklyn Nets guard Mikal Bridges is one of the rising stars in the NBA thanks to his new role as the Nets’ best player. While Bridges may not be the best scorer in Brooklyn anymore, enter Cam Thomas, he is still one of the building blocks of the franchise and he has one person to thank for preparing him for future success.
Bridges, 27, recently did an interview with Taylor Rooks of Bleacher Report and among other topics, Rooks asked Bridges who gave him the “biggest assist” off the court. Reference to State Farm’s slogan aside, Bridges said that the person who helped him the most off the court was Detroit Pistons head coach Monty Williams.
Bridges and Williams overlapped with the Phoenix Suns, specifically from the 2019-20 season to the 2022-23 season before Bridges was traded to the Nets as part of the Kevin Durant deal. In fact, Williams had such a close relationship to Bridges and fellow “twin” Cam Johnson that Williams cried after both were traded away.
Here’s some of what Bridges had to say about what Williams did for his career:
“I think just him being in my life helped me grow just as a human. I appreciate him so much. Just how he is as a person is just beyond just coaching. You feel like you’re one of his kids.”
Detroit Pistons coach Monty Williams calls out the officiating of Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid.
DETROIT–Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid is one of the tougher players in the league to defend due to his ability to score at all three levels and his knack for drawing fouls. He is one of the elite players in this league at being able to get to the free-throw line.
Embiid did so at a high rate in Friday’s 114-106 win over the Detroit Pistons on the road. The big fella shot 8-for-21 from the floor, but he was 16-for-19 from the free-throw line to get his 33 points on the night.
Afterward, Pistons coach Monty Williams was not happy about the officiating as he called out how they officiated him.
“Some of the stuff these guys are doing, they’re not shots,” said Williams. “I’m going to go on record. These are not shots. We talk about it in our competition, transfer of information to head coaches meeting, like they are going to call this swinging the ball and hitting people. Like that’s not a shot.”
Embiid does have a habit of swinging his arms into defenders and getting them to lean in and then draw the foul. It’s something that he has mastered throughout his career and it’s something that has allowed him to get to the line often.
For a young team like the Pistons, that can throw them off a bit.
“Our guys are frustrated by it, and I can’t blame them,” Williams added. “He’s good enough and I talked to officials about it. I don’t think those are shots. You just wave your arms and hit somebody and Joel’s tough enough to guard. We doubled him and we frustrated him in the first half.”
Williams is correct. The Pistons held Embiid to 3-for-12 shooting at halftime and he was 7-for-9 from the line. In the second half, Embiid shot 5-for-9 and 9-for-10 from the line.
At the end of the day, Embiid is a superstar and the reigning league MVP. He is going to get certain calls. The Pistons are going to have to understand that the next time they defend him.
Plus, here are your thoughts on if the Clippers should trade Terance Mann.
Welcome to Layup Lines, For the Win’s basketball newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Have feedback for the Layup Lines Crew? Leave your questions, comments and concernsthrough this brief reader survey. Now, here’s Bryan Kalbrosky.
The Detroit Pistons may not win a ton of games next season but it already looks like they might be one of the most fun teams to watch in the NBA.
Detroit’s first preseason game of the year was against the Phoenix Suns. Despite trailing by as many as 26 points at one point in the match, the Pistons managed to claw back and force overtime.
While it was excellent to see former No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham back on the court for the first time in eleven months, Pistons rookie Ausar Thompson stole the show.
The wing, selected at No. 5 overall in the 2024 NBA Draft, led the way on the court. He managed 12 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists and 1 block during the performance.
Ausar Thompson full highlights from preseason debut:
12 PTS | 10 REB | 6 AST | 1 BLK 📈
The passing ability, perimeter defense, rebounding tenacity … oh and the game-tying 3 … he flashed it all 🚀 pic.twitter.com/HUTNmA2Ikf
Williams helped turn the Suns from one of the league’s bottom dwellers to a title contender, earning a trip to the 2021 NBA Finals. The Suns had a .232 win percentage the year before Williams arrived and within his second year on the job, they had a .708 win percentage. That was the highest percentage increase of any two-year period in franchise history.
Just listen to Brooklyn Nets forward Cam Johnson, who had glowing reviews about his experience playing for Williams, explain why (via The Old Man & The Three):
“The way that he’s able to communicate, the way that he’s able to teach, really flattens out that learning curve a lot to the point where you know exactly what he wants. He communicates it to you and he’s a stickler for details which is huge for [the] habits of a young player. He’s on top of every detail and he’ll hold you accountable. […] I didn’t want to let him down. I think those are the coaches that you respond to best. […] Every thing I’ve heard is that they’re a hungry group willing to buy into what he has and if you buy in, he can turn teams around quick.”
The forward also praised Williams’ ability to draw up plays that can create easy buckets.
Johnson specifically mentioned Cunningham and Jalen Duren as two players who stood out to him on the USA Select Team.
Williams could help the development of Thompson, Cunningham and Duren as well as other emerging players for Detroit like Jaden Ivey, Killian Hayes, Marvin Bagley and James Wiseman.
Overall, this is a team loaded with talent and they could potentially surprise some fans this season.
To Mann or Not To Mann
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
From Mike Sykes: Shoutout to everybody who participated in our Clippers poll over the weekend. Y’all are the best. We asked if you thought the Clippers should be willing to include Terance Mann in a James Harden trade.
In total, we got 56 responses and 52 votes from Layup Lines readers. An overwhelming majority of you (57 percent) said absolutely not.
Some of you also explained why. There were a couple that stood out to me.
One reader posited a potential Joel Embiid trade next season if this happens.
“I definitely think this helps Philly a lot, because Terrance Mann and the first-round pick allows them to have a bright young future and possibly get even more capital with an Embiid trade next summer (Knicks?). Think of it like a Blazers haul. On L.A.’s side, it wouldn’t really pay off in the long run, but they absolutely need to win it all this year because if they trade for the Beard, then he, Kawhi, and PG are all unrestricted free agents next summer, and in today’s world, it would be extremely hard for the Clippers to re-sign all three of them.”
Another said the price of Terance Mann is too high for a potential one-year James Harden rental. Especially if he’s going to be a malcontent at all.
“Mann is too high a price for a one-year rental – and that is IF Harden decides to play 100% for said year. I think part of the calculus has to include Harden’s desire for a long-term contract that he expects (there are reports to say that he wants/expects one should go to the Clips), and the Clips tolerance for absorbing a contract that could turn sour overnight.”
Just a little more food for thought on this already tough subject.
