Monty Williams has withdrawn his name from the list of coaching candidates for the Los Angeles Lakers after agreeing to sign with the Phoenix Suns on Friday.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Williams’ deal with Phoenix is good for five years. The Suns have already released an official statement.
With Williams out of the running, the Lakers are preparing to make an offer to former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue, according to Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN:
In the three years Lue coached the Cavaliers, they made three consecutive NBA Finals appearances and in 2016, they came back from a 3-1 series deficit to defeat the Golden State Warriors, who were coming off of a historic 73-9 regular season record at the time.
Most importantly, though, Lue knows how to win with LeBron James and more than anything, that’s what what the Lakers are trying to accomplish within the next two years. Hiring Lue gives them the best shot at doing that.
