Phoenix Suns head coach Monty Williams has been named the NBA Coach of the Bubble, the league announced on Saturday, via The Athletic's Shams Charania.
NBA Bubble Awards for seeding games:
MVP: Portland’s Damian Lillard
Coach: Phoenix’s Monty Williams— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 15, 2020
Portland Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts finished second in the voting, while Brooklyn Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn finished third.
Williams, 48, led the Suns to a perfect 8-0 record inside the NBA bubble in Orlando, becoming the only team to go undefeated during the seeding games. However, despite going undefeated and finishing with the same record as the ninth-place Memphis Grizzlies, they didn't earn a spot in the play-in series against the eighth-seeded Blazers. The Suns finished the season 10th in the Western Conference at 34-39.
In addition to Williams, Suns superstar Devin Booker also received plenty of attention inside the NBA bubble in Orlando. The All-Star guard was voted to the NBA All-Seeding Games first team and finished second in the NBA Player of the Seeding Games voting. Booker finished the eight seeding games averaging 30.5 points, 6.0 assists and 4.9 rebounds in 34.4 minutes per game.
Nevertheless, the Suns have an extremely bright future with Williams as their head coach. This season was Williams' first as head coach of the Suns and his sixth as an NBA head coach. Williams proved this season that he can be a long-term coach that can lead a talented team, which include Booker, Deandre Ayton, Mikal Bridges, and Cameron Johnson.
If the Suns play like they did inside the NBA bubble, they certainly have a chance to snap their 10-year playoff drought next season.
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