Deandre Ayton Speaks On Heated Argument He Had With Monty Williams On Tuesday

The season has been a bit bumpy over the last few weeks for the Phoenix Suns who have fallen out of first place in the West. Devin Booker and the Suns have a 19-13 record and have gone 4-6 in their last ten games. To make matters worse, Deandre Ayton and head coach Monty Williams had a heated exchange while in a timeout last night and it was well documented. It even caused turmoil between teammates on the court and it resulted in a loss on Tuesday night. 

Phoenix lost to a Washington Wizards team that were 0-10 in their last ten games coming into Tuesday night’s contest. A truly embarrassing loss for the Suns who are a top four team in the West and Washington being a bottom four team in the East. It’s also well known around the league that Ayton and Williams have had butted heads in the past. Ayton almost left for free agency in the offseason, but resigned with the Suns.

NBA betting sites have the Suns at (+1100) to win the Finals this season.

Monty Williams and Deandre Ayton 👀

(Via @Goober2221)

pic.twitter.com/HiUysxtuTF

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) December 21, 2022

Deandre Ayton and Monty Williams have heated exchange during loss to Washington

In the video above, you can clearly see that Ayton and his head coach are in a disagreement about something. This argument between the two negatively effected the outcome of the game as Ayton was then arguing with teammates on the court while the game was still happening. The 24 year old big man cleared the air after the game and had this to say to reporters.

“It wasn’t an exchange of words. We’re a family so you know how he talks to his boys. […] Obviously the whole world [saw] it. But it’s really all love and just getting us back to regroup and take out the confusion,” – Deandre Ayton

"Everybody got to see us intensified in the moment. Damn, we lost our upper hand. It can get a little emotional. Oh I thought you said this, but Coach clarified it up in the huddle where we all were exchanging words."

Deandre Ayton on heated exchange with Monty Williams. #Suns pic.twitter.com/WF42aTrGWg

— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) December 21, 2022

His head coach after the game had a similar message to reporters. Williams told the media that he was not trying to single out Ayton and that his message was being directed to the entire team. Ayton finished the game with 30 points and 30 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough to beat a Washington Wizards team that were desperate for a win coming into the game.