Roundtable: Speculation and conspiracy theories surround Monty Williams ouster

Of the various theories reported on why Williams was fired, which seems the most probable? The most far fetched?

Oleh Kosel: Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that the truth consists of a little sprinkling from every rumor and story that's been printed. Demps and Williams' relationship was not in good harmony. Among probably other things, they clashed about personnel. Each reported to Mickey Loomis, not Monty to Dell. Long-term, I'm sure the Pelicans' brass had concerns about signing Monty to another extension. Lastly, there appears to have been a change of heart to speed up the process. Too much pointed to New Orleans going in one direction only to then suddenly change course.

David Fisher: The Dumars angle just does not make sense the more we dig. Mickey Loomis has Tom Benson's ear more than anyone and has stated he wants an organization where the head coach reports to the General Manager, who then reports to Loomis himself. There is no room in that for Dumars swooping in to become the President of Basketball Operations. Instead the story told by both Demps and Loomis seems the most probable. An organization decision, based in part on restructuring things to take Loomis out of the basketball side even further. Monty Williams reported to Loomis, not Demps. That archaic structure was in large part because Monty was hired before Demps. Any writer can turn "restructure" into "power struggle" quite easily. One gets clicks, the other doesn't.

Quentin Haynes: Here’s the thing, I don’t know if anything of them are far fetched. I don’t think any of the rumors to Monty’s firing are that insane.

Isaac Constans: I think our worst nightmares might have been realized with the reasons for Williams' firing. No, no, no, I'm not saying that Monty was that one, irreplaceable coach that would have us raising banners to the rooftops in years. And I think Dell Demps is a good, not great, GM. Siding with Demps is surely not that horrendous of a crime. However, Demps' words in the presser regarding the deciding factors on Williams' firing lead my tormenting thoughts. First, Davis was not consulted regarding the firing of Williams. That is a gasp-drawing horror. Second, Williams was not fired for any huge, public debacle, so this means it was an internal issue. Tom Benson's letter seemed to favor Monty, the promise of security with a playoff berth seemed to favor Monty, and Davis's approval seemed to favor Monty. So what's the deal with this whole "let's get ourselves a new head coach"? Everything pointed towards Williams keeping his job, yet he lost it. That makes this vocational vacancy must less desirable to some college coaches that have STABILITY. Right now, that will be the only thing to ward off winning coaches.

The combination of these two factors could lead to the Pelicans losing out on their top coaching target and losing out on Davis in the long run. I hate that idea, and it's not even the most likely resolution, but it is a possibility. All because the management chose Demps when it came to some petty gripe.

Chris Cucchiara: I believe the latest explanation, that management did not feel comfortable with extending Monty, so they fired him is the most probable. It actually makes sense and I agree with that logic. Also, cut the cord between Monty and AD now, before AD enters his second contract, and let him build a relationship with the coach that will hopefully bring a championship to the organization. The most unrealistic scenario is that Joe Dumars had some sort of overwhelming influence on the decision. He may have been asked for advice, but the organization did not look to Dumars for any kind of final say in the matter.

Jamile Dunn: Honestly, I think this was a bit of a power struggle and from a corporate standpoint the organization needed to be more in sync. The organizational chart of the Pelicans was out of order with Monty reporting to Mickey Loomis and not Dell Demps. This move allows Dell to finally hire his own coach and have one cohesive vision for what this team should be going forward. A coach and a GM with different visions is unsustainable and somebody had to go.