AP PhotoMetairie, La. - The New Orleans Hornets announced Sunday that they had reached a four-year contract extension with head coach Monty Williams, keeping him with the team until the end of the 2016-2017 season.
Speaking Monday at the team's new offices at the Saints' facility on Airline Drive, Williams explained the positive impact his deal can have on his players' morale: "Being a former player, I know that when a coach gets a contract extension like I have, they know that that system is going to be in play, that coach is going to be there. The cool thing is that we've already built a trust foundation with a few of our guys where they kind of already know what to expect. For me, it certainly helps me to coach knowing that my players know that I'm going to be here."
Williams' personal fortune also provided him an opportunity to reflect on all the positive change he has witnessed with the franchise over the last few months: "All the good stuff that's happening to us...for me to sit here and say I don't pay attention to it would be a lie and yet my reality is focused on the work at hand and ahead of me. The Benson family stepping up and buying the team, getting Anthony [Davis] and Austin [Rivers], Eric Gordon re-signing, Dell [Demps] making moves the way he's made moves with his staff and yet, we haven't played a game yet and our other teams in the NBA aren't applauding us, they're gearing up to come try and beat us."
