Gilbert Arenas on why Sam Cassell is a good fit as Pistons head coach: "They need a coach who can talk it and walk it a little bit"

In a somewhat surprise move, the Detroit Pistons fired head coach Monty Williams just one season after signing him to what was once the most lucrative coaching contract in league history.

Detroit inked the former Phoenix Suns head coach to a six-year $72 million deal in May last year. But after the Pistons won three games less than the previous year, they gave Williams the pink slip earlier this week.

With the vacancy, former Washington Wizards All-Star Gilbert Arenas threw in a familiar name as Monty's possible replacement.

"These kids, they are on the offensive side of it, right? They need a coach who can talk it and walk it a little bit. So you're talking about somebody young enough to play their a** one-on-one, can still outshoot them, and is going to say and speak the same language that they kind of speak. That's probably Sam Cassell," said Arenas.

Sam has seen it all

Cassell has been an assistant coach for Joe Mazzulla in Boston since last year. The 54-year-old is a former NBA point guard who was an All-Star and All-NBA second-team member in 2004. Cassell won back-to-back titles with the Houston Rockets and was a key player on those champion teams.

After Houston, Cassell played for seven other NBA teams and has virtually seen every type of player that you can find in the league right now. With his experience as an NBA guard, he could be the right mentor to a young Detroit team led by point guard Cade Cunningham.

"He's seen all high-level types of guards," added Gil. "So when you're talking about Cade, this is the perfect dude for you because he has seen me, John Wall. He was with Rondo to Stephon, like he played with the Clipper joints; he had Chris Paul. So he's seen every style of player."

Stephen A. said Monty never fit with the Pistons

Williams led the Pistons to a 14-68 record last season—the team also lost 28 consecutive games at one point. Although it's not ideal for any coach to get fired this early into his contract, ESPN analyst Stephen A Smith believes Monty never belonged in Detroit .

"My belief is that he should've stayed in Phoenix, and if you're going to end up at some place, he should be in like L.A. or something like that. But the Detroit situation? No. It was never the right fit for him," Smith said .

With Williams gone, the question is who would be the right fit for the Pistons coaching job. Gil thinks it's Cassell, who is considered one of the most head coach-ready assistants in the league.

It's unclear, however, especially with Boston winning the 2024 NBA championship, if Cassell would be willing to risk his job security with a team like the Pistons.

Related: Draymond congratulates Monty Williams on his firing: "65 million coming your way to sit at the crib"