Derrick Williams hopes Heat's stability will inspire bounce-back season

Derrick Williams is looking to the Miami Heat for a little stability - something he has lacked during his five seasons in the league.

The opportunity to play under head coach Erik Spoelstra - the third-longest tenured coach behind Gregg Popovich and Rick Carlisle - appealed to a young journeyman like Williams.

"I felt I wanted to go to an organization that was a lot more stable," Williams told Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel. "And I felt like the Heat was a perfect opportunity not only for myself, but the things that I do well."

Williams played for five coaches in his last two seasons spent with the Sacramento Kings and New York Knicks.

He started off 2014 with Mike Malone, who was quickly replaced by Ty Corbin, then George Karl seized the reins in 2015. After moving to the Knicks, Williams logged time under Derek Fisher before finishing off 2016 with Kurt Rambis.

Having finally found stability, Williams hopes to show off his full skill set under a coach in Spoelstra who has a history of developing talent.

"That's the reason why I came here," he said. "With Spoelstra, Pat Riley, they have a history of developing players and people like myself that haven't found that right opportunity yet, looking at players like myself that can thrive in the position-less basketball."

And given that Miami lost three starters this summer, Williams foresees a great opportunity as the Heat look to rebuild their roster.

"I felt like the Heat was a perfect opportunity for things that I do well," he said. "And with Dwyane Wade and Luol Deng, with their absence, I felt like that was the best spot for me to go, with the way the way that I've played."

Williams averaged 9.3 points and 3.7 rebounds in 17.9 minutes per game, while toggling between small and power forward last season.