DETROIT — Avery Johnson won't be joining the Detroit Pistons as head coach.

"I looked at it, I was interested in it, but I was only interested in it if we could agree on a vision for the team going forward," Johnson told ESPN, where he is a studio analyst.

A person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the two sides failed to agree on the length of a contract and the salary. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks were private.

The Pistons have instead narrowed their coaching search to Cavaliers assistant John Kuester and Celtics assistant Tom Thibodeau, the person said.

The Pistons fired Michael Curry as coach last week after one year on the bench. Curry's replacement — Detroit's fifth coach in nine seasons — has a host of roster decisions to make.

Ben Gordon, who signed a five-year contract worth $50-plus million after playing for the Bulls, is part of a potential three-guard rotation with Rip Hamilton and Rodney Stuckey. Charlie Villanueva, newly arrived from Milwaukee, will make at least $35 million and should be able to start for a team that will likely be without both Rasheed Wallace and Antonio McDyess.

Detroit was swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round this past season, ending a miserable season that soured as soon as All-Star point guard Chauncey Billups was dealt to Denver for Allen Iverson. The Pistons won just three games in February and three in April, dropping to the final spot in the Eastern Conference playoff seeding and a no-win matchup with LeBron James and the Cavs.

The playoff series loss ended a remarkable run: The Pistons and the Magic Johnson-led Los Angeles Lakers are the only franchises to play in six straight conference finals since 1970-71, when teams had to win two series to advance that far.