Billy Donovan
Billy Donovan
William John Donovan, Jr.is an American professional basketball coach who is currently the head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association. He previously spent 19 seasons at the University of Florida, where his Florida Gators men's basketball teams won two NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championships in 2006 and 2007. Donovan has more wins than any other coach in the history of the Florida basketball program, and he coached the Gators to more NCAA tournament appearances,...
ProfessionCoach
Date of Birth30 May 1965
CityRockville Centre, NY
Last year at this point, I was in the film room dealing with a kid who wasn't getting the opportunity to play like he wanted to. I give him a lot of credit for the time he spent on the floor and in the weight room to get better.
I have confidence putting Walter and David in the game. I'm not going to not play those guys. They deserve an opportunity to play. They may not always play well, but they're going to play hard.
If that happened, I'd be really disappointed in our team. We're playing against a team that really out-performed us a couple of weeks ago in Columbia. The final score says 6 points, but we were down by 15 in the second half, we were dominated in the game. I would hope our guys would be excited about having the opportunity to compete again and play again.
He was almost in tears because, for the first time in his life, he wasn't getting an opportunity to play. I told him, this is going to come to an end this season. And when it does, your time is here.
I've been here 10 years and its a special place, an opportunity as great as any in college basketball. But tonight is not about me. It's about these young men.
Sometimes, in the NCAA Tournament, the best team doesn't always win. Sometimes it's the hottest team or the luck of the bounce or a shot going in or something happens. Why not give every kid an opportunity to create some type of magic for themselves?
It's a new day, a new season, a new opportunity for both basketball teams.
I'm just happy for everybody -- the administration, the players, the assistant coaches and the fans. I'm very blessed and very thankful for the opportunity to coach these kids.
I'm just happy for everybody. I'm very blessed and very thankful for the opportunity to coach these kids. I thought whoever attacked the other team's defense better was going to have the best chance of winning the game.