Billy Donovan

2.1. Childhood and Education

Donovan attended St. Agnes Cathedral High School in Rockville Centre, where he developed his basketball skills under coach Frank Morris. He was known as a "gym rat," constantly practicing basketball, sometimes even sneaking into the high school gymnasium late at night to hone his game. During his senior year, with Donovan as the starting point guard, St. Agnes won the Long Island Catholic High School Championship.

3.1. Collegiate Playing Career

After graduating from high school, Donovan accepted an athletic scholarship to Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island. During his first two seasons with the Providence Friars, the team played a slow-tempo style under head coach Joe Mullaney, which limited Donovan's playing time to less than five minutes per game, and he averaged only three points.

In 1985, Mullaney retired and was replaced by New York Knicks assistant Rick Pitino. Donovan initially expressed a desire to transfer to smaller schools like Fairfield or Northeastern for more playing time. However, after Pitino contacted those schools on Donovan's behalf and found no interest in allocating a scholarship to an inexperienced player, Pitino advised Donovan to stay at Providence and significantly improve his physical condition to compete for a roster spot.

Donovan followed Pitino's advice diligently and was named the Friars' starting point guard in his junior year. He thrived under Pitino's new system, which emphasized the three-point shot on offense and an aggressive full-court press defense. As a junior, Donovan averaged 15.1 points per game and earned the nickname "Billy the Kid" from Providence fans, referring to the 19th-century outlaw. In his senior year, he elevated his performance, averaging over 20 points and 7 assists per game. He led the sixth-seeded Friars to the 1987 Final Four and earned Southeast Regional Most Valuable Player honors. Donovan was also recognized with a selection to the 1987 All-Big East first team, the 1987 Big East All-Tournament team, and an honorable mention All-American. Pitino later praised Donovan's dedication, stating, "I've never in my life had anyone work as hard to improve as (Donovan)."

3.2. Professional Playing Career

Donovan's professional career began when he was drafted by the Utah Jazz in the third round (68th overall) of the 1987 NBA draft, though he was waived before the regular season. He then signed with the Wyoming Wildcatters of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), hoping for another opportunity in the NBA. In December 1987, he reunited with his former college coach, Rick Pitino, who was then the head coach of the New York Knicks. The Knicks signed Donovan to a one-year contract, and he served as a reserve guard for the remainder of the 1987-88 season, averaging 2.4 points and 2.0 assists over 44 games.

The Knicks waived Donovan in March 1988. He did not secure an NBA roster spot during the 1988-89 preseason and returned to the CBA, playing for the Rapid City Thrillers, where he averaged 10.1 points per game. By the end of 1988, Donovan concluded that he did not have a long-term future as a professional basketball player.

4.1. Assistant Coaching Experience

However, Donovan called Pitino again in April 1989, reaffirming his strong interest in coaching. At that time, Pitino was in the process of leaving the Knicks to become the head coach at the University of Kentucky. Pitino agreed to bring Donovan along as a graduate assistant to assess his potential in coaching.

Donovan's coaching career progressed rapidly at Kentucky. Pitino was tasked with rebuilding a program that had been significantly impacted by NCAA sanctions due to prior rules violations. The Wildcats quickly regained national prominence. After one season as a graduate assistant, Donovan was promoted to assistant coach in 1990 and then to associate head coach in 1992. In this role, he served as Pitino's top assistant during Kentucky's 1993 Final Four run and played a key role in recruiting the players who would later form UK's 1996 national championship team.

5.1. Marshall University

Donovan's strong association with Kentucky's success and Pitino's recommendation led him to his first head coaching opportunity at Marshall University. The Thundering Herd had struggled with a 9-18 record during the 1993-94 season. Donovan accepted the offer, making him, at 28 years old, the youngest head basketball coach in NCAA Division I.

At Marshall, Donovan implemented the fast-paced offensive and aggressive defensive strategies he learned from Pitino. An early season matchup in December 1994 pitted Marshall against Kentucky. Despite the warm reception Donovan received from the Rupp Arena crowd, his team suffered a significant 116-75 loss to his former mentor's squad. However, the rest of the season was more successful. Donovan's first Marshall team doubled its win total from the previous year, achieving an 18-9 record and winning the Southern Conference North Division title. Donovan was recognized for his efforts, being named the 1995 Southern Conference Coach of the Year. In his second season, 1995-96, the team finished 17-11 and led the Southern Conference in scoring and three-point field goals. Donovan also proved to be a successful recruiter, convincing nationally sought-after prep star Jason Williams to decline offers from more established programs and stay in-state at Marshall. Williams would later follow Donovan to Florida. Overall, Donovan's Marshall teams compiled a 35-20 record across two seasons.

5.2. University of Florida

In March 1996, University of Florida basketball coach Lon Kruger resigned. The Florida basketball program had a history of only fleeting success, and though the Gators reached their first Final Four under Kruger in 1994, the program's performance had since declined. Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley sought a "young, energetic, and enthusiastic" coach to bring sustained success. After an extensive search, he determined that the 30-year-old Billy Donovan was the ideal candidate. To provide Donovan with the necessary time to build the program, Foley offered him a six-year contract.

Donovan's first two Florida teams faced challenges due to a lack of talented players, finishing with records of 13-17 and 15-16. Despite these initial losing seasons, there were signs of improvement, as the 1997-98 team received an invitation to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). Donovan's "relentless" recruiting efforts during this period laid the groundwork for future success.

Lasting success finally arrived for the Florida basketball program during the 1998-99 season. The Gators posted a 22-9 record, marking only the fifth time in school history they achieved 20 or more wins and initiating a remarkable streak of 16 consecutive 20-win seasons. Their strong performance continued into the 1999 postseason, where they made their third NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance and became only the second team in school history to finish in the final top 25 polls (No. 17 in the ESPN/USA Today Poll and No. 23 in the Associated Press Poll).

The 1999-2000 season saw Donovan lead the Gators to their first regular season SEC Championship and their second NCAA Final Four appearance. They defeated North Carolina in the national semifinals before ultimately falling to Michigan State in the NCAA championship game.

The Gators continued their success in the 2000-01 season, winning another SEC regular season championship. On February 3, 2003, the team achieved a No. 1 ranking in the ESPN/USA Today poll for the first time in school history, a feat they repeated on December 8, 2003. The 2004-05 season was highlighted by Florida's 70-53 victory over Kentucky to win the SEC tournament championship, marking the first time the Gators secured this conference title.

Despite their regular season success, Donovan's Florida teams from 2001 to 2005 consistently underperformed in the NCAA tournament, losing to lower-seeded teams in the first or second round each year, despite having rosters filled with highly recruited players. Some commentators at the time, noting Donovan's relative youth, speculated that he was an excellent recruiter but struggled with making in-game adjustments or developing talented players once they arrived on campus.

5.2.1. Back-to-Back National Championships

The 2005-06 season marked a turning point for Donovan's coaching legacy. His sophomore-led Gator squad achieved the school's best-ever start to a season, with 17 consecutive wins, reaching No. 2 in the national AP Poll. However, they were unable to secure the top spot after losing their first SEC game to the Tennessee Volunteers. This was followed by a surprising season sweep at the hands of the eventual 2006 National Invitation Tournament champion South Carolina Gamecocks, leading Florida to a 10-6 conference record and second place in the SEC Eastern Division.

Donovan's young Gator team coalesced during the postseason. Florida reached the SEC Tournament championship and avenged their regular season losses by defeating South Carolina in the finals, earning the school's second conference tournament title. In the 2006 NCAA tournament, the 3rd-seeded Gators finally advanced beyond the Sweet 16. They defeated Villanova (who had eliminated them in the previous season's tournament) to reach the Final Four. In the championship game, they secured the school's first NCAA basketball title by defeating UCLA 73-57. The team, featuring key players like Al Horford and Joakim Noah, made history with this victory.

During a post-championship celebration at the O'Connell Center, the Gators' entire starting five - Lee Humphrey, Joakim Noah, Al Horford, Corey Brewer, and Taurean Green - made the unprecedented announcement that they would all return for the following year to attempt to win another championship. This decision was significant, as the last team to win back-to-back titles was the 1991 and 1992 Duke team. Consequently, many media pundits named the Gators as preseason favorites to repeat. The Gators started the season strongly, losing only two non-conference games (against Kansas and at Florida State). On December 20, 2006, Donovan surpassed Norm Sloan's total to become the winningest basketball coach in Florida history with his 236th win. The 2007 Gators demonstrated even greater maturity in their unselfishness, passing, shooting, and overall team play. Although the Gators experienced a late-season slump in SEC play, losing three of four games beginning with a loss at Vanderbilt, the team rebounded with their sixth consecutive win over archrivals, the Kentucky Wildcats, to regain momentum and claim the SEC regular season championship. The Gators then repeated as SEC Tournament champions with dominant performances, culminating in a win over the Arkansas Razorbacks in the finals.

Florida earned the number one overall seed in the 2007 NCAA tournament and defeated Jackson State, Purdue, Butler, and Oregon to reach the Final Four. The semifinal was a rematch of the 2006 title game against UCLA, which Donovan's Gators won 76-66. Two nights later, the Gators secured their repeat championship with an emphatic 84-75 victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes, coached by Thad Matta. This achievement, coupled with the Florida Gators football team having won the 2007 BCS National Championship Game (also over Ohio State) three months prior, made the University of Florida the first school in NCAA history to hold both the football and basketball national championships simultaneously.

5.2.2. Later Years and Program Legacy

Donovan's first decade in Gainesville fundamentally transformed the University of Florida's basketball program. From 1999 to 2007, the Gators received NCAA Tournament invitations every season (a nine-year streak), reached three national championship games, and won two NCAA titles. This contrasted sharply with the program's history before Donovan's arrival, which saw only five official NCAA Tournament appearances and no NCAA championship game appearances in 81 years. In conference play, Florida had only one regular season SEC championship and no conference tournament titles before Donovan. Between 1996 and 2007, the Gators secured three SEC regular season titles and three SEC tournament titles under his leadership.

After his brief consideration of coaching the Orlando Magic (detailed below) and his return to Gainesville, Donovan secured the top-ranked 2007 recruiting class, as rated by Rivals.com. Despite losing all five starters from the championship teams, the Gators under Donovan still achieved a tenth consecutive twenty-win season in 2007-08, a surprise to many pundits. However, after an 18-3 start, the team struggled in the final third of the season, winning only three of its last eleven games, thus ending the Gators' nine-year streak of NCAA Tournament invitations. The young team recovered to reach the semifinals of the 2008 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) before losing to the UMass Minutemen.

The 2008-09 Gators began the season ranked No. 19 and started with a 5-0 record before a loss to Syracuse. Two weeks later, a defeat by the Florida State Seminoles knocked the Gators out of the top twenty-five rankings. Although the team won twenty-two regular season games, it was again insufficient to earn an NCAA Tournament bid. The Gators were, however, given a number one seed in the 2009 NIT, where they lost to the Penn State Nittany Lions in the quarterfinals.

Florida returned to the NCAA Tournament during the 2009-10 season, but they lost in the first round to the BYU Cougars in double overtime. That season, Florida defeated Florida State, ending a three-game losing streak against the Seminoles. They also overcame Michigan State, a preseason favorite for the NCAA Tournament and an eventual Final Four participant, en route to winning the 2009 Legends Classic tournament.

With three returning senior starters, the 2010-11 Gators improved their record. They won the SEC regular season title and were runners-up in the 2011 SEC Tournament. In the 2011 NCAA Tournament, the Gators defeated the Jimmer Fredette-led BYU Cougars before an overtime loss to the Butler Bulldogs in the Elite Eight. On March 8, 2011, Donovan was named the 2011 SEC Coach of the Year. Despite reaching three national title games and winning two national titles, this was his first time winning the award. Gators forward Chandler Parsons also made history as the first Gator to win SEC Player of the Year honors.

The 2011-12 Gators received an NCAA Tournament invitation as a seventh-seed. They defeated the tenth-seeded Virginia Cavaliers and fifteenth-seeded Norfolk State (who had upset second-seeded Missouri) to reach the Sweet Sixteen. They then defeated Marquette 68-58 to return to the Elite Eight for the second consecutive year. In the Elite Eight, Donovan and the Gators faced off against Louisville, coached by his former mentor Pitino, in a close game, falling 72-68.

Donovan achieved his 400th career victory at the University of Florida on January 19, 2013, with an 83-52 win over the Missouri Tigers. The Gators won the 2013 SEC regular season championship, Donovan's fifth regular season conference title. They finished as runner-up in the 2013 SEC Tournament (losing to Ole Miss in the championship game) and advanced to a third consecutive Elite Eight, defeating Northwestern State in the second round, Minnesota in the third round, and Florida Gulf Coast in the Sweet Sixteen, before losing to Michigan in the regional final.

Donovan's 2013-14 squad faced a challenging non-conference schedule, starting the year with several players injured or suspended. Despite dropping two close road games to ranked teams, Florida entered the conference portion of their schedule with an 11-2 record and a No. 10 national ranking. The Gators went undefeated throughout the regular season in conference play, becoming the first team in SEC history to achieve an 18-0 conference record, while also setting numerous school records. Florida then won the 2014 SEC men's basketball tournament, extending their overall record against SEC opponents to 21-0.

The SEC regular season championship was the third in four seasons for Donovan's Gators, and their conference tournament championship was their fourth in school history, all achieved under Donovan. He was named the SEC's Coach of the Year for the third time, and his players received many individual conference awards. Senior point guard Scottie Wilbekin was named Southeastern Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year and the SEC Tournament MVP. Senior center Patric Young was named the Defensive Player and Scholar-Athlete of the Year, junior forward Dorian Finney-Smith was named Sixth Man of the Year, and senior guard Casey Prather was named to the All-SEC First Team.

The Gators earned the number one overall seed in the 2014 NCAA Tournament, and their winning streak extended to 30 games as they reached the Final Four, defeating each of their first four tournament opponents by double-digit margins. However, the Gators' season concluded with a national semifinal loss to the 7-seed and eventual national champion UConn Huskies, who had been the last team to defeat Florida the previous December.

On February 28, 2015, Donovan became the second youngest coach in NCAA Division I history to achieve 500 career wins, accomplishing this feat in the Florida Gators' 66-49 victory over the Tennessee Volunteers. He joined Bob Knight as the only coaches to reach 500 wins before turning 50 years old. However, his Gator squad finished the season with a 16-17 record, ending the Gators' winning season and 20-win season streaks, both at 16 years.

In his 18 years at Florida, Donovan led the Gators to 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, six SEC regular season titles (four outright, two shared), and four SEC Tournament titles. In comparison, the Gators had only made three official NCAA Tournament appearances, won one regular season conference title, and no tournament titles in their entire history before Donovan's arrival.

6.1. Orlando Magic Stint

During Florida's national championship runs, there were rumors that Donovan was considering an offer to become the head coach at the University of Kentucky. He later stated that while UK may have had some interest, he "never had any official contact with Kentucky." After winning the 2007 national championship, Donovan initially announced no plans to leave Florida for another college job and was working on a contract extension with UF.

However, in late May 2007, the NBA's Orlando Magic offered Donovan their head coaching position, seeking to replace Brian Hill, who had been fired after two consecutive losing seasons. Donovan deliberated intensely before agreeing on June 1, 2007, to accept the Magic's contract offer, reportedly valued at 27.50 M USD over five years. Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley even contacted Anthony Grant, Donovan's former assistant and then head coach at Virginia Commonwealth University, to inquire about his interest in replacing Donovan.

Donovan held an introductory press conference in Orlando on June 1, followed by an emotional farewell press conference in Gainesville later that day. The very next morning, Donovan began having second thoughts about his decision. He informed Jeremy Foley and the Magic front office that he had changed his mind about leaving Florida. After failing to persuade Donovan to honor the contract, the Magic reached an agreement with him on June 6, 2007, releasing him from his newly signed contract and allowing him to return as the head coach of the Florida Gators basketball team. As a stipulation of his release, he reportedly agreed not to coach in the NBA for the subsequent five seasons. Donovan issued apologies to all parties involved, and the Orlando Magic subsequently hired Stan Van Gundy as their head coach.

6.2. Oklahoma City Thunder

After 19 years leading the Florida Gators, Donovan accepted an offer to coach the NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder on April 30, 2015. He reportedly agreed to a five-year deal worth nearly 30.00 M USD, replacing Scott Brooks, who had coached the Thunder for seven seasons.

In his first season with the team, the Thunder secured a division title and advanced to the Western Conference Finals. There, they faced the Golden State Warriors and famously held a 3-1 series lead before ultimately losing in seven games. In the subsequent four seasons under Donovan (from 2016-17 to 2019-20), the Thunder consistently finished with winning records and made the postseason every year. However, they were unable to progress past the first round of the playoffs in any of those appearances.

Donovan was named the NBA Coach's Association Coach of the Year after the 2019-20 season. Following this season, after discussions with the Thunder front office regarding the "future direction of the team," he departed by mutual agreement on September 8, 2020. During his five seasons in Oklahoma City, Donovan compiled an overall regular season record of 243 wins and 157 losses.

6.3. Chicago Bulls

On September 22, 2020, the Chicago Bulls announced that they had hired Billy Donovan as their new head coach, signing him to a four-year deal reportedly valued at 24.00 M USD. Donovan secured his first victory as the Bulls coach on December 29, 2020, when his team defeated the Washington Wizards 115-107. He continues to serve as the head coach of the Chicago Bulls.

11.1. College Coaching Record

11.2. NBA Coaching Record