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
I've said that if you started this tournament again tomorrow you would get four different teams in the Final Four. The NCAA Tournament is a totally different entity from the regular season. It's got nothing to do with the regular season. Once you get in, anything can happen.
The way our schedule works out is probably a little more of a disadvantage for our team because we are playing four of the last six games on the road. That is challenging. The only thing I am worried about right now is Vanderbilt. To me, that is the only game we have, and it's the only thing we need to worry about.
I think I'm going to have to look at some things from the recruiting standpoint. We have not had the level of continuity in this program like Kentucky has had, in terms of having three, four seniors every year.
Based on what do we deserve to win those games? Based on what? Three, four sophomores and a freshman? That doesn't give us a right.
We shot ourselves in the foot a lot of times in the second half. In the second half, the first (six) possessions, we turned it over four times.
After practice, he'll thank me three or four times before we leave the gym.
I thought there were times (against South Carolina) when guys created off the dribble and didn't find him. I thought he should have gotten up 10 or 11 shots. There was three or four or five times when our guys missed him. Our team has got to do a better job of recognizing when he's open and getting him the basketball.
I think in the SEC tournament if you can get a bye that's always a great thing. It's certainly very hard playing four consecutive games in a row to win an SEC championship.
He'll thank me four or five times walking off the floor. I don't expect to be thanked. That's the way he is.
The last three or four days have been an incredible ride, but nothing like this.
If you look at our last four to six games, everybody knew it was going to be the toughest part and stretch of our schedule. Our basketball team, when we had all that early success, I don't know if we've played against teams as talented as we're playing against now.
In our league with the quality of teams and playing four consecutive nights, I think for any team it's a disadvantage. But you go into the tournament with the hand you're dealt.
I don't know if we're going to be a team that has anyone that's going to get 18, 19 or 20 points a game. What we have to do is be a team that has four or five guys averaging 10 to 15 points a game.
I didn't feel comfortable leaving him in there, but it had never been done before at Florida. If it had been done three or four times, I probably would have taken him out. Our players really wanted to see him do it.