Billy Donovan Considering Kentucky Move?
Under Billy Donovan, the Florida Gators won the national championship last season and have a chance to repeat this season as a Final Four team. Donovan has led the team to the Final Four three times in his eleven-year career with Florida. He also has not finished with less than twenty-two wins in nine years.
At this point, the question for Billy Donovan shouldn't be whether or not to go to Kentucky. The University of Kentucky has a fantastic basketball program, there is no doubt there. But at the same time, the expectations the team has of its team and its coach are at times unreasonable. After his success in Florida, Billy Donovan could do whatever he wants for the next ten years and not come under fire from the fans. In Kentucky, however, he could win a championship his first year and still not have a secure job the next.
Once a college coach finds a team that can win titles, there is no reason for him to go anywhere if it is not the NBA. If Billy Donovan is serious about taking his career to the next step then his focus should be on one of the bad teams in the NBA looking for a new head coach. Before he makes such a drastic decision, however, Donovan should review a bit of history.
Remember when Rick Pitino, who has led three-different NCAA teams to the Final Four, left for the NBA? He was a complete failure and was back with Louisville in no time. How about Tim Floyd at USC? Or Mike Montgomery from Stanford? Historically, successful college basketball coaches do not make great NBA coaches. That is why the only one to win both a NCAA title and NBA title is Larry Brown.
At Florida Billy Donovan would have a program that loves him and complete control over recruiting and player personnel. His career as a coach is already in place for him and it would be a mistake for him to even consider making a change.
Published by Ankur Amin
I am a college student who loves to watch, talk and write about sports. My favorite teams are based in Detroit, but I try my best to say unbiased. View profile
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15 Comments
Post a CommentKentucky rules and with Donovan, we can reign again!!!!!
Billy rocks and will bring back to life a dead KY Program. I have died a little more each year watching Tubby pass on our own KY Mr Basketball's. We need a leader like (Scott Pagett) who lived and died (Heart) of Ky basketball. Tubby has not won another Championship since recruiting his own players who just seem there for a ride to the NBA using UK's Tradition and TV time to get to the pros. We need some heart players, to get us back to the top. Billy can do that. I think he understands the fire in THE BIG BLUE NATION that hurts at every loss. I have to relive the 1992 UK-Dukkie game every year and I remember driving 2 hrs in 1998 to the airport to greet the team on the Win over Duke and I had the privilige to Talk with Scott Pagett about him crying during the 1992 game. The Ultimate High of the almost win to the crap Dukkie Latner shot he pulled out and I was also crushed. That was a bad week to follow. Most teams don't have that kind of fan. The ones who hurt with the play
Sorry to say, as much as I love UK Football Basketball still rules. I love and support Football by having season tickets, and never missing a game. We need Billy to take us back to where we have always been. Florida and Ohio shows you can win at both, but I think Billy knows Football is still King at Florida. BASKETBALL is and always is king at UK. Untill we build a tradition in Football like our baskeball program Uk is still the best coaching job in the NCAA.
Billy would be crazy not to go to Kentucky!
Billy should have been Kentucky's coach 10 long years ago. I told all my friends then he would be a good fit. Some said he wasn't ready for a big time program, but i begged to differ then. Now I get to have them all eat crow. Uk and Billy Donovan are a perfect fit. He will be center stage in NCAA basketball with 23,000 plus in RUPP every nite. Come on Billy we need you, and it could be a great ride for all all of us.
Who writes this crap? At UK Billy won't have control over his own recruiting?! If he won a championship his job wouldn't be secure the next year?! You know absolutely nothing about Kentucky Basketball Mr. Amin. Absolutely nothing.
donovan is coming to uk for sur a close friend of mine that is one the board of trustes at uk said it has been in the works since before tubby left. Donovan will announce in a press conference on tuesday that he is taking the position.
Billy does not have one worry about the fans turing on him. If he continues to get out of his chair and coach then it will be okay. To sit in your chair then jump up with killer eyes then sit back down is not coaching. That is what KY Wildcat fans has watched for too long. Billy does get out of his chair and he talks to the players. National Championship is not the issue. It is being able to play and not just be sloppy at playing. Yes Fl. loves Billy but lets face it. KY has one of the largeest number of fans in the region today. He will get that support from the fans. Tubby was not run off. If anyone was going to be run off I think he would have been a long time ago. Tubby did not win any championship of recruits or starters of his own. They were someone elses and his number of wins looks impressive but look at the teams he played. He did not win the games that really meant something. Some of the wins were against schools that would have compared to high school playing grade school. I
Billy Donovan would bring to UK the style of basketball we have been wanting for years. It hurts to watch the 'Cats lose in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Even if we don't win the national championship I sure would love the season to last just a little longer!
Billy Donovan would bring youth, attitude, and confidence back to the Bluegrass state, something that has been missing in UK Basketball since the Pitino era. Let's face it Tubby is a great coach who accomplished what he sat out to do at UK. He won a National title and in doing so, he improved his stock as a coach and won over seventy-five percent of his games. Without the Kentucky job and success he had here, he would not have been a candidate for the Minnesota job. In turn, he actually used the University to gain exposure on a national level and his pay wasn't too shabby , but you can't blame him because he earned every bit of it. With all the pressure and negativity around him, he did what any coach would do in packing his bags and leaving before getting the boot. I do want to mention that just a few years ago TUBBY'S CATS ran through the S.E.C. with a perfect 19-0 record, impressive huh how a guy can go from a God to a Villian in such short time. You ask me and as a Loyal Big