Donovan and OKC begin official talk
- Thread starter stuway
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Timing couldn't have been worse for UF. You'd think Shaka Smart and Bobby Hurley would have been targets had Billy bolted sooner. Archie Miller would be my one and only phone call if I were Foley.
Completely agree. If they can't get Archie, I'd go interim for one yr. Kinda late and several good coaches already moved.
I would hate to see Billy do this, a huge loss coaching to the conference. I really don't see the flare to be an NBA coach, you make half what your stars make, yet if they don't produce you lose your job. Not an NBA fan so its easy for me to see it this way.
I don't believe Billy will be gone but 3 or 4 years. I think he's a college coach.
I wonder if Cal would have any interest in Pelphrey as a replacement for Slice if Donovan bolts to OKC?
Do gator fans even care? My guess is most do not and are fairly clueless to what losing BD will do to them.
Foley will have to write a monster check to land someone like Hoiberg...either way BD's staff scatters to the wind.
Foley will have to write a monster check to land someone like Hoiberg...either way BD's staff scatters to the wind.
I can't imagine why he would, he offers little to recruiting and not one recruit would know who he is. Fans, like myself, think a lot of him.
Why would they interim at all? It's not like the season starts next week.
Foley will go out and make the best hire he can. Watch out for some smart up-and-comer like Archie Miller.
If Billy D leaves Florida that will be a huge blow to SEC basketball. They've been the only other consistently good team in the league for the last 15 years now and I don't know how much better they can be without him. Donovan is one of the top 5 coaches in the game and it's a damn shame that he doesn't get the support he deserves. The guy has won 2 national titles and been to two other Final Fours and Gator fans act like they couldn't care less about their basketball program.
It depends. Guys like Pop, Phil Jackson, and Riley are legends because of what they have accomplished at the NBA level. They have been able to write their own ticket for decades.
Billy probably feels like walking into a team of Durant, Westbrook, Ibaka, and Kanter he's got a great chance to make a long run.
So what if it doesn't work out? He could get any open college job or be a tv analyst 4-5 years down the road.
Lol, of course we care. What a ridiculous assertion to make. I am under no delusions as to what the potential ramifications of losing Billy are to the basketball program.
As far as I am concerned, it is Archie Miller or bust. If Foley promotes Pelphrey or Grant, Gator fans will rise up in protest. They will be dead men walking from the start. They are both failed head coaches, and while they are solid assistants, some are not cut out to be head coaches - which they have proven.
I just hope, if Billy is leaving, he gets it over with ASAP. We had a great run with him and he deserves every opportunity he chooses to pursue. He owes UF nothing. That said, I hope this process moves fast and that he has already communicated to Foley what his intentions are so that Foley has at least started some type of preliminary search process.
Finally, when it is all said and done, and Billy moves on to the NBA, it will be a sad day for us Gators, but for the SEC as well.
Florida has a nice 4-star PF commit, Noah Dickerson. He'll get lots of attention if Donovan bolts. May be an opportunity for UK.
But for everyone of you who do care, there are a dozen or more who don't give a rats *** for anything other than football.
Thousands of empty seats in the O-dome is an embarrassment - how many empties in the Swamp?
I can't believe this is happening. There must have been a huge blowup that we haven't heard about. Florida should not let this coach get away. Oh, well.
Look man, I am not going to debate "fandom" with you. Kentucky's standards in regards to basketball attendance is second to none. Further, if you were to look at how many people were in the O'Dome prior to Billy versus now, it is night and day. He finally has built a fan base from nearly two decades of success. Most students don't remember a time when Florida basketball wasn't successful, and everyone who has come through in the last 10-15 years are basketball supporters.
As for the Swamp being filled, unfortunately I have to say that lately, (thanks to Muschamp) that has not been the case.
This would be my nightmare scenario. That coupled with Foley promoting Grant, Florida basketball crashing and burning, (with a boring as hell offense to boot) and then having Billy return to the SEC to coach Kentucky.
It's not about fandom it's about support - He's won 2 titles and taken you to how many more Final Fours and mid-majors who haven't even sniffed those accomplishments have higher attendance records. Collectively he is not even remotely appreciated like he should be...how is that cracker box not sold out every game? Do you think he's not pissed off about it?
Donovan leaving is mainly about apathy...he's tired of playing second fiddle and is looking to go where he can win and be fully appreciated. I have no doubt Foley will go after the best candidate but it will be rebuilding time with Miller.
This is not an indictment of you, but of your fan base...they're about to reap what they've sown.
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20121221/ARTICLES/121229949
When he basically was hired by the Orlando Magic (had his picture on their website as new coach), he cited family roots as reasons he did not want to leave UF. I'm not sure that has changed, but maybe so.
Not that anyone cares, but I am on record as believing Billy D would be a great coach at UK. Recruits, has won two championships, has the experience, articulates well. I don't think there will be anyone more attractive. For now, though, we have a coach.
It will be super interesting to see how well he does if he goes. Good talent in OKC available (if they stay). I think he will be back in Gainesville next year, but we'll see.
Not that anyone cares, but I am on record as believing Billy D would be a great coach at UK. Recruits, has won two championships, has the experience, articulates well. I don't think there will be anyone more attractive. For now, though, we have a coach.
It will be super interesting to see how well he does if he goes. Good talent in OKC available (if they stay). I think he will be back in Gainesville next year, but we'll see.
Do I wish fan support was better? Yes, yes I do. But I have season tickets. I have been to our Final Fours along with other tournament stops. I was just in the Bahamas this year for the Battle 4 Atlantis. I still went to every home game this year even though the team was mediocre. I certainly appreciate everything Billy has done for UF basketball, and personally there isn't a whole lot more I can do.It's not about fandom it's about support - He's won 2 titles and taken you to how many more Final Fours and mid-majors who haven't even sniffed those accomplishments have higher attendance records. Collectively he is not even remotely appreciated like he should be...how is that cracker box not sold out every game? Do you think he's not pissed off about it?
Donovan leaving is mainly about apathy...he's tired of playing second fiddle and is looking to go where he can win and be fully appreciated. I have no doubt Foley will go after the best candidate but it will be rebuilding time with Miller.
This is not an indictment of you, but of your fan base...they're about to reap what they've sown.
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20121221/ARTICLES/121229949
I wish others would support him and the O'Dome would be jam packed for every game. But you are right that football is first for Gator fans. Attendance is always down in the non-OOC schedule as football is still going on. Just the way it is.
Finally, since apparently I am debating this now, fan support is night and day better than it was prior to Donovan. There's a reason Pitino told Billy to stay far away. We had about three good seasons prior to Donovan, (late 80's with Dwayne Schintzius and Vernon Maxwell, and of course our 1994 Final Four team under Lon Kruger) but that was it. There would be 2-3,000 max, usually less, in attendance for the majority of Florida basketball's existence.
So, while I wish it was better and we filled the O'Dome for every game, it is still a significant improvement over our pre-Billy Donovan years. He literally built the program, and he is still building fan support.
You initially asked if any Florida fans even care. I guess it is possible that I am the only one who does, but the answer is yes.
Gators300, what do you think his family situation is now? Would he really uproot his family to move to the middle of Oklahoma? He certainly is financially secure enough to commute somewhat, I guess.
He has two kids still in high school. I believe a daughter who is a Freshman, and a son who is about to be a senior. Several years ago, (around the Magic timeframe) all of his kids were in school.
Uprooting his family? I think there's a good chance his family stays in Gainesville for at least a little while. It isn't even about Florida, or the facilities, or the fan support. Really any of that. It is about the grind of recruiting coupled with the non-stop NCAA regulation BS. Billy has gone on record time and again that he is enamored with the "purity" of the NBA. All basketball, all the time.
I think he feels he has accomplished all he can at Florida, which is basically true. It has been said time and again that IF he ever left for the NBA, it would only be to the right situation. I think the OKC job is a perfect fit for him. Top players, recent history of winning, small market, (similar to UF in a lot of ways).
I will always appreciate what he has done for the Florida program and what he has brought us. He will always be a great Gator and I wish him all the success in the world in the NBA.
Good insight.
We have Florida fans here in Kentucky that have never stepped foot in Gainesville, so I do despise the Gator Chomp and the crazy Tebow fans (thankfully we don't have such in the Bluegrass), but I do respect and like Billy D. He still seems like a Cat. So I can't help but be very interested to see what he does.
We have Florida fans here in Kentucky that have never stepped foot in Gainesville, so I do despise the Gator Chomp and the crazy Tebow fans (thankfully we don't have such in the Bluegrass), but I do respect and like Billy D. He still seems like a Cat. So I can't help but be very interested to see what he does.
You really think Foley won't make a good hire? Donovan has shown that you can win big in Gainesville. It will be a very attractive job.
No doubt, but it will require a fairly significant rebuild - someone like Archie Miller is not going to come in and just pick up where BD left off.
If true, there are two mistakes happening here. 1 Billy wanting to be a pro coach. 2 Florida letting him get away. The league is a players game. The college game is a coaches game.
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