Billy Donovan: The Next Coach K?

[feldspar]

Discuss...

[hurleyfor3]

What is the "K" for? Kentucky? If so, the answer is yes.

[dukemsu]

Nope. K turned down the NBA. Billy may this time, but not forever.

He is undoubtedly a great coach, though.

He's got 2, Calhoun's got 2. Well, at least Roy only has 1.

dukemsu

[feldspar]

Nope. K turned down the NBA. Billy may this time, but not forever.

He is undoubtedly a great coach, though.

He's got 2, Calhoun's got 2. Well, at least Roy only has 1.

dukemsu

Yeah, but you're comparing K now to Billy now. I'm comparing Billy D '07 to Coach K '92.

What Billy chooses to do from here on out is a different story.

[feldspar]

Seriously though. Hottest coach in America right now. Somehow convinced a group of kids to come back and go for back-to-back and led them there. Built a national powerhouse out of a program that had only been to one Final Four in school history.

Impressive. I don't think he's going anywhere.

[hurleyfor3]

This is the best Flawda basketball will ever be, and by extension, the best Donovan will ever be.

Repeating was the best Duke basketball ever was, and not to put to fine a point on it, better than a lot of programs that think they're our rival ever have been.

Everything he's said about the Ky job sounds an awful lot like a yes.

[RelativeWays]

This is the best Flawda basketball will ever be, and by extension, the best Donovan will ever be.

Repeating was the best Duke basketball ever was, and not to put to fine a point on it, better than a lot of programs that think they're our rival ever have been.

Everything he's said about the Ky job sounds an awful lot like a yes.

Well this is the best ANY college BB team can be winning a national championship, whether or not Florida can maintain success is going to be dependent on whether Donovan stays. I don't think recruiting is going to be a problem for UF so Billy Donovan really has no reason to leave unless he wants the challenge and pressure of the Kentucky job. Otherwise, Florida can become a national power the way Calhoun made UConn a national power (expecting another dismal season for them is just wishful thinking) or K making Duke the perennial national power they are.

[FireOgilvie]

Great coach. I respect him, too. Unlike Calhoun and the Williams sisters.

[Troublemaker]

Yep, gotta give him his due. The confidence that Florida played with in the Final Four was extremely impressive. They just knew their shots were going to go in.

I think he stays at Florida. He's using UK to get more money.

[dukelifer]

Discuss...

Billy will likely follow in the footsteps of his mentor and test the NBA waters and if that does not work out go back to college. I do not think he is going to hang around college. Now is the time to go- unless he can convince his starters other than the seniors to hang around for the three-peat.

[NYC Duke Fan]

No matter what Donovan does with the basketball program at Florida, Urban Meyer will always be THE MAN at Florida. The Gators are football first and always will be.

At Kentucky, Donovan will THE MAN because Kentucky is first and foremost a basketball school with football in the background. Sounds familiar doesn't it ?

[dukelifer]

No matter what Donovan does with the basketball program at Florida, Urban Meyer will always be THE MAN at Florida. The Gators are football first and always will be.

At Kentucky, Donovan will THE MAN because Kentucky is first and foremost a basketball school with football in the background. Sounds familiar doesn't it ?

True assuming he wins at KY. He will be THE MAN in waiting. If he fails to deliver- his titles at Fla will not save him.

[NYC Duke Fan]

True assuming he wins at KY. He will be THE MAN in waiting. If he fails to deliver- his titles at Fla will not save him.

If he won at Florida why wouldn't he win at Kentucky ? Right now he is THE BEST Coach And Recruiter in America. He should win at any major college program.

[JasonEvans]

Donovan is a heck of a coach, no question about it, but he has a loooong way to go to be K.

Even if we only take Donovan 07 and compare him to K 92, K is still significantly ahead. I mean, just in Final Fours the K92 leads Donovan 6 to 3.

Obviously, we do not know where Donovan's career is headed, but for him to match K over the next decade he will have to win another NCAA Tourney, double his trips to the Final Four, and start a collection of #1 seeds in the NCAA tourney. K has coached teams that were #1 seeds something like 9 times. I may be wrong, but I am fairly sure this was Donovan's first #1 seeded team.

If Donovan sticks around the college game, he has a chance to do it, I guess. But the odds are still stacked pretty heavy against him. Plus, I think he is going to head to the NBA. I have no inside info, but that is just my gut.

-Jason "mad props to Donovan-- he is now in the elite area occupied by K, Roy, Calhoun, and very few others" Evans

[feldspar]

Donovan is a heck of a coach, no question about it, but he has a loooong way to go to be K.

Even if we only take Donovan 07 and compare him to K 92, K is still significantly ahead. I mean, just in Final Fours the K92 leads Donovan 6 to 3.

Obviously, we do not know where Donovan's career is headed, but for him to match K over the next decade he will have to win another NCAA Tourney, double his trips to the Final Four, and start a collection of #1 seeds in the NCAA tourney. K has coached teams that were #1 seeds something like 9 times. I may be wrong, but I am fairly sure this was Donovan's first #1 seeded team.

Eh. I think he's closer to '92 K than you might think. The only area where '92 K surpasses Donovan is in Final Fours, with Coach K being in six and Donovan being in three.

The '92 team was only K's second #1 seed. Slim margin there.

In his first 12 years, Coach K amassed a 297-110 (.729) record. In his first 11 years at Florida, Billy D has a 260-103 (.715) record.

In his first 12 years at Duke, Coach K raked in three ACC tournament championships, and three regular season conference titles. In his first 11 years at Florida, Billy D has - guess what - three conference tournament and three regular season conference championships.

7 in 9 will be hard to beat. But Billy D's current resume stacks up really well right now.

[feldspar]

Billy will likely follow in the footsteps of his mentor and test the NBA waters and if that does not work out go back to college. I do not think he is going to hang around college. Now is the time to go- unless he can convince his starters other than the seniors to hang around for the three-peat.

Or perhaps he will learn from the mistakes of his mentor and decide that the NBA is not for him.

Personally, I think he's way too young to coach in the NBA.

[CMS2478]

Or perhaps he will learn from the mistakes of his mentor and decide that the NBA is not for him.

Personally, I think he's way too young to coach in the NBA.

Does anyone actually "coach" in the NBA......I thought they just tried to find a way to please overpaid, whiny, non-defense playing, guys and not lose their job!!!

[MrBisonDevil]

If you are only talking basketball accomplishments... then yes. Billy is close to K. But total package? Not even close. Coach K is much more than just a basketball coach… he builds leaders.

When Billy gets named to the faculty of a top business school and helps develop the business leaders of tomorrow (example: http://cole.fuqua.duke.edu)... then I'll reconsider.

[feldspar]

If you are only talking basketball accomplishments... then yes. Billy is close to K. But total package? Not even close. Coach K is much more than just a basketball coach… he builds leaders.

When Billy gets named to the faculty of a top business school and helps develop the business leaders of tomorrow (example: http://cole.fuqua.duke.edu)... then I'll reconsider.

Again, you're comparing this year's Billy D to the most recent versions of Coach K. Go back to 1992 and make the comparison. If Billy D keeps it up at the pace that Coach K did, and learns how to harness his coaching attributes into business settings as Coach K did, he could very well do something similar.

[DevilWolf]

This is completely without cause, it's completely a hunch, but I just have this feeling I'm going to open the newspaper one morning and read about the NCAA investigating Florida for major violations. Maybe it's a bias towards the SEC in general, but I just get that feeling with Donovan.

And there is no way Billy is using Kentucky to get paid at Florida. All he has to do to get paid at Florida is to walk into the AD's office and put two rings on his desk. Using other schools to get paid is something coaches who haven't really done anything have to resort to ... Cal, Huggins, Barnes, Self, etc.