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Posted: May 30, 2020 7:17 AMUpdated: May 30, 2020 8:17 AM
Today in Oklahoma Sports History - 5/30
Today in Sports History with some Oklahoma Ties… Happy Birthday to current Oklahoma City Thunder Head Coach Billy Donovan, born on May 30, 1965.
Donovan was hired in OKC in April of 2015. He replaced Scott Brooks who was previously coached the Thunder for seven seasons.
Donovan was born and raised in Long Island, New York.
He attended Providence College and played basketball under Coach Rick Pitino. He would soon have the nickname known to Providence fans as “Billy the Kid”.
He averaged 15.1 points per game as a junior and 20.6 as a senior. He also led the Friars to the 1987 Final Four as a 6th-seed in the NCAA Basketball Tournament.
After becoming Pinto’s assistant during the first part of his coaching career, he was hired on as head coach for Marshall University from (1994-1996) and then would serve as the University of Florida basketball head coach from (1996-2015).
In Donovan’s 18 years at Florida, Donovan led the Gators to 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, six SEC regular season titles and four SEC Tournament titles. His overall coaching record with the Gators is 467-186.
After the 2015 season with Florida, Donovan agreed to take the head coaching position at the NBA level. He signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 30, 2015 for a five year deal at the time.
His overall coaching record for the Thunder so far in the last four seasons is 199-129. He has also led the Thunder to four NBA Playoff appearances as well.
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