The Evolution of Billy Donovan

When Billy “the kid” arrived in Gainesville he was only 30 years old, a former standout shooter on the playground of Queens and in the Big East at Providence College. At the time I was working at WRUF-AM 850 on the University of Florida campus and someone asked me what I thought of the hire. I said, “Boy Jeremy Foley really was scraping the bottom of the barrel, wasn’t he. Billy Donovan who I remember as a player is no Lon Krueger or Norm Sloan, he’s just an ex-star player looking for a steady gig.” Ten years later the Gators have their first National Championship and Billy Donovan is no long “Billy the Kid” but one of the most experienced big game coaches in America.  

Billy Donovan came to UF as a proponent of a fast paced guard oriented offense that relied on pressing and individual talent. After several years of trial and error which usually resulted in heartbreak, Billy Donovan entire philosophy as a Basketball coach has changed. The evolution started on one miserable Hawaii night in November of 1999. The Gators, ranked 6th in the nation were being pounded by Purdue in the Maui Classic. Gator point guard Ted DuPay, the son of a High School coach who lived his life on the edge and eventually had to leave school was playing a completely reckless individual game. DuPay, a former McDonald’s All-American wasn’t running the team from his Point Guard spot, but was trying to show everyone how good he thought he was. Donovan whose dislike for a half court offense predicated on ball movement was inherited from his mentor Rick Pitino, benched DuPay and went with a big lineup, featuring 6-8 Mike Miller, and 6-9 Kenyon Weeks at guard. For the first time under Donovan the Gators ran a half court offense and a 2-3 zone defense, rather than a full court offense and pressing 1-2-1-1 or man to man defense.

Following a first round loss to 12th seeded Manhattan in 2004, Donovan was candid about his failures in postseason. Florida’s reliance on individual talent and players like Matt Walsh and Anthony Roberson who were quite frankly un-coachable were killing Donovan’s rep and the Gator Nation’s faith in Billy the Kid. Donovan was determined to change things and he hit the recruiting trail. But instead of doing what most coaches do which is to bring in the best blue chippers on the recruiting board, Donovan looked for role players and defensive stoppers. He also lured former Clemson Head Coach Larry Shyatt to Gainesville. Shyatt’s Clemson teams were known for tough defense in the ACC, and though Clemson was more often than not outmanned in the rugged ACC, they were never out-hustled. Donovan sought and found several role players that have blossomed into stars.

In 2005 with the early entrance to the NBA of Matt Walsh and Anthony Roberson, Florida became a pure half court team. A motion offense was instilled and a 2-3 zone defense was put in place. The results speak for themselves. Not only has Billy Donovan proven that he’s a great recruiter and coach, but he, unlike so many in the game is flexible and is his own biggest critic.  Billy Donovan earned this Championship for the University of Florida through his willingness to depart from his comfort zone and take chances in order to improve the product he was putting out in the court. The Gator Nation and College Basketball owe the kid from Queens a debt of gratitude.