Naturally, Billy Donovan’s name has been mentioned a lot following John Calipari’s departure from Kentucky.
It would also make sense. Donovan worked under Rick Pitino as an assistant coach at Kentucky from 1989 until 1994. He later went on to win back-to-back national titles with the Florida Gators in 2006 and 2007. This fact has gained a lot of attention recently because Dan Hurley’s UConn team is the first to have done it since Donovan’s Gators did so.
Donovan joined the NBA in 2015 and has led the Chicago Bulls as head coach since 2020. Reuniting with the Kentucky collegiate team would be a huge hire for the Wildcats, but despite how much sense it makes, Donovan recently recommitted himself to the Bulls. In fact, he went as far as to say that he hasn’t even heard from Kentucky since the Calipari news broke.
“I’ll just say this. Obviously, I spent my first five years in coaching when Coach Pitino gave me a job, two kids born there. I think like at all my stops, you have very, very fond memories,” Donovan said (h/t On3). “I have not been contacted by anybody, I haven’t spoken to anybody. My total commitment and focus is here to this team and to this group.
“I think with what we’ve been through this year and the way we started and we’ve talked about it, I give our guys a lot of credit to our guys for hanging in there and battling through some of the things we’ve had to battle through. And I’m with them on that, and I’m committed to them with that. Again, a lot of this stuff, I think sometimes turns out to be speculation. But I have not had any contact with anybody and my commitment is here.”
Billy Donovan said Kentucky had not contacted him about the head coach position.
Spoke highly of UK and said he’s flattered, but brushed the last 48 hours off as speculation.
“My total commitment and focus is here.”
Quipped later: “Has John even left yet?.” pic.twitter.com/5UH9aQy0K6
— Julia Poe (@byjuliapoe) April 9, 2024
Donovan has good cause to be pleased with his situation in Chicago. Unlike as a college coach, he is not burdened with the recruiting responsibilities that come with NIL deals and the transfer portal after 2024.
He also has the Bulls in a respectable position. They’re not as dominant as they formerly were, but they’ll be back in the NBA play-in competition.