Billy Donovan will be named the next head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder, sources confirmed on Thursday.
Donovan will replace Scott Brooks, who was fired on April 22.
Donovan leaves the Gators as the most accomplished coach in Florida history . In his 19 seasons as head coach of the program, Donovan built the Gators men’s basketball program into a powerhouse after the team only had minimal success before his arrival.
Donovan managed to lead the program to its first ever National Championship game in 2000, which ended in a 89-76 loss to Michigan State.
Donovan would then guide the program back to the National Championship game in 2006 where the Gators would end up beating UCLA by 16 to win the program’s first national title.
The following season, Donovan led the team back to the promised land as UF cut down the nets once again, beating Ohio State 84-75.
Donovan’s 2006-07 squad became the first team to win back-to-back national titles since Duke did so in 1991-92.
This isn't the first time Donovan has tested the waters of the NBA.
Following the 2007 championship, Donovan reached an agreement to become the head coach of the Orlando Magic.
The stint with the Magic was short lived, as the day after his introductory press conference Donovan informed the team that he wanted to return to Gainesville.
Along with his two national titles, Donovan reached four final fours and won six Southeastern Conference titles and a school record 467 wins.
Donovan also won four Southeastern Conference tournament titles during his tenure, with the last one coming in 2014.
In the 77 years prior to his arrival, the program only won one SEC title. Donovan also made 17 consecutive postseasons appearances from 1997-2014. The streak ended after this past season when the team went 16-17, the team’s first losing record since Donovan’s second season at the helm.
Follow Luis Torres on Twitter @LFTorresIII
Billy Donovan looks down the court during Florida's 66-49 win against Tennessee on Feb. 28 in the O'Connell Center. Donovan will be named the head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
During the Billy Donovan era of UF basketball, the Gators went from pretenders to annual national title contenders. Donovan capped his illustrious career by becoming the second-youngest coach to win 500 games at the collegiate level before deciding to head to the NBA to become the head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Here's Jordan McPherson's game story on the milestone win (http://www.alligator.org/sports/football/article_94b217d2-844a-11e5-8f45-db4dc66bc8e8.html) and Richard Johnson's feature looking back at Donovan's first career victory (http://www.alligator.org/sports/basketball/article_9689ab94-b8ce-11e4-a82b-5f0651981129.html).
