After stepping down as the Chicago Bulls coach in April, Billy Donovan’s next coaching stop has been decided.
The former Florida Gators men’s basketball coach is taking a break after 11 years as a league head coach by accepting the lead assistant coach role of the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs, according to ESPN.
Donovan was with the Bulls for six years, going 226-256, following a five-year stint in Oklahoma City, where his team made the playoffs every year.
In Gainesville, Donovan is known for bringing back-to-back program titles to the Gators men’s basketball program in 2006 and 2007. The 2025 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Inductee began his tenure in 1996, racking up 467 wins and producing nine first-round draft picks before hitting the pros in 2015.
Donovan’s departure from Chicago was his own choosing, as the Bulls organization intended to keep him on staff after despite a sub-.500 record with the franchise.
His name became one in the mix for both college and NBA teams, including North Carolina and the Orlando Magic.
Instead, he now replaces Sean Sweeney, who is the new head coach in Orlando after just one season in San Antonio. Sweeney led the Spurs’ defense to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2014.
