Billy Donovan Articles - Page 10

When the Oklahoma City Thunder traded Paul George and then franchise icon Russell Westbrook this past summer, it was seen as the organization waving the white flag. After three first-round playoff exits following Kevin Durant’s departure during the summer of 2016, things seemed hopeless in Oklahoma City. The Thunder were simply not able to put […]

When a team trades away its two franchise players, like the Oklahoma City Thunder did last offseason, they tend to get little pub the ensuing season; that has happened. In the same situation, that team tends to fall off the map a bit from a record standpoint. The Thunder have not done that. Rather they […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs produced one of the more thrilling contests of the evening on Tuesday, with the Spurs escaping with the 114-106 victory in Oklahoma City’s Chesapeake Energy Arena. After a hard-fought battle, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich had nothing but good things to say about his adversary on […]

When Chris Paul and Billy Donovan met for the first time after the Oklahoma City Thunder acquired Paul from the Houston Rockets, the future Hall of Famer had a simple yet powerful message for the Thunder head coach. Paul, one of the fiercest competitors in NBA history, told Donovan he was fully committed to playing […]

Milwaukee Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer and Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan have been named the NBA’s East and West Coaches of the Month, respectively, for December. The Bucks went 13-2 in December, while the Thunder went 11-4: Milwaukee Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer and Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan have […]

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan was at a loss for words about Dallas Mavericks phenom Luka Doncic when prompted as how to slow down the Mavs star who is one of the league’s MVP candidates. “It’s not like anybody’s stopping him this year. He’s averaging like 30 [points] a game,” Donovan said, per […]

Paul George makes his return to OKC on Sunday to face the Thunder for the first time since he was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers over the summer. George played two seasons with the Thunder before he requested a trade and was sent to LA. Thunder head coach Billy Donovan says George deserves to […]

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Hamidou Diallo has been out since Nov. 22 because of a right elbow injury. Thunder head coach Billy Donovan says Diallo has ‘responded well’ in rehab after suffering the hyperextension sprain. Oklahoma City tracked how many shots the high-flyer took in practice on Saturday to see how his elbow holds up: […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder managed to win over the New Orleans Pelicans in a close encounter on Friday. However, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a rough night, as not a lot of his shots were dropping. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 10 points, one rebound, three assists and two steals on 31 percent shooting. It was a terrible shooting […]

Los Angeles Clippers swingman Paul George recently claimed that both his surgically repaired shoulders are now as healthy as ever. But that certainly was not the case last season when George was still with the Oklahoma City Thunder, as he played through pain in their first round best-of-seven series against the Portland Trail Blazers. Ahead […]

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan has made it clear that the team is not going to rush Andre Roberson back onto the court. Roberson hasn’t played in an NBA since Dec. 29, 2017 due to a ruptured patellar tendon. Roberson had recently participated in five-on-five scrimmages during training camp and in practices throughout […]

Oklahoma City Thunder coach Billy Donovan is tasked of helping the team rebuild after losing All-Stars Russell Westbrook and Paul George during the offseason. Both players requested a trade and OKC’s front office decided to let them go and start over. Still, Donovan is thankful for them and other players who are no longer with […]

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan admits he was surprised to see Paul George request a trade from the team. George requested to be traded to the Los Angeles Clippers this offseason in order to pair up with Kawhi Leonard. The Thunder eventually gave in, sending PG13 to his hometown in exchange for Danilo […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder experienced a whole lot of change this summer, as they traded away Paul George after two seasons and then had to make the painful decision of parting with franchise face Russell Westbrook. For the first time since Westbrook and Kevin Durant were neophytes on the Thunder over a decade ago, Oklahoma […]

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan’s graduate assistant at Florida, Matt McCall, thinks Donovan will have more ball movement next season sans Russell Westbrook. Donovan’s Thunder teams have finished last in the league in passes per game even though Westbrook averaged double-digit assists the last four seasons under Donovan. “It’s not a knock on […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder had one of the most disappointing offseasons in recent memory. They traded away two All-Stars in exchange for some aging veterans, young prospects, and draft picks. Team head coach Billy Donovan is now facing the task of keeping this team competitive next season, but his former colleagues in the NCAA believe […]

Perhaps no NBA franchise during the 2019 offseason experience more turbulence and shakeup than the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder, losers in the first round of last season’s playoffs, remained hopeful for the 2019-20 regular season with stars still on the team; however, general manager Sam Presti sent forward Paul George to the Los Angeles […]

It was an up-and-down 2018-19 season for the Oklahoma City Thunder who were the best team in the NBA at times and the most disappointing at others. Unfortunately for Thunder fans, it was the latter that won out in the end. A season full of promise was over just as the playoffs had just started. […]

Despite the fact that the Oklahoma City Thunder were sent home in the first round of the plays, it sounds like Billy Donovan will be returning as head coach of the team next season. In an interview with the media on Monday morning, Thunder general manager Sam Presti noted that he is anticipating Donovan’s return […]

Amid rumors of a potential fallout after three one-and-done results in the last three postseasons, Oklahoma City Thunder point man Russell Westbrook was asked about his relationship with head coach Billy Donovan: “It’s been good,” said Westbrook during an end-of-season press conference, according to ESPN’s Royce Young. “Me personally, I’ve never had a problem with […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder’s first-round exit on Tuesday night definitely left more questions than answers in terms of the team’s future. Team head coach Billy Donovan recently addressed the rumors pertaining to a looming roster shake-up, but gave off a bit of a vague and cryptic statement regarding the issue. Donovan on if significant roster […]

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan is not exactly in the most indispensable of positions right now following his team’s heart-breaking series loss at the hands of the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night. Rumors have been circling pertaining to the Thunder front office considering a possible replacement for Donovan, with the 53-year-old posing […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder ended their season in disappointment yet again on Tuesday night, as they suffered a Game 5 defeat at the hands of Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers. Barely a couple of days into the conclusion of another rather forgettable year, and already the whispers pertaining to the potential firing of […]

For the third straight year, the Oklahoma City Thunder were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, prompting questions on whether or not changes will have to be made before the start of next season. While some may believe it’s time for OKC to trade Russell Westbrook, the majority of their fans still believe […]

Portland Trail Blazers center Enes Kanter seems to be having a lot of fun with his new team. After being waived by the New York Knicks a couple of months ago, the Oregon-based franchise signed him for the remainder of the season, and he quickly became an integral part of the team’s rotation. Apparently, the […]

Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Paul George went for a double pump dunk as the time expires, as if he wants to show that he has no respect for the Portland Trail Blazers. The dunk at the buzzer drew raves from fans, as there is a gentleman’s agreement between two teams to let the time expire […]

The Dallas Mavericks will be on the sidelines once the postseason starts in less than two weeks, likely watching the Oklahoma City Thunder as they perform during the Western Conference playoffs. Despite that, the Mavs pulled off an upset win Sunday, in which rookie point guard Jalen Brunson showed out. Thunder head coach Billy Donovan […]

Paul George is still one of the leading candidates for the NBA’s Most Valuable Player Award. His two-way play for the Oklahoma City Thunder has been superlative, and he has helped OKC stay in the top three in the Western Conference standings for most of the season. But since George went down with a shoulder […]

Oklahoma City Thunder star Paul George likely isn’t going to be ready to go Sunday against the Memphis Grizzlies. Asked after Saturday’s defeat to the San Antonio Spurs, Thunder head coach Billy Donovan stated that his “guess” was that his squad would be down George for the third consecutive game due to a shoulder injury: […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder have a massive matchup against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night. Despite that, head coach Billy Donovan says there’s no extra hype for the game. Thunder coach Billy Donovan when asked about any extra hype leading into tonight vs. Nuggets: “I’m not really wrapped up in Denver, we’ve played them twice. […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder are coming off an epic double overtime victory against the Utah Jazz from Friday night. It took a Paul George final-second effort to finally seal the win for the Thunder, to the absolute delight of head coach Billy Donovan. According to the 53-year-old coach, his team exhibited the type of grit […]

The mystery of Oklahoma City Thunder wing Alex Abrines continues. Alex Abrines has been sidelined since Christmas for unknown reasons, and even though he is currently on the active roster, he is still “not in a position to play right now,” according to Thunder head coach Billy Donovan. Billy Donovan says Alex Abrines is “not […]

Russell Westbrook showed his full array of skills with a monster triple-double effort in Thursday night’s 122-116 win over the New Orleans Pelicans. The Oklahoma City Thunder coach Billy Donovan lauded his star’s versatile effort to pull out the win and help keep the third seed in the West, doing so in more ways than […]

Carmelo Anthony’s one year with the Oklahoma City Thunder last season was a disaster, but Thunder head coach Billy Donovan still believes Melo can contribute to an NBA team this year. Carmelo Anthony is still on the Houston Rockets’ roster, but he will be either traded or waived before the Feb. 7 trade deadline. Anthony […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder absorbed an upset 138-128 overtime loss at home against Lonzo Ball and the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday night which would have been easier for Thunder head coach Billy Donovan to accept if it weren’t for his team’s pathetic perimeter defense. An obviously frustrated Donovan spoke in front of reporters following the […]

Oklahoma City Thunder big man Nerlens Noel suffered a very scary head injury during his team’s loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night, as he took an elbow to the face from Timberwolves wing Andrew Wiggins while trying to contest a dunk and then took a hard fall. Noel lay relatively motionless on the […]

The UCLA Bruins recently fired head coach Steve Alford and have started to look elsewhere for his replacement. There have been plenty of rumors about who might get the job, including former Chicago Bulls and Iowa State head coach Fred Hoiberg. Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Billy Donovan was asked about his interest in the position on […]

Despite a turbulent season thus for Oklahoma City Thunder stud Russell Westbrook, team head coach Billy Donovan has not lost one bit of confidence in his cornerstone superstar. According to the 53-year-old coach, he is not losing any sleep in what many people perceive to be a roller coaster of a season from Westbrook. “Whatever […]

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook has experienced his share of struggles after trying to morph into a more effective player. Despite posting a triple-double for a third straight season, the 11th-year guard is struggling mightily with his shot, shooting only 42.6 percent from the field, 24.1 percent from deep and a worrisome 62.1 percent […]