I think it's pretty clear now that Billy Donovan wants to stay at Florida essentially forever.  Consider - could he possibly flirt with an NBA team again after this train-wreck?

So that brings us to an alternate theory: could this be masterful manipulation?  What recruit is going to doubt Donovan is going to stay at Florida after this, no matter what rumors are going on?  All the bad press from this will fade away after a couple of years of Donovan's success.  And maybe next time around, he will land the Patrick Patterson-type player with that extra edge?

Not sure I can believe either explanation.  Crazy stuff.

But I agree with Tru for once, this is totally unethical behavior by Donovan.  What is the point of having a contract if you can cry and get out of it just for having regrets??  Shameful.

Billy Gillispie risked untold numbers of innocent people's lives when he broke the law and drove under the influence...  not once, but twice.  TWICE.

I have kids.  I am offended that Billy Gillispie wasn't put behind bars for what he did.  What are the chances that little children, much like my own, weren't in vehicles within Gillispie's close proximity as he chose to drive drunk on those two fateful occasions?

You want a blight on someone's record, that's TWO that will never, ever go away.

You want to discredit Donovan because he spurned Kentucky, then made a decision to remain at the University of Florida instead of taking a multi-million dollar pay increase.  You want to discredit him simply because you want him to be discredited, not because he deserves it.

You can't look past Billy G. while targeting Billy D., not when you use the "ethics" word.  "Your" Billy can never be considered ethical in any human meaning of the word.

While I am sure the spurned Kentucky faithful will try to hold on to this as long as they can, in truth this will be forgotten quickly by everyone in college basketball.  Billy Donovan is a first class person AND coach, and a decision made and then regretted -- and make no mistake about it, Donovan is legally exiting the contract, just as Kentucky voided its contract with UMass -- takes a man to stand up and say, "No, I realize that my heart is where I just left.  I must return."

We'll keep our coach, thank you very much.  And we will continue to cherish him.  And I expect he will continue Florida's trend toward dominating both the SEC and the national college basketball landscape.  He's a proven commodity -- the best in the business.  You're so hopped up on a change from Tubby that you can't even recognize that Billy G. has yet to do anything other than recruit Kentucky's first -- and only -- heralded recruit in the last few years.  Recruits see that Donovan will have put seven first-rounders in the NBA, that he's won two national titles, that he plays an exciting brand of basketball at a school which only keeps getting better and better at the sport.

The recruits will continue coming to Gainesville.  You and I both know you are fooling yourself if you think otherwise.

The Gators have been in 3 title games in eight years.  That means that at any time in this century, there's a roughly 40% chance that if you tune in the NCAA Tournament Final that Florida will be playing in it.  That's staggering by any scope of the imagination, especially in the modern age of parity in college basketball.

So please spare me the feigned outrage over a career decision which was later regretted, and to whom the only potential damage can alight is a professional basketball franchise, a corporation, who has ruined too many NBA coaches' careers as it is.  Billy Donovan never risked anyone's life in the process of earning his reputation.

Spare me the "family" bullshit. If he wanted to protect his family, he'd have signed the multi-gagillion dollar contract and taken half the summer off to spend with them, not whined his way back to Gainsville and then hit the recruiting trail where he'll spin this into "I just love college kids too much!"

Oh, and read this: WHEN WETZEL STRIKES

What a great fan!

while this would suck for him, i guess it would be a hidden bonus for UF since he obviouly won't be leaving for another college job (UK obviously would have been the only place he would have considered). Plus the recruits for the next couple years know he would stick around.

but would you want to play for a coach you know is being forced to be there? that type of forced employment would be the same as the magic not letting him out of the contract.

So the part that I think is most interesting to ponder about this weird story is how it will affect his fortunes at Florida--and more importantly, how that affects our Wildcats.  If this story, and the accompaning sportswriter scolding, fades pretty quickly, I feel like this whole situation, in which Donovan acted AT LEAST in a pretty unprofessional manner (if not in a totally dick manner--depending on your interpretation), will really only benefit him. Which is totally annoying.  It's like Paris making millions off her jail diaries--it's all, "hey, this isn't supposed to turn out in your favor!"  The Magic look like chumps, but Billy D is sitting pretty after the initial embarrasment wears off.  The five-year no-NBA thing can only help his (already spendid) recruiting.  The ace in the hole recruiting against Florida was surely going to be hinging on his whorishness with other jobs.  That's been removed now--it doesn't look like he'll be going anywhere like EVER now.  How's THAT for a guarentee to future recruits that he'll be around--he actually CAN'T go to the NBA!  Like EEWildcat, the thought crossed my mind...hmm, could this all have been a diobolical plot to snare more recruits???  (I feel like I should assure I'm just kidding, lest some mainstream media person happen by here and use me as yet another example of the insane Kentucky fan).  

So how does it work out for Kentucky if Donovan does indeed stay there for the forseeable future?  I have to admit my first and probably more honest reaction was that I want him gone, and I want Florida to suck ass forevermore.  Probably, though, it is better for us in the long term for this rivalry to get stronger, for both teams to be national threats, bringing UK more media exposure and great competition to make us better come March.  The Billy G/Billy D rivalry has the potential to be something really special--and media-friendly.  So in that respect, it is kind of cool that little Eddie Munster is going to be around for a while.  I certainly don't think we are scared of a little competition--for heaven's sakes, we're Kentucky : )  I just hope I continue to hear media chastising of the former golden boy.  After all the trash I've heard talked about UK fans--we're superpassionate about our beloved team, ergo we are insane, if you haven't heard--my head just might explode if Donovan's broken contract/tail-tucked return to Gainsville gets quickly brushed aside.

Gatorpilot, can't blame your defense of Donovan at all--I'm quite sure I'd feel similarly defensive of my coach's honor if I was in your position.  I don't think he's necessarily a bad or unethical person either--we're obviously not talking Dave Bliss here.  But aside from being an obvious attempt to change the subject, what does one coach's past DUIs have to do with another's broken job contract?  I don't have a clue if in his free time Donovon beats his wife, hires underage hookers and snorts blow, or if he prefers attending church and volunteering at soup kitchens--this being a basketball blog, we're talking basketball here, and the issues that relate to it, simple as that.  Signing then reneging on a contract to coach an NBA team--I'd say that's basketball-related.  Having a DUI (or two) in your background?  Serious though it may be (and just ask our president, just one of the millions of Americans who've made this poor but unfortunately very common choice) I don't see how it relates to the issue at hand.

By the way, sorry for the ridiculously long post--I've been on vacation and fun as it was, I've experienced withdraw since I couldn't have my daily UK offseason internet fix...aw, who am I kidding--it's more that once a day...