ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- Rich history wasn't enough to lure Billy Donovan away from Florida. In the end, it was just riches.
Donovan will have plenty of them after he was hired to coach the Orlando Magic on Thursday. The team confirmed the hiring Thursday night and scheduled a news conference for Friday morning.
Donovan agreed to a five-year deal paying $5.5 million annually, an official in the NBA told The Associated Press.
"Billy Donovan is a winner," general manager Otis Smith said. "We feel he is the right person to develop and maximize the talents of our players. We look forward to Billy leading us to the next level."
Donovan has been the subject of speculation since the Gators' second straight NCAA championship in April. He turned down an offer to coach Kentucky, whose storied program launched his career as an assistant in 1990, and was more recently linked to the Memphis Grizzlies' vacant coaching job.
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He will do well in Orlando. That team is young and they will listen to him. He built a nice program at Florida. The Gators will suffer without his leadership and I wonder if the program will ever be the same. Will players want to go play for Florida without Donovan there? We shall see.
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