Billy Donovan praises Rick Pitino in Hall of Fame speech

The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inducted former Kentucky assistant coach, Billy Donovan, on Saturday. Formerly known as Billy the Kid, the now 60-year-old head coach of the Chicago Bulls takes his place in one of basketball’s most prestigious honor rolls alongside names like Adolph Rupp and John Calipari. During his acceptance speech, the man who has strung along Big Blue Nation’s hopes on a few occasions during head coach vacancies, praised another former Kentucky coach who is in the Hall of Fame, Rick Pitino.

"He taught me how to work, he taught me what it was to compete, and he taught me about what really went into winning… so coach thank you."

Newly inducted Hall of Famer Billy Donovan pays his respects to Rick Pitino 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/EtvxFLoUGL

— NBA History (@NBAHistory) September 7, 2025

Donovan said of his mentor while fighting back tears of emotion, “I am incredibly indebted to Coach Pitino. I had the opportunity to play for Coach, and I had the opportunity to work for him [at Kentucky]. And he taught me how to work. He taught me what it means to compete. And he taught me what really goes into winning. And the one thing I’m going to say about Coach is, where he found me as a sophomore in college is not where he left me. He took me to places where I never ever could have dreamed of. And it was his faith, belief, and confidence in me that I will always be indebted to. So, Coach, thank you.”

Pitino hired Donovan as an assistant at Kentucky, where he coached from 1989 to 1994. Famously, he was part of a staff that also included future Kentucky head coach Tubby Smith. Donovan then leaped to head coach at Marshall and, after a couple of successful seasons, cemented his legacy at the University of Florida, where he won back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007.

Donovan bolted the college ranks for the NBA in 2015, where he has been a solid presence, but has yet to achieve tremendous success. However, his NCAA Championships and four Final Four appearances were enough for the anonymous voters of the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame to bestow him an orange jacket.

I’m pretty sure that the next time the Kentucky head coaching position becomes open, even if that is 25 years from now and Donovan is in a nursing home somewhere, a message board post will float his name out for consideration.

Congrats to the former Kentucky assistant and perpetually the possible next head coach.