Player Bio

As much as any assistant has digested and learned from the up-tempo, full-court, pressing philosophy adapted by Rick Pitino, Billy Donovan may have as good a grasp as any. Not only did he spend five years under Pitino at Kentucky, he also played the style under him at Providence and later, with the New York Knicks in the NBA.

A native of Rockville Centre, N.Y., Donovan was a part-time player for the Friars in his first two seasons, averaging just over two points as a freshman and three points as a sophomore. Enter Pitino as head coach at Providence in 1985,and "Billy the Kid" was born. Once considered undersized and underdeveloped, Donovan thrived under the new system and finished his career as one of the premier players in Providence history.

As a junior he averaged 15.1 points a game and shot better than 50 percent from the field at the guard spot.  Donovan then averaged 20.6 points a game and earned honorable mention All-America honors (UPI) as a senior,  capping off a magical ride to the 1987 Final Four by being named the Southeast Regional Most Outstanding Player. 

Donovan still holds four Providence school records (single season three pointers - 97;  three-point attempts in a game - 16; three-point attempts in a season - 237; minutes played in a season - 1234). Donovan was inducted into the Providence College Hall of Fame in June of 1999 and was named to the 10-man All-Time Providence Civic Center Team in January of 1999.

In the 1987 NBA Draft, Donovan was drafted in the third round (68th overall) by the Utah Jazz, where he played in the preseason before being waived. After a brief stint in the CBA with Wyoming, Donovan rejoined Pitino after signing a one-year contract as a free agent with the Knicks. Donovan played in 44 games, averaging 2.4 points and 2.0 assists per game. 

After his one-year stint in the NBA, Donovan worked with an investment banking firm on Wall Street for a year before joining Pitino at UK.