The San Antonio Spurs have reportedly locked in a big name to be their new lead assistant coach. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania and Pete Thamel, Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame coach Billy Donovan will join Mitch Johnson’s staff in San Antonio ahead of the 2026-27 NBA season.

Donovan’s Coaching Career

As the reported new lead assistant for Johnson, Donovan would, in effect, replace the space vacated by Sean Sweeney. Last month, Sweeney, the Spurs’ most recent associate head coach, was announced as the 16th Orlando Magic head coach in that franchise’s history.

Donovan was famously offered and accepted the Orlando Magic head coaching job in 2007. After he was introduced as Magic head coach, Donovan had second thoughts and decided to return to coach the University of Florida. After a stellar 19 seasons that resulted in 467 wins, four NCAA Final Four appearances and back-to-back national championships at Florida, Donovan officially leapt into the NBA when he became the head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2015.

Original reporting: KSAT Sports (San Antonio) — read the source article.