Among the breakout stars of the 2016 playoffs – a group headlined by Bismack Biyombo – was Billy Donovan.
In his first NBA season, Donovan guided the Thunder past the Spurs and to a 3-1 lead over the Warriors – two very different and very good teams. Golden State’s comeback only barely diminishes Donovan’s impressive work, and don’t ignore his performance against the Mavericks in the first round. Rick Carlisle, Gregg Popovich, Steve Kerr is a murderers’ row of opposing coaches for someone in his first NBA playoffs.
Yet, Donovan aced most tests and is off to a strong start this offseason.
Marc Stein of ESPN:
Oklahoma City is closing in on a deal to hire Adrian Griffin as an assistant coach for Billy Donovan's staff, according to league sources.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) June 9, 2016
Griffin will replace Monty Williams, who left the team after his wife’s tragic death.
Like Williams, Griffin gives Donovan a quality assistant coach at his side. Griffin previously worked for the Magic and Bulls and was a candidate for the head job in Orlando. He’ll be a head coach soon enough. Though teams gravitate toward retreads, Griffin is at or near the front of the line among assistant coaches. Until then, Griffin will help the Thunder – maybe even getting them to more consistently defend with the discipline they showed the first half of the Warriors series.