Magic releases Donovan from contract
Published: Thu, Jun. 07, 2007 12:00AM
Modified Thu, Jun. 07, 2007 03:02AM
E-Mail
Print
tool name
closeORLANDO, FLA. -- Billy Donovan is out in Orlando, and his cold feet could cost both him and the Magic.
The Magic let Donovan out of a five years, $27.5 million deal Wednesday night after news broke days ago he was having second thoughts.
"I realized in less than 24 hours after signing a contract with the Magic that I had made a mistake that had nothing to do with the Magic," Donovan said in a statement Wednesday night. "Instead, I realized that, in my heart, I belonged in college basketball."
More Sports
The Gators coach walked out of his first NBA job after just six days to return to Gainesville, where he won the past two national titles.
Orlando is still coachless and could miss out on second choice Stan Van Gundy if the Sacramento Kings hire him quickly.
Florida athletics director Jeremy Foley, reached late Wednesday, said, "It's great news for the Gators."
The Kings confirmed Wednesday that Van Gundy was in Sacramento for further discussions about becoming their head coach.
Further, Van Gundy is under contract for another year in Miami, and the Heat reportedly wants compensation if the division-rival Magic hire him. The Kings might not have to pay such a penalty.
All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be published, broadcast or redistributed in any manner.
Get it all with convenient home delivery of The News & Observer.
The News & Observer is pleased to be able to offer its users the opportunity to make comments and hold conversations online. However, the interactive nature of the internet makes it impracticable for our staff to monitor each and every posting.
Since The News & Observer does not control user submitted statements, we cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted on our website. In addition, we remind anyone interested in making an online comment that responsibility for statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not The News and Observer.
If you find a comment offensive, clicking on the exclamation icon will flag the comment for review by the administrators, we are counting on the good judgment of all our readers to help us.
