NBA preparing to relax guest rules in bubble Thunder and Donovan mutually part ways
NBA coaches or other team staffers could have guests in the bubble later this month, with the league sharing final plans for such additions with teams on Tuesday.
Team staff would be limited to a total of 10 guests, all of whom would have to begin a self-quarantine period at home immediately, then travel to Central Florida next week to begin another week of even stricter lockdown. Those guests could then enter the so-called bubble at Walt Disney World on Sept 21, about a week before the scheduled start of the NBA Finals.
Coaches have been clamoring for this for some time. Some players were able to bring family members into the bubble starting on Aug 31. Referees also had the option of bringing a guest into the bubble, though none did so.
Billy Donovan won’t return as coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder after five seasons, the team announced on Tuesday night.
Donovan, who was at the end of his contract, took the Thunder to the playoffs every year and was a finalist for Coach of the Year this season after his squad outperformed expectations to push the Houston Rockets to seven games in the first round of the playoffs.
Donovan went 243-157 with OKC. Before that, he led the University of Florida to two national championships and four Final Four appearances in 19 seasons.
The team and Donovan described his departure as a mutual decision. Thunder general manager Sam Presti said he couldn’t give Donovan the assurances he wanted about the future.