OKC Thunder playoff roundtable part 1: superstars, grades, moments and more

Would you give Billy Donovan a passing or failing grade? As a follow-up to the above, how far do the OKC Thunder need to get in the postseason for Donovan to retain his job?

Sinjin Snopczynski: I would give Billy a passing grade. He and his staff have shown to develop players well and for the large part, the Thunder’s offense has been much better this season compared to last. They can generate good shots, they just can’t seem to be consistent. Billy does deserve criticism for his inability to get his team motivated to play lesser teams, but for the most part, he has done a solid enough job.

If OKC is bounced in the first round again, however, he could be on the hot seat. Losing to Portland without Nurkic won’t be well received by Thunder nation. As long as the OKC Thunder can win a series, we will be seeing Donovan for sure back on the sideline next year.

Alex Mcewen: Failing: If it were up to many people, Donovan would have been dismissed after an 0-4 start. But, it’s not their decision to make. It is up to Sam Presti, or the ownership group. With the list of sponsors continuously growing, perhaps they will get fed up with early playoffs exits and demand a change.

Maybe, Donovan will elect to step away from the NBA himself and go back to the college ranks. It’s important to note Billy D’s option was picked up. His contract was not extended both terms, are vastly different.

Rylan Stiles: Failing grade for sure. It is pretty clear he can not motivate his players as evident by their inability to get up for any non-top tier team. It is the NBA, there are 82 games, there will be clunkers that teams can not get up for, but it happens way too often in OKC. If he gets past the first round, he saves his job, if he does not he has to go.

Tailor Finney: I’d still give Donovan a passing grade, despite horrendous decision making at times. I think the blame is equally spread over him and the players. They lost games that should have been blowouts, but they also won games we never expected.

Regardless of how far we go, I still don’t think Donovan has the right coaching personality to handle this Thunder team.

Steven Maichak: Billy Donovan no doubt deserves a passing grade. Donovan will retain his job whether the Thunder win or lose in the first round. His seat may heat up should they lose, but he still coached the team through a slump in the back half of the season to a point that helped them avoid the Warriors and Nuggets in the first round. Furthermore, we’re talking about a professional sports team with several talented veterans – they should be able to coach and regulate themselves without Donovan.

Tamberlyn Richardson: Donovan excels at star management, role definition, and defensive schemes. Where he fails is bench management (absolutely brutal in this area), his rotations and in game adaptability.

Donovan is Presti’s guy and barring something substantially bad happening in the postseason he isn’t going anywhere. Unlike Masai Ujiri, Presti won’t change course until he absolutely has to (or one of his superstars scream it’s time to move on).