Ringer: Billy Donovan’s seat has “heated over time”

The Ringer recently took a “Way-Too-Early” look at which coaches may or may not be on the hot seat at this point in the NBA season. Oklahoma City’s Billy Donovan did make an appearance on the list in the “heated over time” category.

Haley O’Shaughnessy discussed how the Thunder have made plenty of moves over the past two years, and the wait should be over at this point.

“Maybe Donovan’s leash is also longer because the franchise has done so much retooling of its roster. But even before the latest upheavals, Donovan had a reputation for not being able to get through to Westbrook, and as a result, his offense looks how Westbrook wants it to look. For all the offseason overhauling, the Thunder are still scrambling to find new ways to score. With Andre Roberson out until at least December, they won’t be able to counter those shortcomings on defense as effectively. This is supposed to be the season they make their return to contention, and OKC’s front office is running out of things to change.”

The last line of that paragraph is rather telling. “OKC’s front office is running out of things to change.” Should the Thunder be concerned about Donovan’s ability to coach this group?

Check out O’Shaughnessy’s full piece here.