The head coaches in these Western Conference finals got to know each other when Donovan was coaching Florida. Kerr, then a broadcaster for TNT, called several Gators games in the NCAA Tournament. Kerr and Donovan kept in touch in recent years, building a friendship as they both migrated to coaching in the NBA. “We’ve stayed in touch, just on random coaching thoughts and if either one of us had any coaching positions we were looking at,” Kerr said. Donovan spent 19 years at Florida but often contemplated jumping to the NBA; he accepted the Orlando job in 2007 before having second thoughts and backing out.
