<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">His goodbye was as stunning as his hello. According to wild-fire reports, Billy Donovan wants out of his contract he signed as Magic coach last Friday so he can return to Florida. It's apparently a matter of whether the Magic will let him wiggle out of the five-year, $27-million deal. The Magic might seek damages, but that's for the legal beagles. They can try to talk him back on board, though what team wants a coach whose heart and head now are no longer into the NBA -- or at least Orlando? I don't know what happened to Billy D. I wonder if it had been different if the Magic had put him to work immediately instead of letting him go back to Gainesville hours later for a UF goodbye news conference? Something happened Saturday to Donovan. Over the weekend, the Gators were curiously taking their time hiring former UF assistant Anthony Grant --- now we know why. Billy wanted to come back. Reports are that UF AD Jeremy Foley flew to Virginia to fetch Grant --- the Virginia Commonwealth coach --- but didn't leave with him. Foley said he had an emergency --- and that emergency turned out to be the Magic's emergency as well. Billy wanted out to back out of one deal and back into another. I know what you're thinking: This could only happen to the Magic. At least Billy isn't leaving for the Lakers. Shaq bolted for L.A. 11 years ago, and the Magic never recovered. This Donovan defection isn't quite on that Richter scale of basketball earthquakes, but it's close. There was the player coup that forced out Brian Hill in 1997, the injury-filled career of Grant Hill, the ugly trade of Tracy, the runaway draft pick, Fran Vazquez. Now the Billy Boomerang. It could only happed to the Magic. A feel-good story has turned into a sob story. It's a devastating blow to a franchise that felt the buzz from the Donovan hiring, beaming as to how it could make the Magic matter again, confident his arrival would seal the deal on a new arena. Now, the Magic, even though Billy Ball is taking his ball and going home, plays the part of the fool again. County commissioners who were against the Magic's arena-funding plan just had their case bolstered, fair or not.</div> Source
