Report: Durant has spoken with former Donovan players, positive about potential hiring

Seven years after he last played in the NBA, Taurean Green is finally making his presence felt.

Maybe. It's either him or any number of other former University of Florida players that played under head coach Billy Donovan, who has emerged as the favorite to fill the Oklahoma City Thunder's vacant coaching job.

While Thunder general manager Sam Presti is making his decision independently, reportedly without the input of stars Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka, the organization's goal with the hire will surely be to convince Durant to remain with the franchise long term. 

Durant will become an unrestricted free agent following the 2015-16 season, and his comfort with the new head coach should be paramount in the search.

As a result, Donovan is reportedly hoping to speak with the Thunder's top players before making a final decision.

Even if such a meeting doesn't occur, and even if Presti doesn't consult Durant before putting pen to paper, the reigning MVP is doing his due diligence. Durant has reached out to multiple former Florida players who played for Donovan, according to a report from Yahoo Sports, with the superstar emerging "generally positive" about Donovan as a potential hire.

The list of NBA players that Donovan has churned out is lengthy, so Durant had plenty of options when seeking someone to speak to.

It's unlikely that Bradley Beal, whose Washington Wizards are hoping to lure Durant in 2016, did anything to help the Thunder retain Durant, but otherwise he probably could have leaned on anyone for a direct evaluation of Donovan as a bench boss. 

Joakim Noah, Al Horford and Corey Brewer, in particular, have always spoken highly of their time winning back-to-back national championships together.