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Report: Kevin Ollie has removed his name from consideration for Thunder job

Kevin Ollie

Connecticut men’s basketball coach Kevin Ollie gestures during a celebration of UConn’s championships in the NCAA men’s and women’s tournaments, at a rally at the State Capitol in Hartford, Conn., on Sunday, April 13, 2014. (AP Photo/Fred Beckham)

AP

On Wednesday morning, Kevin Ollie released a statement saying that he has “no plans to pursue other opportunities”.

The key word there is “plans”, as plans can always change. Ollie left himself an out.

Turns out, that was convenient, as that statement happened to come just a few hours before news broke that Oklahoma City would be firing head coach Scott Brooks, meaning that the job coaching Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook was open. Given Ollie’s NBA pedigree and his relationship with the two superstars, his name immediately show up to the top of the list of potential replacements.

None of that is a surprise.

What may be, however, is the fact that Ollie appears to have told the Thunder thanks, but no thanks. According to a report from CBSSports.com, Ollie has removed his name from consideration for the Oklahoma City gig and, as he alluded to in his statement, will be returning to UConn for the 2015-16 season.

But let’s put this into context, shall we?

Because there’s a reason for Florida fans to be nervous here.

Yesterday, NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted the following: “Here’s thing with Donovan and Ollie: If OKC talks to one of the coaches first, expect the other to pull out of consideration -- and fast.”

That post was less than 24 hours old as of the posting of this story.

I’ll file that under “just sayin’”.