The Los Angeles Lakers are still without a head coach, and many sources from around the league believed that J.J. Reddick was in line to get that job. LA has decided to go a different direction as the Lakers are targeting Hurley!
According to league sources, the Lakers are preparing to offer Hurley a massive long-term contract in an attempt to pry him away from college basketball. Hurley has led the UConn Huskies to back-to-back NCAA Tournament championships and has always maintained that he enjoys his time in the NCAAB schedule.
The Lakers initiate contact with Hurley. Both sides expect discussions to continue in the coming days. Hurley has always expressed a desire to coach in the NBA at some point in his career, but this would be a surprising development.
Los Angeles has met with many other candidates throughout this process, but Hurley has always been at the top of their list. Top executives from the team have done a great job of keeping this quiet, and there was value for Hurley in keeping this a secret.
The next step in the process will be for the top executives to meet with Hurley in person. The Lakers believe that his coaching knowledge would be a perfect fit in the NBA teams. Vice President of Basketball Operations and Governor Jeanie Buss are leading the coaching search, and they are now all-in on Hurley.
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Stars in Conversation
While the executives for the Lakers will make the final decision, they are committed to keeping the star players in the conversation. To ensure Anthony Davis’ satisfaction, the Los Angeles organization will consider his feedback during the coaching search.
LeBron James has not been shy about expressing how impressed he is with Hurley, especially during his back-to-back championships. Hurley thrives on making smart decisions in the heat of the game, and he’s not afraid to take calculated risks.
This is a massive decision for the Lakers as it could be the determining factor on whether or not LeBron James finishes his career in L.A. Los Angeles has also made a similar attempt to land a star college coach as 20 years ago they attempted to lure “Coach K” away from Duke University.
Other candidates have gone deep into the hiring process with the Lakers, and it has appeared as if Redick was going to be the choice. Redick was trying to build up a coaching staff in preparation for accepting the job, but that might end up not being necessary.
LeBron James loved what he saw from Dan Hurley’s offense during the NCAA tournament 👀
(via @OldManAndThree) pic.twitter.com/5dcrFDK3nL
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 6, 2024
Who is Dan Hurley?
Dan Hurley is a New Jersey native and college basketball coach. He began his head coaching career with the Wagner Seahawks in 2010, where he spent two seasons.
He then moved to the Rhode Island Rams between 2012 and 2018, where he led the Rams to March Madness twice, to join his current team, the Connecticut Huskies, where he won back-to-back championships in 2023 and 2024, winning this year’s Naismith Trophy as best coach.
Dan Hurley Career Profile
Dan Hurley
Date of Birth: January 16th, 1973 (New Jersey, United States)
Coaching Record: 455 games (292-163 with .642)
Teams:
- Wagner Seahawks (2010-2012)
- Rhode Island Rams (2012-2018)
- UConn Huskies (2018-)
Dan Hurley Honours
- 2-time NCAA Champion (2023-2024 with UConn)
- 2-time Division 1 Regional Champion (2023-2024 with UConn)
- 1 Big East Tournament Champion (2024 with UConn)
- 1 Big East Regular Season Winner (2024 with UConn)
- 1 Atlantic 10 Tournament Champion (2017 with Rhode Island)
- 1 Atlantic 10 Regular Season Winner (2018 with Rhode Island)
- 2024 Naismith Trophy Best Coach of the Year
- 2024 Big East Coach of the Year
- 2018 Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year
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Will UConn Respond?
The Lakers targeting Hurley news didn’t land well at UConn headquarters. Losing Hurley would be a major setback for the University of Connecticut. This potentially forces them to scramble and offer a lucrative new contract to keep their star coach. Tempting offers came in from other majors NCAAB programs, but Hurley remained loyal to Storrs.
Hurley has expressed some displeasure with the current state of college basketball as new NIL rules and the transfer portal have made things more difficult. UConn became the first back-to-back champion in 17 years, and they absolutely dominated the competition.
The UConn Huskies are expected to be a top-five team heading into the upcoming season, and Hurley has been able to bring in a ton of talent. While that is the case, UConn would likely lose players if he were to leave for the NBA.
The Hurley family has an impressive resume over the past few decades, but moving to the Los Angeles Lakers would be a new step.
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