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Dan Hurley knew money couldn’t buy happiness with the Lakers
Dan Hurley is staying at UConn. The 51-year-old has turned down a head coaching offer from the Los Angeles Lakers, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Lakers offered Hurley a six-year, $70 million deal, according to Woj.
Hurley led UConn to back-to-back national championships in 2023 and 2024. He’s seeking to become the first men’s college basketball coach to three-peat since John Wooden at UCLA. Hurley has indicated that he’s eventually interested in jumping to the NBA, but apparently the chance to coach LeBron James on a $70 million deal wasn’t enough to land him.
We wrote that Hurley should reject the Lakers after their interest was initially reported. The Lakers face an uphill climb to being competitive in the Western Conference, and their window is small with James turning 40 years old this season.
J.J. Redick was previously reported to be the front-runner for the Lakers job, according to NBA insider Shams Charania. Redick is currently calling the 2024 NBA Finals for ABC/ESPN. The Lakers have also given two interviews to former Charlotte Hornets head coach James Borrego.
Hurley is replacing most of the talent off his 2024 national championship at UConn next season. The Huskies are losing projected lottery picks Donovan Clingan and Stephon Castle, as well as Final Four Most Outstanding Player Tristen Newton, and senior sharpshooter Cam Spencer. UConn is getting forward Alex Karaban back next season, and is getting a potential top-10 NBA Draft pick in incoming freshman Liam McNeeley. UConn returns veteran guard Hassan Diarra, and will welcome guard Aidan Mahaney and big man Tarris Reed Jr. from the transfer portal.
We’ll update this story as it develops.
