Hurley is coming off back-to-back national titles with the Huskies, who would hate to see their coach jump to the NBA.
What would LeBron James think about this move happening? We don’t kow yet, but a few months ago James tweeted about Hurley and it seems like he loves what the coach and his staff have done at UConn.
Here is James replying to a video of JJ Redick, who has also been on the Lakers’ radar, and Hurley talking about UConn’s offense:
Here’s how such a move would impact UConn and what to look out for in the coming days should Hurley head to the NBA.
The beauty of the UConn job is very much in the eye of the beholder. On fundamentals alone, the job is less attractive than other blue bloods, given its location and the lack of big-time football money flowing through it, along with the subsequent long-term conference affiliation questions that come with that. Despite that, no program has had more success in the 2000s than UConn, winning national championships under three different coaches (two each by Hurley and Jim Calhoun, one by Kevin Ollie). The expectations for whoever would come next are national championships, plural. That’s a daunting task, especially given a potentially bearish financial future compared to the program’s peers in leagues with eight- and nine-figure annual television payouts coming soon.
The job opening in early June also presents problems. Wooing top coaches who’ve already built rosters for next season would be tricky and potentially complicated further by recent contract extensions that have ballooned buyouts into the $10 million or more range. A coach from outside the UConn family would also have his hands full retaining the current roster, a priority given UConn’s legitimate aspirations for a three-peat.
That makes an internal promotion perhaps the most realistic option, either on an interim basis for a year or on a full-time basis. UConn has two strong candidates on its current staff in associate head coach Kimani Young and assistant coach Luke Murray. The perceived favorite would be Young, who took over coaching duties when Hurley was ejected in a famous 2022 game against the Villanova Wildcats and owns the top title on staff. Young has long been due for a head coaching opportunity and has been openly praised by Hurley several times for his work both in game-planning and recruiting.
Hurley has praised Young for his game-planning and recruiting. / David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Murray, an X-and-O savant and the son of actor Bill Murray, could also emerge as a potential candidate. If not tabbed the head coach, Hurley seems likely to push for him to join his Lakers staff.
If a full search were opened up, it’d be fascinating to see which candidates emerge. Rutgers’s Steve Pikiell was on the board when Hurley took the job and he played and coached under Calhoun, but has his most talented team yet set to enroll at Rutgers this summer. Another regionally tied name that could make sense is Seton Hall’s Shaheen Holloway, who went to an Elite Eight as the head coach at St. Peter’s. Athletic director David Benedict could also take big swings at the likes of Auburn’s Bruce Pearl (a Massachusetts native) and Alabama’s Nate Oats (who previously worked in New York at Buffalo), but neither seems likely to land.
If Hurley leaves, every player on the Huskies would have a 30-day window to enter the transfer portal despite the portal being otherwise closed since May 1. Hurley rebuilt the Huskies’ roster this spring to have a chance to contend for a three-peat, reeling in highly regarded transfers Aidan Mahaney and Tarris Reed Jr., five-star freshman Liam McNeeley and retaining star forward Alex Karaban. A swift internal hire could help retain the current roster, though it isn’t a guarantee. Even with an internal hire made for 2023–24 after Bob Huggins was fired at West Virginia last June, five players entered the portal, with three eventually leaving.
Karaban chose to return to the Huskies instead of staying in the 2024 NBA draft. / Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Given the way prices in the NIL market have exploded for top transfers as supply has shrunk in the last month, it’s safe to say there would be hugely lucrative offers on the table to try to woo UConn’s current roster into the portal. How Benedict handles this search could be the difference between the Huskies being deep in contention for a third straight championship and facing a near-impossible rebuild in June after a significant roster exodus.
In an era of significant turnover among the sport’s legendary coaches, Hurley had emerged as one of the new faces of the game. His fiery personality and ever-quotable news conferences, combined with the remarkable success of the last two years, gave Hurley the chance to take over the sport and become this generation’s John Wooden or Mike Krzyzewski. To lose Hurley to the NBA would be a brutal break for a sport hunting for star power for fans to attach themselves to.
Plus, UConn going for a historic third straight title would be one of the biggest stories of the 2024–25 season. That pursuit being derailed in June by a coaching search would be a crippling blow months before the season tips off.
UConn's men's basketball coach Dan Hurley announced on Monday that he would not be leaving for the NBA, despite the reported six-year, $70 million contract he was offered by the Los Angeles Lakers.
Rather than make the jump to the NBA, Hurley has instead chosen to remain in Storrs, Conn. and pursue a third consecutive national championship with the Huskies.
Hurley issued a statement on Monday afternoon, in which he detailed his decision to stay at UConn.
"I am humbled by this entire experience. At the end of the day, I am extremely proud of the championship culture we have built at Connecticut. We met as a team before today's workout and our focus right now is getting better this summer and connecting as a team as we continue to pursue championships," wrote Hurley in a statement shared by UConn's Men's Basketball on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Hurley reportedly met with the Lakers' front office over the weekend and listened to their pitch, but despite calling it a "compelling vision," it ultimately wasn't enough to sway him to abandon what he's built in Storrs. After winning back-to-back national titles, the Huskies will now look to join UCLA as the only program in history to win three in a row.
UConn signed Hurley to a six-year, $32.1 million extension after the 2022-23 season. That's less than half of what he reportedly would've made in Los Angeles, though he could be in line for a new deal following his decision to return to the university.
Stunning news in the basketball world was announced on Thursday morning and it had nothing to do with Game 1 of the NBA Finals which is set for tonight.
At 6:50 am et, Adrian Wojnarowski announced the Los Angeles Lakers are targeting UConn head coach, Dan Hurley, to become their team's next coach.
Hurley is fresh off leading the UConn Huskies to back-to-back National Championships, which hadn't been done in men's college basketball since Florida achieved the feat in 2006-2007. After their first championship in 2023, Hurley signed a six-year, $31.1 million contract with the school.
As a result of the news, the Huskies' odds to three-peat in 2025 have taken a dramatic hit.
Before the Woj Bomb dropped this morning, UConn was set as the co-favorite alongside the Kansas Jayhawks to win the 2025 National Championship at +1000. As of writing this article, they have fallen to fourth on the odds list at +1400 behind Kansas (+1000), Duke (+1200), and Arizona (+1200).
If you translate the odds to implied probability, their chance of a 2025 National Championship fell from 9.09% to 6.67%, a fall of 2.42% which is a significant drop in the futures market with the season still months away.
The signing has yet to be made official therefore there's still a chance Hurley returns to UConn. Wojnarowski followed up the original tweet with another one saying;
"The Lakers have had preliminary contact with Hurley and sides are planning to escalate discussions in coming days. Hurley’s been at the forefront of the Lakers’ search from the beginning of the process, even while the organization has done its due diligence interviewing other candidates."
If the signing is finalized and made official, don't be surprised if UConn's odds for a threepeat, something that hasn't been done since UCLA from 1967-1973, continue to drop.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.