The Los Angeles Lakers’ search for a new head coach took an unexpected turn very early on Thursday morning when it was reported that they were targeting University of Connecticut head coach Dan Hurley.
Hurley has guided the Huskies to back-to-back national championships over the last two seasons, and at age 51, he is someone who could be at the helm of the Lakers for a while.
Right now, Hurley is reportedly unsure whether to join the Purple and Gold or stay with the Huskies and go after a threepeat.
Via Fox Sports:
“A source tells FOX Sports that Hurley is ‘truly at a 50-50’ in weighing his decision whether to make the leap up for LeBron James and the Lakers or stay in the college game and try to achieve something unthinkable in the modern era,” wrote John Fanta.
“‘He deals with things mentally where he’s constantly seeking to prove what he can do,’ a source told FOX Sports.”
The University of Connecticut has reportedly offered Hurley a new contract itself, and that will factor into his decision.
“As for Hurley’s current position, a source tells FOX Sports that the University of Connecticut has offered the coach a lucrative new contract that would make him one of the highest-paid coaches in the country, featuring significant widespread benefits for him. Hurley said Wednesday that ‘it’s complicated, and it’s taken more time (to get a deal done) than any of us would have liked. It’s not something that’s been a rush for me. You sacrifice a lot to do this job. The job beats your [expletive] pretty good, and a lot suffers with your family. Any chance at a social life, it consumes everything you have.’
“… Finances aside, a source says Hurley is weighing whether he wants to make this move. He has northeast roots and his father, Bob Sr., is 76, very involved in his life and a fixture at UConn games. His wife Andrea and boys, Dan and Andrew, are happy in the northeast but his sons are past college, so one would think that could make a move easier.
“‘His parents are still here and still very much a part of his life, and it’s convenient for the family to be in this part of the country,’ a source said. ‘But there’s that angle that there may never be a better opportunity than this one right now.'”
In 23 seasons as a head coach at the college level, Hurley has a stellar 292-163 record. His brother Bobby was a point guard at Duke University and in the NBA and is now the head coach at Arizona State University.
