Dan Hurley has rejected the offer to coach the Los Angeles Lakers and has decided to stay in Connecticut. This put an end to the days of speculations regarding his future and will have his sights set on guiding the Huskies to a third consecutive NCAA championship.
“I am humbled by this entire experience,” Hurley said, “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.”
If Hurley had ended up joining the Lakers, he would have become one of the NBA’s highest-paid coaches. Instead, he chose to become one of the highest-paid coaches in the NCAA.
Hurley turned down a chance to coach one of the most decorated teams in NBA history which boast Lebron James in their line up. The Huskies went 68-11 in the past two title-winning seasons and would look to win three titles in a row this season, something, which has only been achieved by UCLA who won seven NCAA championships in a row from 1967 to 1973.
UConn’s Athletic Director David Benedict was quick to share his feelings and said he was ‘thrilled’ that Hurley was going nowhere.
“He has helped return our men’s basketball program back to the pinnacle of the sport, including back-to-back NCAA Championships, and we’re grateful for his loyalty to UConn,” Benedict said. “We look forward to Dan’s continued leadership on and off the court at UConn. He will continue to bring great pride to Husky fans everywhere as we work toward a three-peat.“
On the flip side, the Purple and Gold franchise will have to restart their hunt to find a new coach. JJ Redick and Sam Cassell are now reportedly the frontrunners for the job. They fired their previous coach Darvin Ham after first-round exit in playoffs in 2024.
Mohd Faisal Hakak is a sports author from Kashmir. He likes to keep tabs on the sporting world with a keen interest in football, motorsports, NBA, and other marquee sports. He is a science graduate from Islamia College Srinagar.
