Why Lakers are targeting Dan Hurley: How UConn coach would help L.A. in LeBron James era and beyond

Dan Hurley’s place in the Los Angeles Lakers’ coaching search may be surprising, but it feels somewhat familiar. It was 20 years ago next month that Mike Krzyzewski, then college basketball’s most decorated coach, considered a lengthy courtship from the purple and gold. In the end, he turned down them down, but he’s maintained a relationship with the franchise and its stars in the decades since. Now, he is serving as a consultant on another Lakers hire, and considering Hurley is the brother of his former point guard at Duke, Bobby Hurley, it’s safe to say Krzyzewski has a handle on what kind of coach the Lakers are considering.

So… what kind of coach are the Lakers considering? Who is Dan Hurley, the two-time defending national champion at UConn? What kind of team does he run? What would his presence mean for the roster moving forward? We’ll attempt to answer those questions and more below.

How did Hurley get here?

The last time the Lakers pursued a star college coach, Hurley was relatively early in his tenure at St. Benedict’s Prep, a New Jersey high school power. That level is where the Hurley family has made its name. His father, Bob Hurley Sr., is the legendary head coach of St. Anthony High School in New Jersey, and Dan’s coaching career began there as an assistant immediately after his playing career at Seton Hall ended. A brief stint as a Rutgers assistant got him the St. Benedict’s job, where he stayed and thrived until 2010.

From there, Hurley made the leap to Wagner, which began a steady trend of slow but deliberate program turnarounds at the college level. His first Wagner team went 13-17. His second went 25-6. That got him the Rhode Island job, where he went below .500 for two years, but eventually got the Rams into back-to-back NCAA tournaments. They won a game in both the 2017 and 2018 big dances, and that got him the Huskies job. For the third consecutive job, Hurley went below .500 in his debut campaign (16-17). He hasn’t gone below .500 since. The Huskies went 19-12 in 2020, returned to the NCAA tournament in 2021 and,…

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Author : Sam Quinn

Publish date : 2024-06-06 20:34:35

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