A surprising candidate has emerged in the Los Angeles Lakers search for their next head coach.
The Lakers are preparing to make a “massive, long-term contract offer,” to UConn‘s Dan Hurley, ESPN reported Thursday. Los Angeles has reportedly been in contact with Hurley already, with discussions expected to “escalate” in the next few days as he’s been at the “forefront” of the team’s head-coach search from the start.
Hurley, 51, has helped UConn return to prominence in college basketball in recent years, leading the Huskies to back-to-back championships over the last two seasons. He’s gone 141-58 at UConn and 292-163 in his career as a college head coach with previous stops at Wagner and Rhode Island.
While Hurley has never coached in the NBA before, Lakers owner Jeanie Buss and general manager Rob Pelinka are “eager” to discuss their vision for what the head coach can do at the professional level, according to ESPN. Hurley has also “expressed” to Los Angeles an interest in coaching the franchise as he has ambitions to coach in the NBA, ESPN added in its report.
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Thursday’s news is a bit of a curveball compared to what’s been reported over the last few weeks. The Lakers were zeroing in on J.J. Redick to become their next coach, The Athletic reported Tuesday. As there was some belief that Redick would replace Darvin Ham, the other candidates who had reportedly interviewed for the job were NBA assistant coaches and former head coaches (Boston Celtics assistant Sam Cassell and former Charlotte Hornets head coach James Borrego being the most notable).
Lakers star LeBron James‘ connection to Redick also played a role in the belief that the former player turned broadcaster was the favorite to get the job. The two began hosting a podcast together, “Mind the Game,” in March, discussing hot topics in basketball and the nuances of the sport.
Shortly after Thursday’s news broke though, a social media post of James praising Hurley resurfaced, indicating that he’s a fan of the UConn coach.
“He’s so DAMN GOOD!!! Along with his staff,” James wrote in a social media post in April about Hurley following UConn’s second straight national title. “Super creative with their O! Love it”
Meanwhile, Redick said Wednesday that his focus was on the NBA Finals and that he would address his candidacy for the Lakers’ job at a later time. Redick is calling the final round of the playoffs for ABC.
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