UConn men’s basketball fans can exhale now.
Two months after the Huskies won their second straight national title, head coach Dan Hurley gave the program’s followers another reason to celebrate on Monday with his return to Storrs, Conn.
Scores of UConn fans and basketball experts alike were shocked when it was reported on June 6 that the Los Angeles Lakers were preparing a “massive, long-term contract offer to Hurley.”
After the news broke, social media users quickly remembered Lakers superstar LeBron James’ recent comments on X praising the 51-year-old. Many fans made the connection, and headlines across the basketball world caused panic across parts of the Connecticut campus and beyond.
LBJ’s praise on April 19 was only 11 days after Hurley helped lead the Huskies to the championship by defeating Purdue, 75-60.
The comments were in response to a video of JJ Redick interviewing Hurley on the former’s podcast, “The Old Man and the Three.” Redick, ironically, has been rumored to be a front-runner for the Lakers gig for weeks.
There are multiple possible reasons why Hurley decided to stay with UConn, despite the hefty offer from Los Angeles.
He was born and raised in Jersey City, New Jersey, and has spent his entire coaching career in the Northeast, so moving out west would’ve been a massive upheaval for his family.
The chance of becoming just the second men’s basketball program ever to win three straight championships was a likely factor as well.
UConn has gone 68-11 in its two title-winning seasons and the team will now attempt to join UCLA as the only team to three-peat. The Bruins won seven straight NCAA championships from 1967-1973.
As noted by Spotrac, Hurley signed a six-year, $32.1M contract extension with the Huskies last summer and he would’ve had to pay a $1.875M fee to leave for an NBA job.