The UConn Huskies are back-to-back national champions thanks in large part to coach Dan Hurley. Unfortunately for the Huskies, they are now in serious jeopardy of losing the best coach in college basketball.
News surfaced this week that the Los Angeles Lakers are making a hard push to hire Hurley as their new coach, offering him a massive contract to entice him to leave UConn. Unlike previous attempts by Los Angeles to land successful college basketball coaches, this pursuit reportedly has a legitimate chance to be successful.
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- Dan Hurley coaching record: 292-163 overall, 141-58 with UConn Huskies
Hurley, age 51, has previously expressed interest in becoming an NBA coach. He’s also believed to be seriously considering the Lakers’ offer in part both due to the opportunity and the long-term uncertainty of college sports under the NCAA.
While the Huskies are prepared to make every effort to keep Hurley, the program knows this could be out of their control. The Lakers can match any contract offer UConn makes and the NBA might offer more certainty than college basketball. As Hurley weighs his options, two UConn coaching targets seem to be emerging.
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Who will replace Dan Hurley?
John Fanta of Fox Sports reported that if Hurley is hired as the Lakers coach, UConn is expected to hire either Kimani Young or Luke Murray as his replacement. Just as notable, the Huskies would likely lose whichever assistant they don’t pick to Hurley as a member of the Lakers coaching staff.
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“The key debate, sources tell FOX Sports, would be whether associate head coach Kimani Young or assistant coach Luke Murray, the son of Hollywood legend Bill Murray, is given the job. Based on what I have heard, it looks like whoever wouldn’t get elevated would join Hurley in the NBA — especially if Murray is not named head coach, he would follow Hurley to L.A. — thus giving that person a nice concession prize and the opportunity to land a head coaching job down the road.”
John Fanta on who would replace Dan Hurley as the UConn Huskies basketball coach
Young joined the Huskies’ coaching staff in 2018, first serving as an assistant coach (2018-’20) before being promoted to assistant head coach. Young is known for both being an excellent recruiter and playing an integral role in the development of players like Stephon Castle, Jordan Hawkins and Tristen Newton.
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Murray, the son of actor Bill Murray, attended school in Connecticut and graduated from Fairfield University. He joined UConn’s coaching staff in 2021 after previously serving stints at Rhode Island (2013-’15), Xavier (2015-’18) and Louisville (2018-’21). While Murray isn’t as highly regarded as a recruiter, he is credited with the success of the Huskies’ offensive system and holds a strong reputation for his basketball IQ.
If Hurley ultimately lands in Los Angeles, UConn could move quickly to name his successor amid fears the Huskies roster could experience a mass exodus if the coach leaves.