Dan Hurley will return to UConn in 2024.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the two-time national champion head coach of the Huskies declined a six-year, $70 million contract offer from the Los Angeles Lakers. The announcement comes 12 hours after the historic franchise made a “compelling case” that Hurley could lead LeBron James and Anthony Davis to their second title in Los Angeles and the Lakers' 18th championship overall.
BREAKING: Connecticuts Dan Hurley has turned down the Los Angeles Lakers six-year, $70 million offer and will return to chase a third straight national title, sources tell ESPN. LA wouldve made him one of NBAs six highest paid coaches. pic.twitter.com/hEXo3o00SR
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 10, 2024
Hurley emerged as a leading candidate for the job last week when news broke that he and the Lakers had been in contact about the team's head coaching vacancy. Lakers ownership met with Hurley on Friday, and Hurley revealed to Wojnarowski that he was "extremely impressed" with what Los Angeles had to offer.
The 51-year-old's decision to decline the Lakers' offer is a massive win for UConn. The Huskies are poised to be a preseason top-10 team and a contender to win its third consecutive national championship in 2024-25.
According to Wojnarowski, Hurley – who signed a six-year, $32.1 million contract with UConn after the 2022-23 season – had a heavily reduced buyout for if he left the Huskies for an NBA head-coaching job: $1.875 million versus a $7.5 million buyout if he left for a college head-coaching job.
