NBA Rumors: Lakers ‘On Edge’ About Dan Hurley Decision amid Possible Return to UConn

Dan Hurley says he plans on making a decision about his coaching future Monday.

The Los Angeles Lakers are reportedly waiting with bated breath.

“The Lakers are on edge about this because they’ve thrown Dan Hurley the bouquet, so to speak,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said Monday on Get Up. “They’ve given him, presumably, the largest coaching contract offer in the history of the franchise. They’ve brought him out to give him their vision, and he’s been home for several days with no [decision]. … They’ve so prioritized Dan Hurley that they’ve let other potential candidates go off the board elsewhere. It took them a while to get Dan Hurley interested enough to seriously engage with them, they’ve got that engagement, and now they’ve gotta hope they were able to close it.”

Windhorst noted that James Borrego, who has met with Lakers officials twice regarding the vacancy, has momentum to land the Cleveland Cavaliers’ vacancy. Borrego and former NBA guard JJ Redick were seen as the two favorites for the Lakers’ job publicly before Hurley’s name soared to the top of the list last week.

Hurley told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski he’s torn between the Lakers’ offer and staying at UConn, where he has won back-to-back national championships. The 51-year-old said he was “extremely impressed” with Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka and owner Jeanie Buss, who offered him a “compelling vision” for the future.

According to Hurley, Pelinka and Buss pitched him not only on being able to compete for NBA championships immediately with LeBron James and Anthony Davis but also offered a long-term vision for the franchise.

Hurley has no NBA head coaching experience. He spent a decade as a head coach at St. Benedict’s Prep in New Jersey before working with Wagner and Rhode Island at the collegiate level.

Redick has never coached beyond the youth level and has spent his post-playing career in the media with ESPN. He was considered a strong favorite among most observers for much of the process, but Hurley has seemingly been the Lakers’ top choice all along.

Borrego is the only one of the three top candidates with any NBA head coaching experience, but he seems like a clear third choice.

Regardless, the Lakers aren’t going to have to wait much longer to know if they’re headed back to the drawing board.