Lakers Reportedly Preparing 'Massive' Contract To Potentially Bring In UConn's Dan Hurley As Next Head Coach

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While talks of JJ Redick potentially becoming the next head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers have dominated the conversation recently, a new name has been added to the mix, and it's none other than UConn's Dan Hurley.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported early Thursday morning that the Lakers are "preparing a massive, long-term contract offer" to bring in the back-to-back national champion head coach. Woj later reported on SportsCenter that Hurley has "shown the willingness" to listen to the Lakers after the franchise has already had "preliminary contact" with Hurley.

According to the NBA insider, Hurley has been at the forefront of the Lakers' coaching search all along, even with the organization already interviewing other candidates.

Hurley is undoubtedly the most sought-after coach in all of basketball having won back-to-back titles with the Huskies while posting a record of 68-11 over the last two seasons. The only ‘mark’ on Hurley's resume is that he does not have any coaching experience in the NBA.

The interesting dynamic in this Hurley to Los Angeles hypothetical is how his coaching style would translate to the professional level. The 51-year-old is among the most-intense coaches in college basketball and brings a more old-school approach to the bench that has escaped much of the sport, especially in the NBA, over recent years.

Dan Hurley said that he sounded like a 'Donkey' while trying to be evasive about Kentucky opening.

Dan Hurley may become the next head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. (Photo by Brett Wilhelm/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

Outside of making more money, living in Los Angeles, and coaching LeBron James, the Lakers job has to be intriguing to Hurley given that there is no NIL or transfer portal to worry about in the NBA. Instead of working 365 days a year, Hurley would be working fewer days while adding to his bank account.

He has certainly navigated the choppy NIL waters at the college level extremely well, and even explained that he's coached his UConn players "harder" since they began getting paid, but not having to deal with that aspect of the sport while focusing on coaching may be a path Hurley is looking to go down while already at the top of the college coaching world.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.