Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
Before the Los Angeles Lakers hired J.J. Redick as their head coach, they pursued University of Connecticut men’s basketball head coach Dan Hurley.
Hurley, who won back-to-back national titles with UConn in 2023 and 2024, ended up turning down L.A.’s offer to remain at UConn, and Lakers fans haven’t forgotten.
After UConn lost to the University of Florida in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, several Lakers fans took to social media to take shots at Hurley.
Hurley was even compared to former Lakers head coach Darvin Ham by one user.
UConn was tied at the half and held a lead in the second half against the heavily favored Gators, but it was unable to close the game out.
In fact, UConn led 61-59 with under three minutes to play, but a critical run by the Gators – led by star guard Walter Clayton Jr. – gave Florida a big enough lead. The Huskies were never able to erase that deficit.
Hurley has led UConn to the NCAA Tournament in five straight seasons, but the Huskies have failed to make it any deeper than the second round in three of those seasons. Now that star players like Donovan Clingan and Stephon Castle are no longer with the program, UConn may have a harder time reaching another national title game.
As for the Lakers, they have to be happy that they landed Redick as their head coach. The former NBA sharpshooter has led the Lakers to a 43-27 mark so far this season, and they currently hold the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference.
After falling into the play-in tournament in the Western Conference in each of the last two seasons, the Lakers are poised to avoid that in the 2024-25 season with Redick at the helm.
Lakers fans may want to see Hurley and his team fail, but ultimately, things appear to have worked out for both Hurley and L.A.
The Lakers are in contention with Luka Doncic and LeBron James leading the way, and Hurley gets to remain the face of the UConn program, even if his team fell short this season.
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