Dan Hurley is the Next Coach K

6.10.2024

Karter Baughan

BREAKING: Connecticut’s 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 would’ve made him one of NBA’s six highest paid coaches. pic.twitter.com/hEXo3o00SR
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 10, 2024

It was announced today that Dan Hurley has declined the Lakers job and will remain the head coach of the UConn Huskies as he tries to go for a third consecutive national title.

Coach K and Geno are trying to save their legacies pic.twitter.com/yLRkXWKv3U
— KarterKast (@KarterKast) June 7, 2024

Coach K did this song and dance back in 2004, where he declined the Lakers job to remain at Duke (which was probably the best move of his career).

Former Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has become a respected unofficial resource for the Los Angeles Lakers during their head-coaching search, multiple sources tell @ShamsCharania.

Current frontrunner JJ Redick played for Coach K at Duke from 2002 to 2006.https://t.co/mx1Fpnt8BT pic.twitter.com/kHmVMPkLbB
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) June 4, 2024

Coach K is reportedly working as a consultant for the Lakers as they search for their new head coach. Coach K was clearly trying to protect his own legacy by recruiting Dan Hurley away from college basketball. (So was Geno; he wants to be the top dog on campus again.)

K is currently the modern GOAT of college basketball and obviously sees Dan Hurley as the biggest threat to dethrone him. Hurley is very much on the Coach K track of success and here's why he is the next Coach K.

Duke in the 1980s was not necessarily hated outside of Danny Ferry. In the '90s, Duke finally became hateable after Christian Laettner’s dirty plays, winning back-to-back titles, and defeating the beloved Fab 5.

Coach K’s antics grew old, and people began to despise the Blue Devils. Dan Hurley is on that track where he is DESPERATE to become the villain of college basketball. Eventually, like all winners, people will begin to hate Hurley. Currently, the only people that truly hate Dan Hurley are the Big East and possibly Geno Auriemma.

There are a few things Hurley and UConn are missing that helped make Duke so hateable.

They are missing a truly hateable white guy. A white guy that makes dirty plays, can seem pretentious at times, but will rip your heart out. Can Aidan Mahaney be that guy? We’ll see.

UConn has also not defeated a beloved team like Duke did in 1992. Every team that UConn has beaten in the NCAA Tournament has been very hateable (except Miami). The top teams they defeated during their title runs include:

Gonzaga with Drew Timme
San Diego State 2x (nobody cares about them)
Arkansas (people do not like the Muss Bus)
Illinois
Alabama (the world hates Bama and Nate Oats)
Purdue (the basketball world triumphed when Zach Edey didn’t win)

Every team on that list you could find hateable, but let’s say DJ Burns has a 30 and 10 performance against Purdue, and UConn plays NC State. Are people universally still loving Dan Hurley?

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To fully reach that last stage of hatability, you have to have sustained success and be nationally relevant at least over a 4-5 year stretch. Clearly, that does not seem like that will be an issue for Dan Hurley's teams.

Lastly, everybody hates when others win. Whether it's Brady and the Patriots, Mahomes and the Chiefs, Coach K and Duke, or the 2015-19 Golden State Warriors, people hate seeing others win, which is why this will be the year Dan Hurley becomes hated like Coach K.