Lakers owner Jeanie Buss and GM Rob Pelinka's relatively secret Dan Hurley plan 'shocked' high-ranking official: Report

The LA Lakers are reportedly trying to sign UConn Huskies head coach Dan Hurley and take charge of the historic franchise. Lakers owner Jeanie Buss and general manager Rob Pelinka are huge proponents of hiring Hurley, who led the Huskies to back-to-back NCAA championships in 2023 and 2024.

According to Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times, the "secret plan" of Buss and Pelinka to bring Hurley shocked a high-ranking official. The anonymous official was at a loss for words when ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski initially reported the Lakers' interest in the 51-year-old coach.

"I don't know if I've ever been more shocked," the high-ranking official told the LA Times.

Dan Woike added that the LA Lakers are looking for a long-term head coach and are likely offering Dan Hurley a multi-year contract. Hurley's work with the UConn Huskies has been historic, building the program into an offensive juggernaut since 2018.

It finally paid off last year when the Huskies won the national championship against the San Diego State Aztecs. However, Hurley and the rest of UConn were not finished as they became just the second team since 1992 to win back-to-back NCAA titles.

Duke won two straight titles under Mike Krzyzewski in 1991 and 1992, while the Florida Gators did it in 2006 and 2007 with Billy Donovan at the helm. Woike also reported that all the rumors linking JJ Redick to the coaching position have no merit.

But the Lakers did interview Redick along with a bunch of other assistant coaches in the league such as New Orleans' James Borrego, Minnesota's Micah Nori, Boston's Sam Cassell and Denver's David Adelman.

Adrian Wojnarowski went on air on "SportsCenter" to further update the situation. Things are expected to "escalate" in the coming days because Hurley is interested in the position. The Lakers are also putting a lot of effort into bringing back the 51-year-old coach.

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LeBron James is a fan of Dan Hurley

LeBron James is a fan of UConn Huskies head coach Dan Hurley.

Dan Hurley went to JJ Redick's "Old Man and the Three" podcast back in April following his second straight NCAA championship with UConn. Hurley's basketball intelligence was through the roof as he explained to Redick how he built the Huskies' innovative offense with help from other sports such as football and other leagues such as FIBA and in Europe.

LeBron James was particularly impressed with Hurley's offensive mind and had nothing but praise for him. James wrote back in April:

"He's so DAMN GOOD!!! Along with his staff. Super creative with their O! Love it."

It's unclear how much input LeBron will have with the LA Lakers coaching search considering he could opt out of his contract to become a free agent. It also doesn't help that "King James" showed up in Cleveland a few weeks ago and made some comments about Kyrie Irving recently.