“He didn’t turn down any job, he turned down Lakers”: Insider wants UConn to “keep” Dan Hurley for maintenance of college hoops’ health 

Dan Hurley now enters the small list of college coaches who turned down a lucrative offer from the pros. A list that includes the likes of Juwan Howard and Mike Krzyzewski. Even though Hurley dismissed the deal strictly due to the championship culture he built with UConn, the move is seen as a huge win for college basketball, usually referred to as a younger brother of the NBA.

With that, analyst Matt Norlander claims that Dan Hurley's presence becomes vital for the overall health and growth of college ball as his move makes him the face of the NCAA circuit for the coming years. (Start at 1:58)

"Dan Hurley is now one of the faces, if not the face, of college basketball. In the fact of the sport, at least for now, at least for another season, if not another season, two, three, four, or five, they don't lose him. I think it is important for the overall health, publicity, and marketing of college basketball to keep a guy," Norlander said on CBS Sports.

"And particularly to keep a guy who turned down, it was not like he turned down any job, he turned down the Lakers to stay in Storrs, Connecticut and on the East Coast. And with that the Huskies, now they ramp up and vamp up for what will be one of the more intriguing seasons and one of the most-watched teams in the sport next year," he added.

Hurley was the frontrunner for the Los Angeles Lakers coaching spot. The franchise made a compelling case for Dan Hurley. They offered a $70 million contract, which would have made the UConn mastermind the sixth highest-paid coach in the league.

Why did Dan Hurley decide to stay with UConn?

Hurley's decision sparked solely from the chance to make history. His UConn team will enter the 2024 season with back-to-back titles and a chance to three-peat for the first time in 40+ years in NCAA books. With that, Hurley has a chance to cement himself as the greatest collegiate-level coach of the modern day.

Meanwhile, with the Lakers, Hurley would operate with a pre-existing roster with little to no control. Moreover, even though he could present his input, Hurley would not have a say in major team decisions like drafts, trades and other strategies, something that he utilizes for his success in college.

Had Dan Hurley switched to the big league, UConn's program would have started depleting within days. From roster transfers to finding a new coach, it could have been forced to reset with the possibility of churning out a questionable season.

However, his rejection of the big league now makes him a program legend, that is if he was not considered one already. Moreover, Dan Hurley now has the entire college circuit rooting for his success.