"I'm the consolation prize": Dan Hurley opens up on aftermath of brother Bobby's decision to join Coach K's Duke

New Jersey native Dan Hurley and brother Bobby Hurley were supposed to go and play for Seton Hall. While the current UConn Huskies coach stayed behind and played for the Hall from 1991 to 1996; surprisingly his brother Bobby chose to go and play for Mike Krzyzewski aka Coach K's Duke. He played there from 1989 to 1993.

Even to this date, Dan has no idea why his brother didn't stay back at home. He said during ESPN's E60, released on Thursday.

"I don't know," Hurley said (00:00 onwards). "I always found it awkward that my brother went to Duke, and now I'm the consolation prize."

Hurley admitted that his preference was to attend Rutgers rather than follow in his brother's high-profile basketball footsteps.

"My preference was probably to go to Rutgers. I felt, for me, that might have been a better alternative — a little bit less pressure," Hurley added.

Dan Hurley was under the cast of his brother's shadow until he emerged as a successful coach with the Huskies. His success has proven that he was never just a "consolation prize."

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How Dan Hurley and Bobby Hurley navigated their paths in college basketball

Under the legendary tutelage of their father, Bob Hurley Sr., both Bobby and Dan Hurley took different but influential paths in basketball.

Bobby Hurley went on to become the best point guard Duke has ever seen, leading the program to back-to-back national championships in 1991 and 1992, earning the Most Outstanding Player honors in the 1992 Final Four. He remains the NCAA’s all-time leader in assists.

After his brief playing career in the NBA from 1993 to 1998, Bobby got into coaching, starting as assistant coach at Wagner, followed by stops at Rhode Island (associate HC), Buffalo (head coach) and finally the leader of Arizona State Sun Devils basketball program.

Meanwhile, unlike his brother, Dan Hurley started slowly to make his footprints. He chose to play at Seton Hall rather than follow in Bobby’s footsteps at Duke.

Dan had a solid career as a point guard for the Pirates, but his true calling came in coaching. After stints as a high school coach and a successful run at Wagner and Rhode Island, he landed the head coaching job at UConn. In 2023, he led the Huskies to a national championship before repeating in 2024.