"One of the worst takes I’ve heard": Dan Hurley shuts down rumors swirling around $70 million rejection to "leverage" UConn contract extension

Dan Hurley says he didn't leverage the LA Lakers job to get more money from the UConn Huskies. Hurley was a surprise candidate for the Lakers job, and Los Angeles offered him a six-year deal for $70 million.

Although Hurley got a massive offer from the Lakers, he turned down the deal. Because of that, rumors started to swirl that he leaked the Lakers' interest to get more money from the Huskies. Hurley said that was not the case at all and called it one of the worst takes ever while speaking on "The Dan LeBatard Show":

"To me, that is one of the dumbest takes I've heard... One of the worst takes I’ve heard is that this was a leverage play by me to improve my situation at UConn. I don’t need leverage here. We’ve won back-to-back national championships at this place. This was never a leverage situation for me.

"I've had a contract in place here for a couple of weeks, and the financial part in terms of salary has been done for a while. There are some other parts like NIL and staff salary that I wanted adjusted and wasn't comfortable with. But, the idea that this was some conspiracy to get a sweeter deal at UConn is lazy."

Interestingly, Hurley said he had a new contract in place even before the rumor of the LA Lakers' interest was public. Hurley also said he was legitimately torn on whether or not to take the job with the Lakers, so the take of him using it for leverage doesn't make sense.

Dan Hurley is committed to UConn

With Dan Hurley turning down the LA Lakers offer, he will remain the coach of the UConn Huskies. Hurley is looking to lead UConn to a third straight national championship as the Huskies have gone back-to-back. After the coach made a decision, Hurley released a statement after his decision to remain at UConn.

“I am humbled by this entire experience,” Hurley said, via SI. “At the end of the day, I am extremely proud of the championship culture we have built at Connecticut. We met as a team before today’s workout and our focus right now is on getting better this summer and connecting as a team as we continue to pursue championships.”

Dan Hurley has been the Huskies head coach of the Huskies since 2018 and has a record of 141-58.