UConn HC Dan Hurley reveals why he showed up at Billy Joel concert amid Lakers' coaching job drama

It was a topic of conversation when UConn coach Dan Hurley showed up at a Billy Joel concert while he was weighing the option of a jump to the NBA. The back-to-back national champion coach was mulling over a reported six-year, $70 million deal from the LA Lakers. Yet there he was at Madison Square Garden. Why? To steal from one of Joel's songs, it's still rock and roll to Hurley.

Hurley discussed the events on Thursday's episode of "The Herd with Colin Cowherd":

"We had to cancel going to a Billy Joel concert last September to accommodate Cooper and Kelly and his family for an official visit. And as big a moment it was in my career to make a huge decision, I was not missing Billy Joel in one of his last concerts at The Garden."

Let's dig a bit deeper into Hurley and The Piano Man.

Dan Hurley and his New York area roots

Dan Hurley hails from Jersey City, New Jersey, a practical long stone's throw from New York City. His father, Bob Hurley Sr., was a legendary high school coach at St. Anthony's High in Jersey City.

Dan's older brother Bobby starred for his dad before heading to Duke, where he won two NCAA titles there and became an NBA lottery pick. Bobby, of course, has been coaching at Arizona State in recent years.

Dan was also a high school star but was mostly a role player in college at Seton Hall. After college, he assisted his father for a year and then was an assistant coach at Rutgers. Hurley moved down to high school to take a head coaching job at St. Benedict's, a New Jersey prep school, where he stayed for a decade.

After that, Hurley moved from Wagner to Rhode Island to UConn. Given his family ties, it's unsurprising that he has essentially remained in the Northeast for the duration of his successful coaching career.

Hurley was approached by the LA Lakers, who are in the end game of LeBron James's brilliant career. The Lakers are one of the most successful franchises in professional sports with 17 NBA championships. Among their past coaches are Pat Riley, Jerry West and Phil Jackson. L.A. approached Hurley with a massive contract which would have placed him near the top in NBA coach salaries.

Decision or not, Dan Hurley wouldn't miss Billy Joel

Despite the pending media firestorm over whether Hurley would stay or go, he still headed to Madison Square Garden to see Billy Joel. A songwriter and pianist, Joel, who is now 75 years old, has remained a musical icon even as he produces less and less new music and has significantly decreased his touring.

Like Hurley, Joel is local to the New York area and has strongly been identified with the locale throughout his career. In 2014, he began playing a monthly show at Madison Square Garden, a tradition he will end this year with his show next month. That show will be Joel's 150th at the Garden, which is clearly a significant venue for himself and his legions of fans.

Joel is one of the top-selling solo acts of all time, with estimates of over 160 million records sold in his career. He can obviously count UConn's Dan Hurley among his fans.

Were you surprised to see Dan Hurley at a concert with a massive career decision pending? Weigh in below with your comments.