Dan Hurley 'will hold talks with Lakers' as they prepare 'massive contract' for the UConn coach to lead Lebron James and Los Angeles

UConn men's basketball coach Dan Hurley is meeting with the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday after the team appeared poised to sign JJ Redick for their head coaching opening.

Hurley has coached the Huskies into the NCAA championship in the past two seasons, making him a hot commodity. News broke of the purple and gold targeting Hurley to fill the vacancy on Thursday morning.

After reporting that the Lakers were preparing a 'massive, long-term offer' for Hurley, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski revealed that both parties will meet as the team hopes to secure a deal this weekend.

'Dan Hurley, I’m told, is on his way to meet with the Lakers tomorrow,' Wojnarowski said ahead of Game 1 of the NBA finals. 'He’ll sit down with Rob Pelinka, their Vice President and GM, and owner Jeanie Buss, and they’ll start to dig into what a Hurley-Laker partnership would look like.

'Hurley knows Rob Pelinka. They have spent time together in the past, talked basketball. But this is gonna be his first time meeting with Jeanie Buss and certainly the Lakers would love to get a deal with Dan Hurley wrapped up this weekend. I expect these talks will move quickly.'

'There’s a lot of traction here between Hurley and the Lakers. But they certainly have more talking to do about whether there’s a fit here. Dan Hurley, back at Connecticut, has a chance obviously to win a third straight NCAA championship.'

Hurley, who was reportedly offered a sizable contract to stay in UConn, will have a big decision to make as he meets with the Lakers front office.

Hurley hails from New Jersey and has spent most of his life in the Tri-State region. Hurley coached at the University of Rhode Island, Wagner College in Staten Island, and St. Benedict's Preparatory School in Newark before landing with the Huskies in 2018.

Should he remain in Stamford, Hurley will have the opportunity to secure three straight NCAA titles.  

The Lakers dismissed coach Darvin Ham after they fell to the Denver Nuggets in the first round and for the second straight postseason.

Before the gentlemen's sweep, LeBron James and Anthony Davis to a 47-35 finish in the regular season. They would secure the seventh seed and a playoff berth after beating the New Orleans Pelicans in a play-in.

James agreed to a $99 million, two-year extension in 2022 and has a player option for the upcoming season. Meanwhile, Davis is still on his $186 million maximum contract extension from 2023 - tying him to the franchise through 2028 for a total of $270m.