By now, you all have heard that UConn Huskies head coach Dan Hurley, to the shock of the sports world, may be up for the head coaching position with the Los Angeles Lakers.
According to ESPN, Hurley and the Lakers may be in deep negotiations, and the NBA franchise is willing to give him a long-term contract to make him their next coach.
If that were to happen, who could step in and take his place? Well, according to one college basketball analyst, Jeff Goodman, he thinks it will be a certain SEC coach, and it’s not who you think it would be.
Goodman says he thinks Bruce Pearl of the Auburn Tigers would be immediately contacted by UConn if Hurley decides to move to Los Angeles.
“If Dan Hurley leaves UConn for the Lakers, the guy I would target is Auburn’s Bruce Pearl. Grew up in New England, has the personality to follow Dan Hurley, can coach/recruit and his buyout is reasonable.”
That would be a shock considering Pearl’s age (61), and the Auburn head coach has been on the Plains for over a decade, not to mention the fact that he has never won a national championship while at Auburn and has only made one Final Four.
As of now, Hurley has not decided whether or not he plans to take the Lakers job.
About Stacey Mickles
Stacey is a 1995 graduate of the University of Alabama who has previously worked for other publications such as Sportskeeda and Saturday Down South.