A former Los Angeles Lakers teammate of LeBron James is advising UConn Huskies head coach Dan Hurley not to take the job.
With LeBron James interested in the Huskies head coach, a former teammate of King James is advising Hurley to avoid the Lakers.
Despite tagging a burner account, the message from ex-Lakers and Cavaliers guard JR Smith was clear: “don’t fall for it!”
Smith has a connection to Hurley; the defending two-time national champion also coached a young JR in high school. Hurley and his wife Andrea even attended Smith’s wedding in 2016.
Hurley coached Smith starting in his sophomore year at St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark, New Jersey.
A former teammate of LeBron James is telling Dan Hurley not to take the Lakers job
JR Smith, who played under Hurley in high school, tweeted at the coach “don’t fall for it!”
While at St. Benedict’s, Hurley led the Gray Bees to a 223-21 record, coached four McDonald’s All-Americans (Smith, Lance Thomas, Corey Stokes and Samardo Samuels) and developed four teams that ranked in the top five of the country. .
From there, he jumped ship to Wagner College on Staten Island and set the school’s single-season win-loss record at 25-6 during the 2011-12 season.
After just two years, Hurley then jumped ship to the University of Rhode Island and led the Rams to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances.
He headed to Connecticut for the 2018-19 season and led the Huskies to a first national championship in his fifth year under him.
In year six, despite losing three starters to the NBA, UConn played even better, finishing the season 37–3 and becoming the first school in 17 years to win consecutive national championships.
The Lakers are reportedly “preparing a huge long-term offer” to Hurley for their current vacancy.
According to a college basketball insider Jeff GoodmanHurley is meeting with the Lakers today and will fly back to Connecticut this weekend to mull the decision.