Dan Hurley reveals how he and his wife decided to turn down the Lakers' job: "It was like the new technology version of rock, paper, scissors"

When UConn head coach Dan Hurley turned down the Lakers offer earlier this summer, he did not make the decision alone. He made it with his wife, Andrea. Few know that his lifelong partner flew with him to Los Angeles to meet with Lakers team owner Jeanie Buss and GM Rob Pelinka. The reason? The couple had been through a lot together, and Dan didn't want to make the biggest decision in their lives by himself.

So after hearing the Lakers ' pitch, going around town, and reflecting on the lives they would leave behind, they thought it over together. And they did so unconventionally when the time came to make the choice.

"We have all the information right now," said Dan during his recent interview with Graham Bensinger. "We've gone through everything, Andrea. One-two-three shoot. You know, that was like the new technology version of rocks, papers, and scissors."

A life-changing offer

When the Lakers dangled that six-year $70 million offer to replace Darvin Ham, Dan said it was indeed tempting. Aside from the obvious financial benefit, every coach's dream is to land a gig in the NBA. What more as head coach of the Lakers?

But the Hurleys were smart enough to weigh everything before making the decision. Dan had built a name for himself in UConn, and it was also tough to leave that behind, even if it was for the Lake Show.

When the Hurleys felt that they had all the information they needed to make the decision, Dan said they agreed to text each other's phones whether they wanted to leave or stay—no more long explanations.

"One-two-three shoot," added Dan. "Tell us what you think. And I was so relieved when we had the 'stay.' You know, seeing that 'stay' on her screen quick, and then the next day, when we woke up perfect, it's over."

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Making an impact on his players' lives

According to Hurley, there was never one reason why he rejected the Lakers' offer. However, he admitted that impacting his players' lives was at its core.

"I love being a part of this transformation for the last point in a young man's life where you can really have a big impact on how their life is going to play out," he added. "Like what the man becomes. That, to me, was what I realized that I love about being a college coach that you don't get to do as an NBA coach because that's not the relationship there. "

The Lakers ended up hiring LeBron's podcast partner, JJ Redick, as their new head coach. Meanwhile, Hurley returns to UConn, which has posted a record of 141-58 in his six years there, including 68-11 over the past two seasons with back-to-back National Championships.

Many, including the Lakers, believed that Hurley would take their offer. But as Dan and Andrea proved, not everything that glitters is purple and gold.

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