Dan Hurley faced a difficult decision Monday. Should he leave the comforts of UConn to chase an NBA title with LeBron James and the Lakers, or remain with the Huskies as they look to win a third consecutive NCAA championship?
Ultimately, Hurley decided to stay in Storrs. He spurned the Lakers despite being offered a bag to lead the team in the post-Darvin Ham era.
Hurley seems likely to land a lucrative extension with UConn after deciding to stay with the Huskies. Even so, the 51-year-old took a risk turning down what would have been one of the most lucrative contracts in the NBA to continue coaching at the college level.
Here’s what to know about Hurley’s decision and what the Lakers would have paid him to lead LeBron and Los Angeles.
MORE: Why Dan Hurley turned down the Lakers, explained
Dan Hurley contract details
The Lakers presented Hurley with a six-year, $70 million offer to coach in Los Angeles, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The contract would have made Hurley one of the NBA’s highest-paid head coaches.
Ultimately, Hurley returned to UConn to take aim at a third consecutive NCAA championship. That leaves the Lakers still in the hunt for a new head coach, with J.J. Redick and James Borrego being connected to the position.
NBA highest-paid coaches
Had Hurley accepted the job with the Lakers, he would have immediately become the fourth-highest-paid coach in the NBA. Only Gregg Popovich, Eric Spoelstra and Monty Williams would have made more money annually than he did.
Below is a look at the NBA’s highest-paid coaches:
| Rank | Coach | Team | Averaage annual value (AAV) |
| 1 | Gregg Popovich | Spurs | $16 million |
| 2 | Erik Spoelstra | Heat | $15 million |
| 3 | Monty Williams | Pistons | $13.08 million |
| 4 | Steve Kerr | Warriors | $9.5 million |
Hurley’s AAV would stand at about $11.67 million per season if he had accepted the Lakers’ job. Instead, he’ll go back to UConn and will hope to land a lucrative extension that helps him recoup some of those potential losses.
UConn may have to break the bank to keep Hurley. They could offer him more than $10 million per season to keep him around as the Huskies try to three-peat as NCAA Tournament champions.
That would make Hurley the most expensive college coach in the game.
MORE: Why Coach K famously elected not to join the Lakers in 2004
College basketball’s highest-paid coaches
No college basketball coach currently gives its head coach more than $10 million annually. Bill Self is the highest-paid college coach at $9.6 million per season at Kansas.
Could that change the extension Hurley now seems destined to get from UConn? Only time will tell.
Below is a look at college basketball’s highest-paid coaches before a potential Hurley extension comes along.
| Coach | Annual salary | School |
| Bill Self | $9.6 million | Kansas |
| John Calipari | $7 million | Arkansas |
| Tom Izzo | $6.2 million | Michigan State |
| Bruce Pearl | $5.7 million | Auburn |
| Rick Barnes | $5.7 million | Tennessee |
| Scott Drew | $5.1 million | Baylor |
| Dan Hurley | $5 million | UConn |
| Brad Underwood | $4.7 million | Illinois |
| Kelvin Sampson | $4.6 million | Houston |
| Nate Oats | $4.5 million | Alabama |