NBA World Wants Jeanie Buss to “Sell the Team” After ‘Penny Pinching’ Destroys Dan Hurley Chase for Lakers

It seems like Colin Cowherd’s gut was right. After providing five reasons as to why it would be better for Dan Hurley to stay at UConn in his podcast yesterday, the veteran analyst said that he had a feeling the 2x NCAA champion would decline the head coaching gig with the Los Angeles Lakers. Well, that’s exactly what happened. Though, how much of that was thanks to Cowherd is debatable.

“I am humbled by this entire experience. At the end of the day, I am extremely proud of the championship culture we have built at Connecticut,” Hurley said after the official confirmation of the news was announced. Suffice it to say that the entire world was on edge waiting for the 51-year-old’s decision. The Lakers had reportedly offered the Huskies coach a six-year $70 million deal for his services.

If they thought that the star power and storied history of the franchise would be enough incentives to lure the coach looking for a three-peat at Connecticut, they were wrong. Clearly. Interestingly, Evan Sidery of Forbes Sports tweeted that another group had also tried to make a play for Hurley. And they offered him “$11 million per year.” 

“The University of Kentucky also reportedly pursued Dan Hurley this offseason to become their head coach. Kentucky’s offer was $11 million per year to become the highest paid coach in college basketball. The Lakers decided to offer Hurley $11.6 million to see if he would jump at the opportunity. Los Angeles penny-pinching on top-tier coaches continues to hurt the organization.” Ouch!

Well, Los Angeles is back to square one. The extensive interviews, multiple times even, and all the candidates ended up learning that they had only one guy in their mind all along. So, just how successful the Lakers would be in securing the right man is questionable. That said, JJ Redick and James Borrego remain top candidates to land the HC office. However, now that the price they are willing to offer is out in the open, the question remains whether these men will be happy taking it.

But one thing is for certain. The NBA world is not happy. At all!

Exasperated fans take to X to slam the Los Angeles Lakers for their stinginess

The first user cut no corners as they had just one thing to say. “She [Jeanie Buss] needs to sell the team immediately.” A no-nonsense, straight-to-the-point guy, this. There have been such statements since Jeanie took over the Purple & Gold. Not to mention, Jason Timpf with Cowherd last night mentioned a few pointers that might have contributed. Aspects like letting exquisite players like Julius Randle and Brook Lopez walk. And then there was the issue with Magic Johnson.

Adding on to this was none other than Spotrac’s Keith Smith. “If this is remotely true, then it’s time to sell the team. One of the premier franchises in all of sports can’t be losing out on players or coaches because of money.”

It does make one wonder what exactly is happening with the franchise. As Smith pointed out, the Lakers are a premier franchise, valued at a whopping $6.44 billion. Their controlling owner and President, Jeanie, has a net worth of $700 million. So why the “penny pinching”?

Another Lakers fan and a podcaster takes it one level further and brings Pelinka into the mix. “I want Pelinka gone and Jeanie to sell the team. Yall can’t do anything right lmao. What are we even doing bro.” Again, the Lakers’ questionable decisions in the last decade or so, including the supposedly unstrategic Rusell Westbrook trade in 2021, would make one call the top executives out, we suppose. There is only so much loyal Purple & Gold fans can take and stay quiet!

Yet another individual can’t seem to hold his laughter at the incredulity of it all. “Jeanie and Rob offered Hurley less money than Kentucky LMFAO sell the team.” The initial reports pointed to a near-impressive eight-year $100 million deal. However, when all was said and done, it was missing $30 million. A point this next unimpressed (and indignant) fan pointed out.

“You offered Dan Hurley $30 million LESS than UK? @lakers @JeanieBuss LOL sell the team“

The annual $11.6 million the Lakers are offering is something Kentucky offered (full disclosure: they offered $11 million, but hey, does a 0.6 really cut it?). And they are not an NBA franchise. So, what else to do but be disappointed?

And finally, Sam Quinn of CBS Sports comes with his own take at the slight. Because what else would we call it? “Six years, $70 million? This is your “we’re all in, he’s our guy!” offer? That’s not even Monty Williams money, let alone the Spo/Lue/Kerr/Pop range it probably would’ve taken. You don’t go after a coach like Hurley offering to make him the sixth-highest paid coach in the NBA.”

When the news that Hurley was talking to the management at UConn and his team about a potential move to Los Angeles reached the Lakers’ ears, they wasted no time making it public that Dan Hurley was “the guy.” In fact, he was the man they had their sights set on since the start of the head coaching search. A legend at UConn with back-to-back national titles and looking to make it a three-peat; everyone expected LA to offer something along the lines of top coaches in the league.

The Pistons’ coach Monty Williams inked a lucrative six-year $78.5 million last offseason. The man gets paid $13.5 million annually. According to Quinn, Hurley’s contract should have surpassed Williams to the range of Erik Spoelstra, Steve Kerr, Ty Lue, and Gregg Popovich. In contrast, it didn’t even reach anywhere close to Monty!

Can you really blame these fans for going berserk on the Los Angeles Lakers for losing a coach like Dan Hurley? We’ll leave that to you to decide. But before you go, be sure to check this video of Leonardo Armato’s take on Caitlin Clark vs Angel Reese.

Don’t forget to check back in for more such updates!