As I watched the Lakers whiff on UConn’s Dan Hurley last weekend in the latest chapter of a coaching search melodramatic enough to warrant a Hollywood screenplay, I kept wondering: What about David Adelman?
Hurley’s candidacy emerged abruptly and escalated hastily. A cross-country flight to Los Angeles. A reported six-year, $70 million contract offer. Public comments to ESPN acknowledging his temptation to accept the job, and publicity stolen from the NBA Finals. Then ultimately, a rejection, with extension talks on deck in Connecticut.
What just happened? Did the Lakers get played? How much of Hurley’s supposed interest was genuine, and how much of it was smoke and mirrors?