Heres the thing with that.
That is EXACTLY the type of challenge Hurley relishes so he can prove everyone wrong and flip them the bird.
No question. I alluded to it in my post (..."allure"...). Vanity, is common. "Yeah, I know they failed, but not me." I'm sure Donovan, et al had the exact same thoughts, replete with bird flipping.
To the NBA, where money is everything, Hurley is nothing more than this year's shiny new toy, of whom 3 years ago, the only Hurley they knew was the one who had a non-descript few years playing for the Kings.
Again, history informs it takes a bit of time for teams to adjust to coach. First year at Wagner, 13-17. First two years at Rhode Island, 22-39. First year at UConn, 16-17, 2 years 35-29.
That's college, where the spotlight is jusst a wee bit dimmer than say, the Los Angeles franchise in the NBA.
Say, the Lakers make him the highest paid coach / manager in the history of the world. He does a complete personality flip aligned to the NBA star system, 82 games, etc... But his first year + goes similar to previous. The press, the fans reactions vs. coach's self professed procilivites - not a great mix. The NBA has a massively short attention span, patience for such things.
For me, Coach K had it spot on, retired a legend, where he remains in the public conscious. For those that follow world soccer, Xabi Alonso to replace a legend in Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool FC seemed obvious. He's the most highly regarded young manager in the world, fresh off a first-ever title, and unbeaten season in the Bundesliga with a perennial also-ran team, while ending Bayern Munich's string of 11 CONSECUTIVE titles. In his Liverpool FC playing days, a beloved, legendary player. Publick known to be first and only choice. Turned them down to stay at Leverkeusen, citing timing, young age, with more to accomplish, declaring it a career dream to manage Liverpool FC. But the timing is not there yet.
For me, better for coach to finish the string here, then go wherever he wants, for whatever he wants.
