UConn's National Championship Odds Plummet After Dan Hurley News

Dan Hurley possibly signing with the Lakers have hurt UConn's odds of winning the 2025 National Championship
Connecticut Huskies head coach Dan Hurley shouts during the Men's NCAA national championship game against the Purdue Boilermakers at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on April 8, 2024.
Connecticut Huskies head coach Dan Hurley shouts during the Men's NCAA national championship game against the Purdue Boilermakers at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on April 8, 2024. / Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY

Stunning news in the basketball world was announced on Thursday morning and it had nothing to do with Game 1 of the NBA Finals which is set for tonight.

At 6:50 am et, Adrian Wojnarowski announced the Los Angeles Lakers are targeting UConn head coach, Dan Hurley, to become their team's next coach.

Hurley is fresh off leading the UConn Huskies to back-to-back National Championships, which hadn't been done in men's college basketball since Florida achieved the feat in 2006-2007. After their first championship in 2023, Hurley signed a six-year, $31.1 million contract with the school.

As a result of the news, the Huskies' odds to three-peat in 2025 have taken a dramatic hit.

UConn National Championship Odds

Odds listed below are via FanDuel Sportsbook

  • Before news of Lakers' interest: +1000
  • Odds as of writing this article: +1400

Before the Woj Bomb dropped this morning, UConn was set as the co-favorite alongside the Kansas Jayhawks to win the 2025 National Championship at +1000. As of writing this article, they have fallen to fourth on the odds list at +1400 behind Kansas (+1000), Duke (+1200), and Arizona (+1200).

If you translate the odds to implied probability, their chance of a 2025 National Championship fell from 9.09% to 6.67%, a fall of 2.42% which is a significant drop in the futures market with the season still months away.

The signing has yet to be made official therefore there's still a chance Hurley returns to UConn. Wojnarowski followed up the original tweet with another one saying;

"The Lakers have had preliminary contact with Hurley and sides are planning to escalate discussions in coming days. Hurley’s been at the forefront of the Lakers’ search from the beginning of the process, even while the organization has done its due diligence interviewing other candidates."

If the signing is finalized and made official, don't be surprised if UConn's odds for a threepeat, something that hasn't been done since UCLA from 1967-1973, continue to drop.


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Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.


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Iain MacMillan
IAIN MACMILLAN

Originally from Nova Scotia, Iain MacMillan is a senior editor covering betting, with a focus on NFL, NHL, and golf. He hosts the Bacon Bets Podcast and has been featured on VSIN, BetQL and Monumental Sports Network. He is a member of the Metropolitan Golf Writers Association and his beloved Falcons and Maple Leafs break his heart on a yearly basis.