Status of the Lakers' Coaching Search Unclear After Dan Hurley Miss, per Reports

General manager Rob Pelinka has a key decision on his hands, and it's unclear which direction the coaching search is heading.

Apr 28, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka looks on prior to game six of the 2023 NBA playoffs against the Memphis Grizzlies at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

On Monday, UConn coach Dan Hurley formally turned down a six-year, $70 million offer to become the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Where the franchise goes from here is unclear.

There was thought to be an initial pool of candidates for the Lakers' opening prior to the Hurley pursuit, a group that included ESPN NBA commentator JJ Redick and New Orleans Pelicans assistant James Borrego, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. However, if you ask ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Hurley was a top candidate from the start.

The Lakers were either not very enamored by the initial pool of candidates, or they're unsure of where to turn to next.

A separate report from ESPN's Brian Windhorst on Monday afternoon indicated that the Lakers and Redick have had "minimal contact." The insider further explained the pursuit of Hurley was a "stunner and aggressive" but also signaled that the Lakers "weren't in love with" other available candidates.

Then there's a report from Lakers' beat writer Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who said on his Buha's Block YouTube show that there really isn't a current Plan B.

"In talking to different people today, there has not been a clear Plan B for the Lakers from this situation," Buha said. "I thought that this was likely going to just be a five-day interlude and the Lakers would go back to the JJ Redick well and try to circle back and mend fences and just go back and make him the frontrunner or favorite or whatever term you want to use again and that would be the likely outcome. But in having conversations with people in and outside of the organization today, it has been a mixed bag in terms of what is the Plan B."

No matter the direction the Lakers choose to go, a lot is at stake for general manager Rob Pelinka with his selection. The franchise is at a crossroads with LeBron James entering his age 40 season and Anthony Davis on the wrong side of 30 with a lengthy injury history.

The hire will need to focus on the current, with a keen eye towards the future and what the franchise will look like in the post-LeBron James era.