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AP
UConn men’s basketball head coach Dan Hurley met with the media for over a half-hour after practice Friday, and his commentary during the session’s final five minutes garnered national attention.
Hurley, the orchestrator of UConn’s two national title runs and three championship game appearances over the past four years, was highly critical of a recent federal court injunction that grants fifth-year eligibility to dozens of players from the high school Class of 2022.
The August ruling enables these players to begin looking for new teams just weeks before the school year is set to begin.
Hurley expressed frustration that the rule change has “cheapened” the art of coaching and program building.
“Now, you can screw up high school recruiting, you can screw up portal recruiting, not have a very good team and now start plucking from a group of players in August to put together a team. It just makes it tough,” Hurley said.
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The prolific head coach, who is notorious for his expressions and behavior on the sidelines, warned that the sport cannot continue down this path. He said it’s not in the best interests of the student athletes.
“There are people that are losing. You can’t act like it’s a victimless situation,” Hurley said. “I mean, there are kids that are 17 or 18 years old that potentially may lose out on opportunities. So, it’s not victimless.”
Hurley pointed out that programs can now put together competitive teams without having to identify and develop young talent or commit to a multi-year vision.
According to Hurley, programs should take pride in putting together a team by recruiting high school prospects and adding veterans through the portal in the spring and early summer.
“Now, it’s let’s unleash 80 players into the sport in the first week of August,” Hurley said. “I mean, we can’t go on like this. No other sport is going like this. And anyone who acts like this is great or fine or good for college basketball, they’ve already taken the stance that this is what they’ve wanted. Now, they’re just defending their position. It’s total chaos, and it’s not sustainable.”
Hurley doubled down on the importance of helping players grow.
He said UConn places much of its focus on landing talented, younger recruits because it is “more of a developmental program.”
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Hurley did not applaud the legal efforts of those who brought about the rule change in court. He said his program checks with the proper channels when determining who it can and can’t recruit.
“If we have meetings with compliance, and compliance says that something is illegal and we can’t do it, or a player is ineligible based on the rules, our reaction as a university is not, ‘Let’s go find a lawyer in Willimantic,’” Hurley said. “We’re going to put together the best team that we can while following the rules.”
Hurley spoke more on the empathy he has for young players who could lose their roster spots or playing time after programs sign fifth-year players in August.
He said he played college basketball and that his parents could not have afforded to send him to that school – Seton Hall – if he had not received a scholarship.
Hurley urged his coaching colleagues across the country to care more about the sport and less about themselves.
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“At some point, you’ve got to care about the sport, especially if the sport has given you a lot,” Hurley said. “If you’re a coach, and the sport’s given you a lot, you know, doing things to hurt the sport so you can win a little bit more; I think you’ve got to be able to look in the mirror on that, especially if the sport’s given you a lot.”
When asked if he would be adding anyone recently made available by the court ruling, Hurley referenced the movie Hoosiers – specifically the scene where the legendary high school team from Indiana continued competing despite only having four players on the court.
“We’re not adding anyone. Remember Hoosiers? Our team is on the floor,” Hurley said.
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Dalton Zbierski is a digital editor and writer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at [email protected].
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