Report: Lakers may have given Dan Hurley ‘big’ say in player personnel

The Lakers’ vision for Dan Hurley as head coach might have reportedly included a pretty notable voice when it came to how the roster was built.

Dan Hurley’s rejection of the Lakers has led to some examination and scrutiny of the team’s contract offer. After reports of a deal worth $100 million guaranteed over the weekend, the actual offer, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, came in at $70 million over six years.

While the deal would have still made him one of the highest-paid coaches in the league, the optics of the reported actual offer being $30 million lower than the reported figure was hard to overcome in the court of public opinion.

The Lakers’ offer, though, might have had other appealing aspects outside of the money itself. On Monday night, Woj appeared on Sportscenter with Scott Van Pelt to talk about Hurley’s decision and discussed the possibility of Hurley having decision-making power when it came to player personnel.

We’re seemingly past the days of coaches being given the role of both coach and general manager. However, the Lakers’ front office structure would leave room for some maneuvering of sorts.

While Rob Pelinka is the vice president of basketball operations, there is no current general manager under him. If the Lakers wanted to, they could bring in a coach that could have that sort of power.

Do I think the Lakers would have named Hurley both coach and GM? No. But you could promise him a bigger say than most head coaches would have.

It wouldn’t be the worst idea to not only have more voices in the Lakers’ decision-making but also outside voices. More than anything, the front office has been so insulated to ideas outside of those that have long been with the franchise that having a new perspective could be extremely beneficial.

This report would also play into Woj saying earlier in his appearance on Sportscenter that Hurley viewed this offer as a “once in a lifetime” type of deal. Again, how much you want to believe that when he turned it down is up to you, but it is something he said.

Even if Hurley did turn it down, though, it could be something to keep in mind as they move forward in their process. Hurley was an unexpected name and if another unexpected name pops up, perhaps offering say in player personnel could be a deciding factor.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.