Snubbed by their first choice, the los angeles lakers must resume their

The Lakers have endured their share of embarrassments in recent years, but a snub by a college coach — even the best in the game — is among the roughest setbacks yet. Dan Hurley met with the Lakers last week and then rejected their very public courtship Monday. The coach probably emerged from his dalliance with the leverage to finish a lucrative new contract at UConn.

But what's next for the Lakers, a franchise with 17 championships, a world-renowned brand, two of the sport's top players and no head coach? They must resume a search that has stretched well into its second month since Darvin Ham's firing May 3 and has yet to produce a slam-dunk choice.

Snubbed by their first choice, the los angeles lakers must resume their: Vogel wasn't even the Lakers' first

Nearly every leaked discussion of the Lakers' search included three top candidates — each of whom would have arrived on the West Coast with question marks. Although Hurley is one of the most respected names in the sport after the Huskies' success over the past two years, he's never worked in the NBA. Former player J. Redick and Borrego are still candidates to run the Lakers, which would seem to be one of the most desirable jobs in sports — but the charitable interpretation of this current search is that owner Jeanie Buss and general manager Rob Pelinka are struggling to find the right fit for their vision.

Many fans are wondering whether Buss and Pelinka have a vision at all, what with the Lakers' years of roster upheaval and mediocre supporting casts around LeBron James. This hire might be their final chance to get the right coaching staff for James — and Hurley's rejection clearly hurts. Hiring Redick would be a major risk, albeit with a significant potential upside.