The Lakers had been widely linked to NBA player turned podcaster and broadcaster JJ Redick before the team’s serious interest in Hurley became known on Thursday morning.

Hurley met with executive vice president and general manager Rob Pelinka and controlling owner Jeanie Buss on Friday in Los Angeles before returning to the East Coast. He was at a Billy Joel concert Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in New York before returning to campus Monday.

Hurley nearly joined the Lakers after accomplishing an incredibly rare feat — winning back-to-back NCAA championships. Only he, Billy Donovan and Mike Krzyzewski have won the tournament in consecutive years since John Wooden won seven straight more than 50 years ago.

Neither of those coaches had ever won three championships in a row.

It’s unknown whether the Lakers’ flirtation with Hurley will have an impact on other coaches the team has considered, a group that’s included Redick and New Orleans assistant James Borrego, who met with Lakers executives last week for in-person interviews.

The search has been conducted at Pelinka and Buss’ pace despite the outside speculation that the team had landed on Redick shortly after Ham’s firing.

Pelinka spoke with a handful of candidates, including Denver assistant David Adelman, Minnesota assistant Micah Noria and Boston assistant Sam Cassell.

The Lakers, though, seemed to have a clear top two in Redick and Borrego, the former Charlotte head coach and current Pelicans assistant. Cassell has also been mentioned as a top candidate, though those names quickly faded after the team’s interest in Hurley became public.

Now, the Lakers have to move forward, their top choice having said, “No thanks.”