TEMPE, Ariz. — Over the years, going back decades, the men who have coached Arizona State basketball inevitably have reached a similar conclusion: This is a difficult job.
Asked about this Tuesday, Bobby Hurley didn’t exactly acknowledge the hurdles in place, but he did suggest that upon his hire in 2015, he may have been blinded by his previous college basketball success. How as a point guard at Duke he had gone 18-2 in the NCAA Tournament and won two national championships. How as a first-time head coach at Buffalo he had won the MAC Tournament his second year.
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Yes, Hurley admitted: After eight seasons in the desert, he thought he might have secured a Pac-12 championship or made a deep NCAA Tournament run by now. “(But) there’s nothing here that has stopped me from doing that,” Hurley said. “We haven’t done it yet. You got to keep knocking on the door and give yourselves chances.”
After a strong finish to this season, one that ended in a tough first-round loss to Texas Christian in the NCAA Tournament, Hurley will have more time to reach his goals. Last week, he agreed to a deal that extends his contract two years through 2026. If Hurley stays that long, he will become the longest-tenured Arizona State men’s basketball coach since Ned Wulk, who coached the Sun Devils from 1957 to 1982.
As a program, the Sun Devils haven’t reached the Sweet 16 since 1995. They’ve never won a Pac-12 title. Most seasons begin and end on the tournament bubble.
Hurley’s extension wasn’t automatic. That it took so long might reflect apprehension on one side or both. Hurley said Tuesday that discussions had taken place earlier but they ”didn’t produce anything.” In the regular season’s final weeks, it wasn’t clear whether Arizona State would offer an extension or if Hurley would agree to one even if it did.
“There was a lot up in the air,’’ Hurley said.
The factors may have gone beyond performance. It’s no secret that Hurley’s relationship with vice president of athletics Ray Anderson has run hot and cold. In 2020, Hurley sent an email to Anderson, questioning how the athletic director responded to a booster accused of acting inappropriately toward Hurley’s wife and others. The email went public. The booster, who denied wrongdoing, was banned from athletic events.
On the flip side, Anderson in 2022 supported Hurley after the coach was suspended for one game and fined $20,000 for a confrontation with officials after a close loss at Stanford. During a media gathering Tuesday, Hurley thanked Anderson and school president Michael Crow for their support, adding that he and Anderson are “attached at the hip,” perhaps a nod to all they have experienced, the highs and lows.
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Hurley, 51, spoke from the media room of Desert Financial Arena, an aging facility that might be the program’s biggest hurdle. To put it nicely, the gymnasium, and its locker rooms and weight room, are years beyond their prime. The Athletic recently asked two former Pac-12 coaches for their opinions of the arena. One called it below average, another said it could be average with certain upgrades.
In a recent interview with the Arizona State student newspaper, Crow acknowledged the arena needed work but added that it remained functional. Asked about this, Hurley said he would welcome improvement conversations at the appropriate time. Until then, he pointed out that when Desert Financial Arena is full it becomes one of the Pac-12’s top environments.
Hurley is 141-113 at Arizona State. He has taken three teams to the NCAA Tournament but a fourth, perhaps Hurley’s best, was denied in 2020 because COVID-19 shut down the sport. Under Hurley’s watch, conference media have slotted Arizona State in the top five of the preseason poll only once, suggesting the Sun Devils have overachieved more often than not.
“We’ve had some road blocks along the way, but I have confidence in my abilities,’’ Hurley said. “I know what I’m capable of doing. I’ve coached against the best coaches in our league and across the country. I feel like I’m in my prime. Certainly, all the experiences you go through, the wins and the losses, you learn from them and you get better. And that’s what I’m doing.”
Last week in Las Vegas, Hurley watched younger brother Dan lead Connecticut to wins over Arkansas and Gonzaga, taking the Huskies to the Final Four, a path Hurley has dribbled before. As he sat in T-Mobile Arena, Hurley said he felt like he was right there with Dan, living and dying with every possession. It inspired him. It fueled his hunger.
So proud of my brother! Such a special moment for our family #FinalFour 🐺🚀 pic.twitter.com/8IRbnkkSes
— Bobby Hurley (@BobbyHurley11) March 26, 2023
Hurley said he looks at the Final Four, which also includes Florida Atlantic, Miami and San Diego State, and sees possibility. The tournament always has been unpredictable, but the transfer portal has made the parity even greater. Lower-seeded teams in the Final Four should become more common.
Why not Arizona State?
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“I built a life here,” Hurley said. “I have a family here. … I still believe that this place can be exceptional. I think COVID stunted our growth, and we took a couple of steps back and now we’ve taken a step forward. And I intend to keep taking steps forward here because I believe in this place and that it can be done here. And so when you believe in it, then you’re gonna go after it 1,000 percent, and that’s what I’m gonna do.”
GO DEEPER
UConn means something. This is how Dan Hurley made it matter again
(Photo: Zac BonDurant / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
