Great coaches create stars for the future. Dan Hurley is following a path similar to John Calipari’s at Kentucky by identifying overlooked talent and turning it into high-level success. Calipari spent 15 years building an SEC powerhouse and sending over 30 players to the first round of the draft. Similarly, Hurley is now proving at UConn that elite coaching is what truly shapes winners.

That success also highlights a broader issue in talent evaluation. The gap is not in player ability, but in how scouts assess it. As NBA analyst Jamal Mashburn explained, “I don’t put that on the actual players like Jalen Brunson. All the guys that you mentioned, I put them on the NBA scouts. I don’t think they know exactly what they’re looking at.”

“A lot of NBA scouts are looking for potential rather than seeing what is actually there. Guys like Braylon Mullins, they could play. It’s just that he doesn’t meet the measure of some regard. So I think that Danny and UConn have been able to do what Calipari did at Kentucky: sometimes put guys in positions to accentuate their strengths rather than their weaknesses.”

There is a lot of proof that Mashburn’s observation is true. During his time at Kentucky, Calipari helped make stars like Anthony Davis, Devin Booker, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He also made 30+ first-round picks and 50+ total NBA picks.

Dan Hurley’s path is similar to this success, even though it happened in a shorter time frame. He has put 10 players in the NBA draft since 2018, four of whom were picked in the first round. James Bouknight, Jordan Hawkins, Donovan Clingan, and Stephon Castle. This output shows that Hurley knows how to get the most out of his players and set them for the big stage.

That way of thinking also applies to how Hurley handles problems that come up during the season.

“Conference games are hard to win. It’s tougher for us in league than out of conference. Everyone knows us so well,” Hurley stated. “We are good at winning.” This confidence isn’t unfounded; UConn is still undefeated in Big East play at 10-0 after beating Providence 87-81, which gives them a 16-game winning streak.

UConn beat Providence without their star freshman Braylon Mullins, which shows that Hurley knows how to coach like Calipari. Tarris Reed Jr. scored 19 points, Silas Demary Jr. and Malachi Smith scored 27 points together, and the team made almost 46 percent of its three-point shots.

Dan Hurley and UConn find a way without Mullins

The biggest test for UConn came without one of its brightest young stars. Five-star freshman got a concussion while playing Villanova and missed Tuesday’s game against Providence. Mullins had saved the Huskies with 24 points in another close game against the Friars on January 7. This time, UConn won 87-81 without him on the court. That one win shows everything about what Hurley has built.

After the game, Coach Hurley was still positive about Mullins‘ health. Hurley said, “He’s doing well; he looked good today.” Hurley said. “If he ramps it up, he’s going to potentially do some things on the court, just to see how he’s feeling.”

Hurley stressed how carefully the team was dealing with the injuries. “I think the symptoms are progressing nicely for him, so obviously, we’re going to take good care of him. He’s healing well from it,” the coach explained.

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Mullins has missed time twice since coming to UConn. The first time was because of an ankle injury in the preseason that kept him out of six games before his college debut against Illinois at MSG on December 10. Now he has a concussion. But the most important thing isn’t about one player. It’s that UConn doesn’t fall apart without him.