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Never Stop: Life, Leadership, and What It Takes to Be Great
Discover the inspiring life and leadership lessons of a legendary coach who turned his University of Connecticut team into back-to-back NCAA champions—wisdom that goes far beyond the basketball court.
What does it take to be truly great? In Never Stop,UConn Basketball Coach Dan Hurley and acclaimed New York Times bestselling author Ian O’Connor dive deep into this question. After leading the UConn Huskies to back-to-back NCAA Championships, Hurley faced a life-changing decision: stay and build on his legacy with the college players he loved or take the leap to coach a legendary NBA team. Here, Hurley brings you inside that pivotal moment and shares the powerful lessons that helped him build a championship culture, offering practical strategies that apply far beyond basketball.
Hurley’s story is one of grit, resilience, and redemption. Born into basketball royalty as the son of a legendary high school coach and brother to a Duke Blue Devils icon, Dan’s path wasn’t easy. His life spiraled into a battle with mental health so severe that he once contemplated suicide. But through sheer determination, he turned his struggles into strength, stepping out of his family’s shadow to create his own legacy.
In the tradition of coaching classics like Tim Grover’s Relentless and Phil Jackson’s Eleven Rings, Never Stop is more than an inspirational story—it’s a playbook for life. Hurley’s story is both uplifting and instructive, blending raw honesty and actionable advice, making it a must-read for sports fans, business leaders, and anyone chasing greatness.
What does it take to be truly great? In Never Stop,UConn Basketball Coach Dan Hurley and acclaimed New York Times bestselling author Ian O’Connor dive deep into this question. After leading the UConn Huskies to back-to-back NCAA Championships, Hurley faced a life-changing decision: stay and build on his legacy with the college players he loved or take the leap to coach a legendary NBA team. Here, Hurley brings you inside that pivotal moment and shares the powerful lessons that helped him build a championship culture, offering practical strategies that apply far beyond basketball.
Hurley’s story is one of grit, resilience, and redemption. Born into basketball royalty as the son of a legendary high school coach and brother to a Duke Blue Devils icon, Dan’s path wasn’t easy. His life spiraled into a battle with mental health so severe that he once contemplated suicide. But through sheer determination, he turned his struggles into strength, stepping out of his family’s shadow to create his own legacy.
In the tradition of coaching classics like Tim Grover’s Relentless and Phil Jackson’s Eleven Rings, Never Stop is more than an inspirational story—it’s a playbook for life. Hurley’s story is both uplifting and instructive, blending raw honesty and actionable advice, making it a must-read for sports fans, business leaders, and anyone chasing greatness.
304 pages, Hardcover
Published September 30, 2025
107 people are currently reading
381 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
October 5, 2025
Awesome to see Hurley be so open and honest with his struggles with mental health over the years. I hope he coaches UConn until he’s 150.
October 7, 2025
(2 stars) but I don’t want him to see poor ratings and have it derail the entire 2025-26 season. Go huskies!
October 21, 2025
This book is a memoir from Dan Hurley, the coach of the University of Connecticut Men’s basketball team, which won back-to-back national titles. In the final chapter, which was worth the price of the book for me, Hurley shares his leadership philosophies.
Before reading this book, I knew Hurley primarily for his sideline antics. But there is much to his story. The book begins with Hurley being courted by the Los Angeles Lakers, whom he would eventually turn down to stay at Connecticut. He tells of the expectations upon him as the son of Bob Sr., perhaps the greatest high school coach ever who won twenty-eight state championships and four national championships, along with eight undefeated seasons at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, New Jersey, and the brother of Duke All-American, two-time NCAA champion, and NBA player Bobby Hurley. He writes that because of that, everything about his life was public.
Dan would play at St. Anthony and go on to play at Seton Hall. It was there that he nearly had a nervous breakdown. He was significantly helped by Sister Catherine Waters, director of Seton Hall’s counseling services. He was in counseling to deal with low self-esteem and depression. Throughout the book, Hurley is transparent about his mental health and anxiety issues.
After college, he took a job at St. Anthony’s, teaching driver’s ed, and sex education and health. He took the job because it included a position as second assistant for his father. He later accepted a job at Rutgers as a restricted earnings coach, and was fired when the head coach was fired two years later. He then took a job as the coach of St. Benedict’s Prep of Newark.
Finances were a significant issue with Hurley and wife Andrea, and at one time they nearly divorced.
Hurley won two prep state titles in his first two seasons as head coach. He writes that his burning hunger to be number one came from wanting to be compared favorably with his father.
He would then take the head coaching job at Wagner College. His first hire as an assistant coach was brother Bob, who is now the head coach at Arizona State.
Later, he would take the head coaching job at Rhode Island and money was no longer a problem. Brother Bob agreed to join him to help turn things around. Rhode Island would make the NCAA tournament two years in a row, but he realized that it would be next to impossible to win a national title at Rhode Island.
He then was hired as the head coach at UConn, which had an excellent tradition of winning national titles.
He writes of learning to be calm despite his competitive fire and raging intensity through exercise, meditation, journaling, and prayer.
Hurley would go on to win back-to-back NCAA titles in 2023 and 2024, before making the NCAA tournament in 2025, but falling just short against eventual champion Florida. He had periods when he wanted to quit, as coaching takes so much out of him. But he is confident, stating that he will win a third national championship.
He writes in detail about his “Maui meltdown” during a Thanksgiving tournament in 2024. He writes that he was oblivious to how big a story his behavior was becoming nationally. He tells us that he will apologize for a sideline or hallway outburst here or there, but he will never apologize for how he inspires the young men in his huddle.
I enjoyed reading about Hurley’s life, his successes and his struggles. In the final chapter of the book Hurley shares his leadership philosophies, which he concludes by stating that is a stone-cold fact that his style of leadership produces great teams and great people.
Again, for me, that chapter was worth the price of the book. I think this book will be enjoyed by college basketball fans and those would will want to learn Hurley’s leadership keys to success. Warning: this book contains a significant amount of adult language.
Before reading this book, I knew Hurley primarily for his sideline antics. But there is much to his story. The book begins with Hurley being courted by the Los Angeles Lakers, whom he would eventually turn down to stay at Connecticut. He tells of the expectations upon him as the son of Bob Sr., perhaps the greatest high school coach ever who won twenty-eight state championships and four national championships, along with eight undefeated seasons at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, New Jersey, and the brother of Duke All-American, two-time NCAA champion, and NBA player Bobby Hurley. He writes that because of that, everything about his life was public.
Dan would play at St. Anthony and go on to play at Seton Hall. It was there that he nearly had a nervous breakdown. He was significantly helped by Sister Catherine Waters, director of Seton Hall’s counseling services. He was in counseling to deal with low self-esteem and depression. Throughout the book, Hurley is transparent about his mental health and anxiety issues.
After college, he took a job at St. Anthony’s, teaching driver’s ed, and sex education and health. He took the job because it included a position as second assistant for his father. He later accepted a job at Rutgers as a restricted earnings coach, and was fired when the head coach was fired two years later. He then took a job as the coach of St. Benedict’s Prep of Newark.
Finances were a significant issue with Hurley and wife Andrea, and at one time they nearly divorced.
Hurley won two prep state titles in his first two seasons as head coach. He writes that his burning hunger to be number one came from wanting to be compared favorably with his father.
He would then take the head coaching job at Wagner College. His first hire as an assistant coach was brother Bob, who is now the head coach at Arizona State.
Later, he would take the head coaching job at Rhode Island and money was no longer a problem. Brother Bob agreed to join him to help turn things around. Rhode Island would make the NCAA tournament two years in a row, but he realized that it would be next to impossible to win a national title at Rhode Island.
He then was hired as the head coach at UConn, which had an excellent tradition of winning national titles.
He writes of learning to be calm despite his competitive fire and raging intensity through exercise, meditation, journaling, and prayer.
Hurley would go on to win back-to-back NCAA titles in 2023 and 2024, before making the NCAA tournament in 2025, but falling just short against eventual champion Florida. He had periods when he wanted to quit, as coaching takes so much out of him. But he is confident, stating that he will win a third national championship.
He writes in detail about his “Maui meltdown” during a Thanksgiving tournament in 2024. He writes that he was oblivious to how big a story his behavior was becoming nationally. He tells us that he will apologize for a sideline or hallway outburst here or there, but he will never apologize for how he inspires the young men in his huddle.
I enjoyed reading about Hurley’s life, his successes and his struggles. In the final chapter of the book Hurley shares his leadership philosophies, which he concludes by stating that is a stone-cold fact that his style of leadership produces great teams and great people.
Again, for me, that chapter was worth the price of the book. I think this book will be enjoyed by college basketball fans and those would will want to learn Hurley’s leadership keys to success. Warning: this book contains a significant amount of adult language.
October 12, 2025
I’ve been fortunate to have several conversations with Coach, and reading this book was exactly like talking to him in person. His authenticity, accountability, and deep level of care for what he does and the people in his world is evident throughout every page. I am grateful he took the chance to share parts of his story with the world, my deep respect for him has only grown. The coaching lessons, the human lessons, in this book are something any human with a willingness to mold themselves into a better person should consume. Love basketball? Read it. Love learning? Read it. Love leadership? Read it. Love performance? Read it. Love resilience? Read it. Want to have a better understanding of the Dan Hurley you see clips of? Read it.
If you put this book down with anything less then a thorough understanding of how imperfect humans can care deeply about what they do and who they do it for and achieve amazing things, you need to read it again.
“… find you passion and pursue it with whole heart and single mind.” - Gail Sheehy
If you put this book down with anything less then a thorough understanding of how imperfect humans can care deeply about what they do and who they do it for and achieve amazing things, you need to read it again.
“… find you passion and pursue it with whole heart and single mind.” - Gail Sheehy
December 29, 2025
I am a sucker for books by coaches. I buy them hoping to gather tips and tricks to add to my coaching repertoire and I’m usually disappointed to find a biography instead of a manual. NEVER STOP: LIFE, LEADERSHIP, AND WHAT IT TAKES TO BE GREAT by Dan Hurley and Ian O’Connor is no exception. But it’s a hell of a biography. I thoroughly enjoyed his story. And you will, too. Unless you’re a referee.
November 17, 2025
It feels wrong to give Dan Hurley anything less than 5 stars!!! I listened to the audiobook with Hurley narrating the first and last chapters! A really interesting and fun read for UConn Basketball fans. I appreciate how open Hurley was about his mental health and shortcomings as a coach, father, etc!
Some quotes I loved-
“I’m a unique blend of love and lunacy”
“I’d rather not be a beloved phony”
“Gen Z, Gen Y, Jen Anniston, I don’t care”
“You want your kid to be comfortable? Buy him a LaZ Boy. Don’t send him to Camp Hurley”
Some quotes I loved-
“I’m a unique blend of love and lunacy”
“I’d rather not be a beloved phony”
“Gen Z, Gen Y, Jen Anniston, I don’t care”
“You want your kid to be comfortable? Buy him a LaZ Boy. Don’t send him to Camp Hurley”
November 26, 2025
As a die hard UConn fan I was really excited to read this book and what I read was not what I expected. Over the last few years Dan and UConn have sat at the top of the college basketball world but that was a footnote in this book. This book focused on his struggles growing up, his fear of not being good enough, his failures as a coach, man husband and dad. That was refreshing as he spoke to the lows of his mental health and made it okay to not be okay and that’s more valuable than talking about a championship. Highly recommend even if you’re not a basketball or UConn fan.
November 27, 2025
"Regret is an empty illusion. You can't appreciate your success until you realize it's built on a foundation of failure."
Dan Hurley is 100% an authentic version of himself in every environment and I freakin love it. If you are a Uconn fan or a college basketball fan, this is a must read!
Dan Hurley is 100% an authentic version of himself in every environment and I freakin love it. If you are a Uconn fan or a college basketball fan, this is a must read!
October 12, 2025
What a phenomenal read! This book right here is a perfect example of why books are magic. I’ve never met Dan Hurley nor will I ever meet him. I’ve never played college basketball nor will I ever coach college basketball. But when you read books like this, it’s almost like you’ve experienced it yourself or you were right alongside the author with them during their journey. To me, that is invaluable and that is magic. Think about all the hidden gems you can learn from someone else’s trials and tribulations. You can pick the things that worked for them and implement them in your own life while staying away from the things that didn’t work for them. Dan Hurley’s life story up to this point is incredible. Inspiring and motivating as they come. You don’t have to be a basketball fan or a sports fan to enjoy this book. There is something valuable in here for everyone. Highly recommended!
December 27, 2025
Great insight into Dan Hurley’s background and the leadership principles he uses to coach his team.
January 3, 2026
This book was really good 😊 !!!! It gave an insight look at what goes on behind the scenes as a college basketball coach.
October 17, 2025
Five stars!!! This book gives fans an inside look at the last three seasons, from the heartbreaks to the back-to-back titles we all remember so well, through DH’s own perspective. It also dives into his childhood challenges and the adversity that shaped him into the coach he is today. Hearing how he processed the wins, losses, and everything in between is inspiring and raw—a true glimpse into the mindset behind a champion. Love this and a must read!!! Go Huskies!!!
November 12, 2025
April 3, 2023 will forever and always be the best day of my life and if I tell you otherwise I’m lying
December 22, 2025
This book chronicles Dan Hurley’s personal and professional growth. He discusses his upbringing; time in college; coaching career and his growth as a person. It also details the University of Connecticut basketball team’s rise to a repeat, back to back NCAA champion.
Sports writer, Ian O’Connor, helped Hurley write the book. However, the book seems to be principally written by Hurley, whose writing style is distinct from O’Connor’s approach to writing. So, the book seems to be an authentic reflection of Hurley’s thoughts, opinions and experiences.
Hurley and his brother Bobby grew up liking basketball; and their father, Bob Hurley, coached 39 seasons and won 26 state championships at the high school level. So, it was natural for Dan and Bobby to pursue a coaching career. Both Bobby and Dan have been successful coaches at the division 1 level. Both are currently coaching division 1 programs.
I liked reading this book. It reminded me of my own love for basketball and college sports. I also liked reading about the University of Connecticut basketball team, which is one of the teams that I root for.
It was also interesting to read about Dan Hurley’s job offer to coach the Los Angeles Lakers. He strongly considered coaching them, but opted to stay at the University of Connecticut instead. It seems like he made the right decision. College basketball seems to be a good fit for him.
The book features some profanity and language that may offend some people. So, if people are offended by profanity, the book may not be the right choice for everyone. If you are not offended by profanity or can ignore it, you may like this book. So, my recommendation would be based on a person’s tolerance of profanity.
Nevertheless, if you like basketball or college sports, you may like this book. Also, if you like the University of Connecticut, as I do, you may like reading this book.
Sports writer, Ian O’Connor, helped Hurley write the book. However, the book seems to be principally written by Hurley, whose writing style is distinct from O’Connor’s approach to writing. So, the book seems to be an authentic reflection of Hurley’s thoughts, opinions and experiences.
Hurley and his brother Bobby grew up liking basketball; and their father, Bob Hurley, coached 39 seasons and won 26 state championships at the high school level. So, it was natural for Dan and Bobby to pursue a coaching career. Both Bobby and Dan have been successful coaches at the division 1 level. Both are currently coaching division 1 programs.
I liked reading this book. It reminded me of my own love for basketball and college sports. I also liked reading about the University of Connecticut basketball team, which is one of the teams that I root for.
It was also interesting to read about Dan Hurley’s job offer to coach the Los Angeles Lakers. He strongly considered coaching them, but opted to stay at the University of Connecticut instead. It seems like he made the right decision. College basketball seems to be a good fit for him.
The book features some profanity and language that may offend some people. So, if people are offended by profanity, the book may not be the right choice for everyone. If you are not offended by profanity or can ignore it, you may like this book. So, my recommendation would be based on a person’s tolerance of profanity.
Nevertheless, if you like basketball or college sports, you may like this book. Also, if you like the University of Connecticut, as I do, you may like reading this book.
October 16, 2025
This is not ones typical leadership or motivation themed book. It is the authors life story as it relates to growing up with a HOF Basketball coach dad an older brother who was exceptional through High School, college and into the NBA. Hurley bares his soul of his journey and the metal struggles through out his journey as a player and coach. In reading this I found myself asking the question how Hurley along the way did not have a complete mental breakdown. But he had various people both inside and outside the sport that were lay and professional types. Along the journey he grew in the coaching profession making several stops along the way. His current spot is UConn where he's had several NCAA National Championships. It's a book of struggles and indirectly provides tidbits to help one based on what he's gone through. You learn about the inner pressures that many feel in life in general that really affects everyone. You also hear about many of the great players he's coached through the years. I think a coach at any level might like this book as it provides insights many have felt during their tenure.
January 3, 2026
The saddest part about this book was that Dan Hurley didn't narrate the whole audiobook. Otherwise, I really enjoyed hearing about Hurley's perspective when he was a high school/college basketball player and felt the pressure to live up to his brother and father's basketball legacy. There were many vulnerable moments shared about his ongoing mental health struggles and how that's impacted the relationships in his life. It definitely made me admire him that much more with how he educates his players on how to sustain their mental health and support their overall well-being as a person on & off the basketball court. UConn is very lucky to have this crazy, yet incredible coach in their locker room. Ring #7 in 2026 has a nice RING to it ;)
October 19, 2025
Dan Hurley’s honesty and ability to be vulnerable make this book even better than I thought it could be. I truly believe this book can help a lot of people while also giving the background story of things that fans of the UConn men’s basketball team can pinpoint throughout the last few seasons. It confirmed a lot of why I already love this team, and the UConn men’s basketball program-what they stand for, their standards, and the ability to make great people, not just athletes! For any fan of UConn, this is a must read!
October 20, 2025
As with other sports books, I have found that the title and subtitle can be misleading.
In this book, there is little about Life, Leadership, and What It Takes to Be Great. We all know that it's important to have principles, discipline, and people who work hard.
Phrases like "I pushed my players to be the best" are vague and do not reveal what one actually has to do to help the players improve.
There are no real lessons, just a coach saying that he learned lessons.
The last chapter, which is actually an afterword, is worth reading.
In this book, there is little about Life, Leadership, and What It Takes to Be Great. We all know that it's important to have principles, discipline, and people who work hard.
Phrases like "I pushed my players to be the best" are vague and do not reveal what one actually has to do to help the players improve.
There are no real lessons, just a coach saying that he learned lessons.
The last chapter, which is actually an afterword, is worth reading.
December 30, 2025
I love UConn basketball and I love a peak behind the curtain… what more could I ask for??? In another universe I’m a men’s basketball player playing for Dan Hurley, but I’ll just have to settle for being a fan in this life. Loved hearing what goes on in the inner circles of college basketball, but also the more personal details of Hurley’s early days. Seems like junior year of college is the worst year of everyone’s life 🤷♀️
“You can’t appreciate your success until you realize it’s built on a foundation of failure.”
“You can’t appreciate your success until you realize it’s built on a foundation of failure.”
October 6, 2025
Going to be hard to rate this anything other than five stars being as how Hurley gave HD Intelligence a shoutout (4X) over mid way through the book. Page 150 to be exact.
My personal feelings aside I enjoyed learning about Hurley’s upbringing, his struggles with a love hate relationship with basketball, and his constant striving for greatness. He’s an old school guy but he does want the best for his guys. Ian O’Connor is a pro. My next read will be one of his soon (The Captain).
My personal feelings aside I enjoyed learning about Hurley’s upbringing, his struggles with a love hate relationship with basketball, and his constant striving for greatness. He’s an old school guy but he does want the best for his guys. Ian O’Connor is a pro. My next read will be one of his soon (The Captain).
October 16, 2025
Boldly honest and unfiltered, Never Stop presents sides of Dan Hurley we don’t often get to see. It’s no wonder his players love him; it’s also not surprising how much opposing fans (and refs) hate him. He demonstrates the old school tactics that make him imposing while balancing a new side of coaching that emphasizes mental health and personal connection. A must-read for any Husky fan, and honestly, anyone who wants to make a difference in the lives of youth.
November 20, 2025
Quick read that worked even for someone who hasn’t followed college ball or professional basketball for years. It offers decent insight into what it takes to coach college athletes and the pressures that come with it.
The parts touching on his mental health are meaningful, though the coverage of the techniques he used feels light. The pacing is quick, sometimes too quick, and a few sections come across as rushed or lightly developed
The parts touching on his mental health are meaningful, though the coverage of the techniques he used feels light. The pacing is quick, sometimes too quick, and a few sections come across as rushed or lightly developed
December 14, 2025
You often see Dan Hurley’s antics from the sidelines and sometimes question how he coaches. Never Stop goes behind the scenes to show how Hurley has built UCONN back to being a blue blood in college basketball!
I appreciated his constant vulnerability throughout the book that is clearly evident in how he coaches his team. He also had the self awareness to recognize that his offense wasn’t going to win back in 2022. I’ll be constantly rooting for Hurley & UCONN in the years to come.
I appreciated his constant vulnerability throughout the book that is clearly evident in how he coaches his team. He also had the self awareness to recognize that his offense wasn’t going to win back in 2022. I’ll be constantly rooting for Hurley & UCONN in the years to come.
December 18, 2025
What a book! Never Stop is incredibly honest, open, and refreshing book in which Coach Hurley doesn’t shy away from sharing his mental health struggles or who he truly is, and that vulnerability makes this book powerful. It’s also a different and much-needed take on coaching. It's one that values authenticity, growth, and emotional honesty. After reading it, you can clearly see how those UConn teams embodied everything he talks about in these pages. A must-read for coaches and leaders!
October 2, 2025
it’s so refreshing to hear someone in sports speak so candidly about mental health. lots of respect for dan hurley for sharing what he did in this book! (it’s still on sight when the huskies play villanova)
October 7, 2025
Die hard UConn fan here… and I have a ton of respect for Dan Hurley. This book was raw and honest and I commend Coach Hurley for sharing some very personal parts of his life. After reading this book, it’s no wonder UConn is the basketball capital of the world!
October 21, 2025
Was great to learn about Hurley’s early childhood, playing career and early coaching career. Was unaware of his battles with mental health. Certainly fun to relive the national championship years and see how dedicated Hurley is. Ripped through this book.
October 28, 2025
Great read shows the importance of emotional and social Iq and the importance of getting support for mental health issues and the success that comes along with it am a uconn fan as long as Danny Hurley is the coach
December 28, 2025
Great insight from him - he opens up about struggle before success and anxiety coming from a famous dad and superstar older brother.
He’s not the only one who struggles with that and it’s reassuring to hear it
He’s not the only one who struggles with that and it’s reassuring to hear it
December 28, 2025
It was nice to connect to him on a more personal level. I still remember how I felt during these key games that he talks about so it was amazing to hear what was going on in his mind during these times too. Thank you for sharing these extremely personal moments. You are such an inspiration.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews