Tyronn Lue has met with the Pelicans and Clippers about their respective head coaching openings, according to Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link), who reports that Lue’s interview with the Rockets will take place at some point this week.
Previously, a report stated that Lue was meeting with those teams on three consecutive days from Friday to Sunday. However, Stein explains that the Houston meeting – initially scheduled for Sunday – has been pushed back a little.
Lue has been linked to five head coaching vacancies already this year. Although the Sixers and Nets ultimately went in different directions, he remains a viable candidate for a few of the remaining open jobs.
Having spent the 2019/20 season as a Clippers assistant, Lue was considered one of the early frontrunners to replace Doc Rivers in L.A., and his history with Pelicans VP of basketball operations David Griffin makes him a strong contender in New Orleans as well.
Lue doesn’t have an obvious connection to Houston — he played for the Rockets in 2004 but that was two years before current head of basketball operations Daryl Morey joined the organization. Still, his championship pedigree and his experience coaching a superstar like LeBron James has made him an intriguing candidate for any team with title aspirations.
I would guess
Pelicans offer 5 years contract at 27.5m
Clippers offer 3 years at 7m each
Rockets offer 3 years less money
Clippers offer could be team option at third year
Rockets meeting could be cancelled