Tyronn Lue

Pacific Notes: Thompson, Beal, Gordon, Lue, James

February 29th, 2024 at 9:11pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Warriors coach Steve Kerr revealed that Klay Thompson initially balked at the prospect of being the team’s sixth man, he told ESPN’s Kendra Andrews. Thompson yelled at Kerr and some members of the staff during a meeting prior to the All-Star break before later returning to apologize.

“It was not an easy conversation,” Kerr said. “This is maybe the hardest part about getting further away from our prime. It’s just, after 12 years [of Thompson starting], it wasn’t easy. And still moving forward, it’s not going to be easy. But I told him, ‘If you really embrace it, you can help your team win.'”

Thompson said the All-Star break helped ease his mind over the coaching staff’s plan.

“It was having a complete reset, a huge mental reset. It helped so much,” he said.

Thompson stated in an interview with The Athletic’s Sam Amick that his new role wouldn’t play into his decision during free agency this summer. Thompson, who is eligible for a four-year extension, remains open to a shorter-term deal, according to Andrews.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

The Suns had three late scratches on Thursday against Houston, according to Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic. Bradley Beal missed his fifth straight game due to left hamstring injury management. Eric Gordon sat out with left groin soreness. They were listed as questionable on Wednesday. Nassir Little didn’t suit up due to left knee inflammation after not being on the initial injury report.
Clippers coach Tyronn Lue had a health scare when he was coaching Cleveland due to stress and poor eating and sleeping habits. He’s learned from that experience and has a much healthier diet and exercise plan, he told Andscape’s Marc J. Spears. “I’ve been working out. Eating better. I still have my moments. [I’m] eating less. It’s been good,” Lue said. “(Strength and conditioning coach Daniel Shapiro) has done a good job of staying on me because I can stray away. I’m just doing 20 to 30 minutes per day … Now I’m about 208 [pounds]. Back [in Cleveland] I was 241. I can’t believe I got that big.”
LeBron James sparked the biggest fourth-quarter comeback of his career against the Clippers on Wednesday in the two teams’ final matchup as cohabitants of Crypto.com Arena. The Lakers rallied from 21 points down with the aid of three three-pointers early in the fourth from James, who finished with 34 points. “It’s just a zone, and you can’t really describe it,” James said, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “You wish you could stay in it forever, but obviously it checks out once the game ends. But during it, you don’t feel anything. It’s just like a superpower feel.“

Tyronn Lue Fined $35K For Comments About Officiating

February 16th, 2024 at 3:10pm CST by Luke Adams

Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue has been fined $35K for public criticism of the officiating and questioning the integrity of game officials, the NBA announced today in a press release (Twitter link).

Lue’s comments occurred after the Clippers’ 130-125 victory over the Warriors in Golden State on Wednesday. Cameras captured him outside L.A.’s locker room greeting his players by shouting, “Where the refs at now? Cheating. That’s all they be doing” (Twitter video link).

Lue had been ejected from the game early in the fourth quarter when he received a pair of technical fouls less than a minute apart for arguing foul calls. The Clippers trailed by a score of 103-94 at the time of his ejection, but came back for the victory.

A handful of NBA head coaches – including Mike Brown, Taylor Jenkins, Ime Udoka, and Darko Rajakovic – have been fined this season for criticizing the officiating after games.

Unlike those other coaches, Lue didn’t air his complaints to reporters during a postgame media session, but given that he was caught on camera, the league felt it couldn’t turn a blind eye to his “cheating” comment.

Tyronn Lue, Tom Thibodeau Named Coaches Of The Month

February 1st, 2024 at 9:20pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue and Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau were named Coaches of the Month for January, the NBA announced Thursday (Twitter link).

Lue, who was also the Western Conference’s Coach 0f the Month in December, led the Clippers to a 13-3 record in January. The Clippers have gone 28-8 since a 3-7 start to the season and, entering Thursday, sat at third in the Western standings, just 2.0 games out of first place.

The Clippers appear to be firing on all cylinders through the first half of the season. James Harden has fit in nicely after being traded to Los Angeles at the beginning of the season while Kawhi Leonard and Paul George were named All-Stars earlier Thursday. Ivica Zubac and Russell Westbrook are among others playing well in their roles.

Thibodeau, the Eastern Conference winner, helped propel the Knicks toward the top of the standings in January. The Knicks went 14-2 after the New Year, including separate winning streaks of five and eight games. After beginning the month with a 17-15 record, the Knicks are now 31-17 and in third in the conference.

Like the Clippers, the Knicks have two All-Stars and several players fitting nicely into their roles. OG Anunoby, traded to New York on Dec. 30, was a huge part of New York’s month. He’s averaging 15.6 points, 1.8 steals and 1.1 blocks per game since being moved.

The other nominees in the Western Conference were Oklahoma City’s Mark Daigneault, Utah’s Will Hardy, Memphis’s Taylor Jenkins and Phoenix’s Frank Vogel, according to NBA PR (Twitter link). Cleveland’s J.B. Bickerstaff, Indiana’s Rick Carlisle and Boston’s Joe Mazzulla were the other nominees in the Eastern Conference.

Pacific Notes: Leonard, Frank, Lue, Green, Durant

January 10th, 2024 at 10:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kawhi Leonard has been eligible for an extension for the past six months, and Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank never had any doubt that a deal would get done, writes Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times. L.A. signed the star forward to a three-year, $152.4MM extension on Wednesday that will keep him under contract through the 2026/27 season.

“We knew this union was going to happen,” Frank told reporters before Wednesday’s game. “We both wanted it to happen and we came to an agreement.”

Frank added that there was “no hesitation” about making such a large commitment to a player with a long injury history who is in 30s. Leonard has dispelled some of those physical concerns this season by playing in the Clippers’ first 27 games and 32 of 36 overall. The team is 13-1 with him in the lineup since the start of December and he’s putting up All-Star numbers over that stretch, averaging 26.4 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.9 steals per night while shooting 57% from the field and 48% from long distance.

Lawrence added that Leonard’s willingness to accept less that the full amount he was eligible to receive — approximately $220MM over four years — will help the organization in upcoming negotiations with Paul George and James Harden.

“In order to win, you need to be able to have flexibility to have really good teammates,” Frank said. “And in order to do that, there’s sacrifices that need to be made. And what I love what I’ve heard from our guys, what Kawhi has shown is … we want everyone to be compensated fairly and yet also preserve flexibility to both in the short and long term have contending rosters.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Leonard’s extension with the Clippers includes a 15% trade kicker, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Coaches and players throughout the league are recognizing the job that Clippers coach Tyronn Lue has done in making all the pieces mesh after the early-season trade for Harden, per Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. Lue guided the team through a rough stretch after Harden arrived and found a way to build an effective offense around numerous players who are used to having the ball in their hands. “He was giving us confidence, he was telling us this is not going to last for a long time, that we’re going to figure out, figure out how we want to play both ways. (He kept saying) it’s going to happen, and he was the one that was preaching that from the start, and we trusted it,” Ivica Zubac said. “Now we’re playing at a high level, and everyone is really confident. We know what we want to do, and it’s been a big time for him.”
Whenever Draymond Green resumes playing, he hopes to cut out the antics that have already led to two extended suspensions this season, relays Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Green addressed his behavior Tuesday at a news conference that marked his return to Warriors practice. “I’ve cost my team enough. I’ve cost this organization enough,” he said. Green will accompany the team on its upcoming trip and may return to action in one of the road games, Andrews tweets.
Suns star Kevin Durant clarified that he intended “no ill will” when he said last month that he hopes Green “gets the help that he needs” following “incident after incident,” per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.

L.A. Notes: LeBron, Ham, Leonard, Lue, Russell

January 8th, 2024 at 9:00am CST by Arthur Hill

In need of a signature win to turn their season around, the Lakers hope they got it Sunday night against the cross-town Clippers, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Coming into yesterday’s game, the Lakers had been slumping badly, with just a 3-10 record since winning the in-season tournament. LeBron James, who sparked the victory with a game-high 25 points, said the team needs to move past the mistakes that have led to losing.

“Try to use this to try to catapult a little bit better play from us,” he said. “But it still doesn’t take away from the fact of how we’ve been playing like the last 11, 12 games. Tonight was a good start. Hopefully we can start from here and continue to build.”

The win should ease the pressure on Darvin Ham amid recent rumors that his security as Lakers’ head coach is starting to be shaky. Ham, who told reporters before the game that he doesn’t feel like he’s coaching for his job, was happy with how the team responded to adversity.

“Everybody contributed, competed at a very high level,” Ham said. “And I’m proud of them. Now the cat’s out the bag for this one, in terms of how we need to approach each and every game and everybody do it as a committee.”

There’s more from Los Angeles:

Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said a minutes restriction is the reason Kawhi Leonard was pulled from the game with 2:47 remaining, McMenamin states in the same story. Leonard, who recently missed four games with a left hip contusion, didn’t return until there were 17 seconds left to play. “He was close to his minutes restriction, and we got a back-to-back tomorrow,” Lue explained. “We got five games in eight days, so my thought was we need him in the game [earlier in the fourth] because the game kind of got away from us a little bit. … He had to play his extended minutes early in the quarter instead of late in the quarter. So that’s on me as a decision that I made to get him in early to come back.”
The Clippers have been on a roll lately, but James believes it’s more attributable to Lue’s guidance than the trade for James Harden, McMenamin adds. “Nah, it’s the T-Lue Clippers,” James said. “I know T-Lue very well. It don’t take T-Lue long to make sure s–t get right. It took him five games, and they’ve been cooking since.”
The Lakers were boosted by the return of D’Angelo Russell, who was back on the court after missing three games with a bruised tailbone, per Khobi Price of The Orange County Register. Russell, who started 28 straight games before being moved to a reserve role, came off the bench again Sunday with 13 points and six assists. Russell left without talking to reporters, but Ham said his presence makes a difference. “Obviously, a guy that can orchestrate things, a guy that can stretch the floor, just his 3-point shooting ability and his ability to make shots,” Ham said. “You can’t have too much of that on your team. He definitely provides that.”

Lue: Criticism Of Ham “Definitely Unfair”

January 7th, 2024 at 9:58pm CST by Dana Gauruder

There was plenty of intrigue before the Clippers–Lakers game on Sunday night as Darvin Ham’s job status was a topic of conversation.

Ham has taken heavy criticism during the Lakers’ slide after winning the in-season tournament. A report from The Athletic claimed there was a “deepening disconnect” between Ham and his players over his frequent tinkering with the lineup and rotations. In response, Ham insisted he was “aligned” with owner Jeanie Buss and vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka.

Ham denied during the pregame press conference on Sunday that his job was on the line, Khobi Prince of the Orange County Register tweets.

“No, I don’t,” he said when asked whether he felt he was coaching for his job. “I feel like I’m coaching a hell of a franchise and it comes with the territory when you’re coaching in this business. I’ve seen a lot of coaches come and go, good ones, and some that have some bad circumstances around them. But in no way, shape or form do I feel that way.”

Clippers coach Tyronn Lue defended Ham, saying the criticism he’s been taking is “definitely unfair,” Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times tweets.

“It’s a long season. A lot of different things go on throughout the course of the season, a lot of changing parts,” Lue said. “And we said the same thing last year when they were 2-10 and they went to the conference finals and so are you giving the coach all the credit for that? I don’t think so. And I think D-Ham did a hell of a job last year by doing that. And the same thing this year. They got a lot of injuries, a lot of different rotations, a lot of starting lineups and it’s hard.”

The Lakers entered the game with a 17-19 record and a four-game losing streak.

Joe Mazzulla, Tyronn Lue Named Coaches Of The Month

January 4th, 2024 at 7:35pm CST by Rory Maher

Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla and Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue have been named the Coaches of the Month for December, the NBA announced (via Twitter).

Mazzulla, the Eastern Conference winner, led Boston to a 12-2 record last month. The Celtics have the best record in the NBA at 26-7.

While Mazzulla’s group has looked like a championship contender throughout its first 33 games, Lue’s Clippers had a rocky start after trading for James Harden, losing six straight at one point to hold a 3-7 record.

But L.A. has had an impressive turnaround over the past several weeks, going 18-5 over the past 23 games, including an 11-2 record in December. Harden shook off some early rust and has been playing at an extremely high level of late (20.1 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 9.4 APG, 1.4 SPG and 1.2 BPG on .483/.467/.883 shooting over the past 17 contests), and Kawhi Leonard has been dominant on both ends of the court.

According to the NBA (Twitter link), the other nominees in the Eastern Conference were J.B. Bickerstaff, Adrian Griffin, Nick Nurse and Erik Spoelstra, while Mark Daigneault, Chris Finch and Michael Malone were nominated in the West.

Clippers Notes: George, Lue, Harden, Tax

November 15th, 2023 at 9:37pm CST by Rory Maher

The Clippers now hold a 3-7 record after losing their sixth straight game, including five with James Harden in the lineup. As ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk writes, Tuesday’s contest in Denver went down to the wire, but L.A. was unable to secure the victory after being up seven with six minutes remaining.

Still, star forward Paul George thinks the team is close to a breakthrough.

“I thought we played great,” George said. “It’s tough, the adversity of playing against the extra three [officials]. I thought they were awful. But, [against the] defending champs, we got to play better. There’s a lot to be positive about. I’m not one for moral victories, but I thought we showed more of a sign of a team tonight that’s close to getting it over the hump.”

Here’s more on the Clippers:

Speaking to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report after the loss to the Nuggets, Tyronn Lue said adjusting on the fly after acquiring Harden has been difficult. “This is my toughest challenge as a head coach, but I’m up for the task for sure,” Lue said. “The biggest thing is getting these guys to sacrifice for guys, whether that’s starting the game, finishing the game, shots, touches, who’s running pick-and-rolls, and things like that. Getting these guys to sacrifice will be the biggest challenge all season.”
According to Haynes, George reiterated that he’s confident the group will figure it out, despite the rocky start. “We’re all honoring this adjustment. We have to sacrifice. We understand it. Simple as that. No one is going against that. Nobody is frustrated about it,” George told Bleacher Report. “We know what we have. There’s one ball, and there’s four good motherf–kers. And we understand that and embrace it. We want to make each other better, and I don’t think one person is complaining one bit about it.”
Harden, who told Haynes he’s still working his way into game shape after being absent for most of Philadelphia’s training camp, is also confident the Clips will turn things around. “When we figure this out, it’s going to be scary,” Harden said. “We’re getting there. We’ll let others talk, and we’ll put the work in. It’s going to take some time, and that’s OK.”
Promoting Joshua Primo and signing Daniel Theis (once he clears waivers) will push the Clippers’ payroll past $200MM — L.A. will join the Warriors as the only two teams to ever exceed that figure, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). L.A.’s luxury tax bill will sit at $142.3MM once Theis is officially a Clipper, Marks adds.

Clippers Notes: Harden, Lue, Westbrook, Hyland

November 13th, 2023 at 9:01am CST by Arthur Hill

After the Clippers lost their fifth straight game on Sunday, coach Tyronn Lue theorized that James Harden is being “too polite” as he tries to fit in with his teammates, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. During Saturday’s practice, Lue told Harden that he has “free rein” to play his normal style, but that didn’t translate well in his first game in front of his new home fans. Harden was limited to 11 points, four rebounds and three assists while shooting 4-of-12 from the field and 1-of-7 from three-point range.

“I think he’s doing too much to try to fit in,” Lue said. “So that’s on me. Just yesterday we had a talk amongst the team and just he has to be James Harden. He led the league in assists the last two or three years, and making plays and what he does in the pick-and-roll, he’s great. So we have to allow him to be himself.”

Responding to Lue’s message, Harden said he understands there’s a need to become more aggressive and make “the right basketball plays.” His teammates know they need the best version of Harden in order to succeed, and they’re willing to adjust to what he can do.

“We want James to be himself,” Paul George said. “James is used to having the ball and orchestrating offense and breaking offense down every possession. I’m sure it is tough when it’s not that every possession, and so he’s working through that. We’re all working through something, and we’re just trying to figure out how to be ourselves when those opportunities present themselves.”

There’s more on the Clippers:

Lue was more frustrated than he has been all season after L.A. lost at home to a Memphis team that entered the game with a 1-8 record, according to Law Murray of The Athletic. Murray notes that Lue built the team in training camp around Russell Westbrook‘s ability to push the ball and create open shots, but the offense had moved at a different pace since Harden was acquired. “I think playing too slow, just playing too slow,” Lue told reporters. “We get rebounds, you get stops, you got to push it. On makes, we got to push it, get up quick and attack early. You know, we can’t just f— … Sorry. No, I mean, we just can’t just walk around offensively. Like you got to get to the next actions.”
Bringing Harden off the bench might be the best solution for both him and the team, contends Mirjam Swanson of The Orange County Register. She suggests that Lue has already realized this, as Harden and Westbrook only shared the court for 11 minutes Sunday even though they both started.
Reserve guard Bones Hyland didn’t play in Sunday’s game, and Lue said he’s likely to remain out of the rotation for a while, tweets Clippers beat writer Joey Linn. Hyland has averaged 11.8 PPG in eight games and even made two starts, but Lue wants more size off the bench and plans to stick with the rotation he used against Memphis.

Pacific Notes: Gordon, Tucker, Harden, Hachimura, Vanderbilt, Kerr

November 1st, 2023 at 9:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

Injuries to Devin Booker and Bradley Beal have forced Eric Gordon to take on a larger role than he was expecting in his first few games with the Suns, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Gordon has made three starts already and ranks third on the team in scoring at 16.5 PPG. He’s also the team leader with 11 made three-pointers while seeing time at both guard positions.

“I am always comfortable. On a lot of teams I have been on, I have played a little bit of point guard and little bit of shooting guard,” Gordon said. “Even in playoffs and a lot of tough circumstances, and that is why I am here. Whoever is in and out I want to keep playing at a high level to where down the line, wherever it ends up being, whatever tough situation I will still find myself to be able to do well.”

The Suns have championship aspirations after trading for Beal and revamping their bench this summer, but they’re off to a 2-2 start. Gordon believes things will get easier once everyone becomes accustomed to playing together.

“There’s a lot of new guys. We’re all getting acclimated to one another,” he said. “I expect to just continue to get better as long as the games get better, as long as we play more games. Our chemistry’s getting better as you see. I’m definitely going to get shots and I’m gonna knock them down. Those (first) two games, things happen in this league, but the year goes along I expect to continue to shoot pretty well.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Coach Tyronn Lue expects P.J. Tucker to play tonight in his first game with the Clippers, tweets Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times. Lue told reporters that the process has already begun to integrate Tucker and James Harden, who were acquired in a trade with the Sixers that wasn’t finalized until this morning, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN (Twitter link). “It’s going to take some time, understanding process, rotations,” Lue said, “… but we’re excited about it … it’s going to take sacrifice whether shots … they’re willing to do it.” Also speaking to the media before tonight’s game, team president Lawrence Frank said Clippers officials studied how Harden adjusted his game when he was with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn and how he adapted to playing alongside Joel Embiid in Philadelphia (Twitter link).
Lakers forward Rui Hachimura, who’s missing his second straight game tonight, saw a specialist after he began to develop concussion symptoms, coach Darvin Ham said in his pre-game press conference (Twitter link from Dave McMenamin). Ham also said Jarred Vanderbilt, who has yet to play this season because of bursitis in his left heel, is making progress but is still limited to stationary drills.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr tells Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area that the 2022 championship was a “surprise” because the team hadn’t been at that level the previous two seasons.

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