Clippers Hire Ty Lue As Next Head Coach
The Los Angeles Clippers have decided to promote assistant coach Ty Lue, to the head coach position. LA fired previous head coach Doc Rivers following their semifinals playoff loss to the Nugget. Lue has prior coaching experience with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN was the first to report the news:
Lue ended up signing a five-year contract with the Clippers, but he was a prominent candidate for the Houston Rockets job beforehand. Obviously, with Daryl Morey stepping down, there’s a lot of uncertainty with the Rockets’ job. With Lue getting the nod with the Clippers, he can stay right where he is.
Lue, 43, has a career record of 128-83 during the regular season with Cleveland and led the Cavs to a championship in 2016. The Clippers are hopeful he can do the same with a star led group of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
A fascinating twist to this story is that Chauncey Billups will become the new lead assistant. Billups previously worked at ESPN but has been itching to return to the league in either a coaching or front-office role. Billups now gets that chance with the Clips.
Expectations are sky-high in Clipper land. Especially after watching the cross-town rival Lakers win another championship. Time will tell if things are different with Lue at the helm.
