mobile app bar

‘Lost because Kawhi Leonard and Paul George missed games’: Clippers’ Tyronn Lue addresses locker room chemistry issues

Samir Mehdi
Published

Lost because Kawhi Leonard and Paul George missed games': Clippers' Ty Lue

Tyronn Lue says the Clippers’ chemistry was bad due to stars missing games, not because of their personal feelings towards one another.

With the Los Angeles Clippers 2019-20 NBA season crashing and burning in the mere 2nd round of the Playoffs after blowing a 3-1 lead to the Nuggets, the Clippers looked to revamp certain aspects of their team.

The first change that took place was the firing of long time Clippers Head Coach Doc Rivers, and promoting assistant coach Tyronn Lue to Head Coach.

Also read: ‘Kawhi Leonard and Paul George to be staggered on court’: Ty Lue plans massive shakeup for Clippers stars next season

In Tyronn Lue’s first media availability as the newly appointed Head Coach for the Los Angeles Clippers, he discussed what went wrong in the Clippers locker room that led to such a disappointing end to their season.

‘Clippers lost because Kawhi Leonard and Paul George missed games’: Ty Lue

It has been known for a while that the Clippers locker room wasn’t the jolliest of them all, as reports came out that they had mixed feelings about Paul George giving them a pep talk after losing in the WCSF.

Also read: ‘Clippers are going to break their roster up’: NBA Agent provides worrying update about Kawhi Leonard and co

However, amongst all this, Tyronn Lue took to his virtual introductory press conference to dismiss the rumors that the Clippers players have any animosity towards one another.

Lue said, “I think when you talk about chemistry and continuity, it is not off the court, the guys not liking each other.”

He continued on by saying, “When you talk about chemistry, it is more so Paul George came in and he had shoulder surgery, so he was out. Kawhi came in and couldn’t participate in the whole training camp. Then we lost Patrick Beverley in and out of the lineup a few times.”

What are the Clippers’ locker room issues?

Tyronn Lue did not address the rumors surrounding the Clippers players’ reported ill feelings towards stars Paul George and Kawhi Leonard.

While the reports of animosity towards Kawhi Leonard because of Clippers providing him with special treatment was shunned aside by Montrezl Harrell and Lou Williams, not much has been said about Paul George’s locker room status.

The ‘Chemistry’ issue within the team question was dealt with brilliantly by Lue, who did not quite address the ‘Kawhi Leonard star treatment’ reports that had been coming through.

The Clippers locker room would have been broken post the defeat and player relationships were bound to be questioned. It will now be interesting to see if they can block the ‘noise’ from the outside and focus on the job at hand. Or else, shake up their roster and start afresh.

About the author

Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi

instagram-icon

Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

Share this article