INGLEWOOD, Calif. — For the first time since the NBA trade deadline, the LA Clippers (38-30, eighth in the Western Conference) have their entire rotation of players intact. But for those two steps forward, there always seems to be a step back. LA will be without head coach Tyronn Lue for the fourth time in six games due to back pain.
The Clippers will also be without lead assistant coach and de facto defensive coordinator Jeff Van Gundy against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night while he attends to a personal matter.
The team does not have timetables for Lue’s or Van Gundy’s returns. Assistant coach Brian Shaw will serve as the Clippers’ acting head coach in Lue’s place.
“We don’t know — daily, we get updates, but his back issues have intensified again,” Shaw said of Lue in Tuesday’s pregame news conference. “He was getting better last game, he was on the bench with the hot pack on his shoulder most of the game. So we’re all hoping and praying that whatever it is and get to the bottom of it, and he’ll be back to be at the helm.”
Lue is dealing with back and shoulder pain that required an injection. The pain first became an issue after Lue’s pregame news conference March 9 before a home game against the Sacramento Kings. Shaw led the bench for that game, which ended with a game-winning buzzer-beater from Kawhi Leonard in overtime. Last week, Lue made the three-game trip with the Clippers, but Shaw led the bench in a loss against the New Orleans Pelicans and a win against the Miami Heat.
Lue returned to his role Friday against the Atlanta Hawks, declaring he was not on a minutes restriction and was “playing 48 tonight.”
“I thought the coaching staff did a great job,” Lue said before a 121-98 win in Atlanta. “B. Shaw, to take over, and just the whole coaching staff overall. What they did going 2-1 while I was out, we needed those games, very helpful. Like I said, that’s why I think we have a great coaching staff because they can fill in (and) take over when needed. And they did a great job.”
Shaw said he expects Lue to be able to send messages to the other coaches on the staff if he sees something and to communicate before the game and during timeouts.
But Tuesday night will be even more complicated with Van Gundy out, who has been tasked with reimagining the Clippers defense this season with superb results.
In Van Gundy’s first season as a coach since 2007 and first time as an assistant coach since 1996, the Clippers have been the second-best defense in the NBA, behind only the Oklahoma City Thunder. Last season, the Clippers ranked 16th in defensive efficiency.
Tuesday will mark the first meeting between the Clippers and the Cavaliers this season. Cleveland, coached by former Clippers assistant Kenny Atkinson, had a 16-game win streak snapped Sunday at home against the Orlando Magic. The Clippers will play their first game of the season with Leonard, Ben Simmons, Norman Powell and Kris Dunn all in the lineup.
Dunn missed Sunday’s win over the Charlotte Hornets due to knee soreness, Powell returned Sunday after missing two weeks with a hamstring strain, Simmons returned Friday in Atlanta after missing two weeks with knee swelling, and Leonard will play in his 26th game of the season after debuting in January due to knee inflammation.
After Tuesday, the Clippers will have two days off before hosting the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night and the Thunder on Sunday.
Required reading
(Photo of Tyronn Lue: Dale Zanine / Imagn Images)
