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The wait is over. The Clippers have found their new head coach.
According to multiple reports, the LA Clippers and Ty Lue are finalizing a five-year deal for him to become their next coach.
Sources: The Los Angeles Clippers are hiring Ty Lue to be their next head coach -- with Chauncey Billups as a lead assistant.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 15, 2020
Per the report, former Clippers player and current TV analyst Chauncey Billups will become Lue’s lead assistant. Billups had indicated that he was interested in transitioning to a coaching role earlier in the offseason after years of working in television.
A further report indicates that former Hawks/Bucks/Cavaliers head coach Larry Drew will be joining Lue’s staff. Drew was Lue’s assistant in Cleveland from 2016-2018.
Sources: New Clippers coach Ty Lue is expected to hire Chauncey Billups as associate head coach for Clippers and Larry Drew, a longtime experienced coach in NBA with Atlanta, Milwaukee, Cleveland, will be an assistant as well.
— Brad Turner (@BA_Turner) October 15, 2020
A few weeks ago, Doc Rivers and the Clippers agreed to part ways, opening up arguably the biggest head coaching vacancy on the market. With Lue serving as an assistant under Rivers, many expected that he would be the obvious choice.
Lue interviewed with other teams for their head coaching vacancies, as the Clippers also interviewed other potential candidates as well. Ultimately, the two sides are close an agreement, and Lue will likely be leading the Clippers next season.
Lue was an assistant coach for the Clippers during the 2013-2014 season after coaching under Rivers in Boston for two years prior. He then went to Cleveland as the associate head coach and was promoted to the head job during the 2015-2016 season. Lue won a championship with the Cavaliers in 2016, the lone championship in franchise history.
He then left Cleveland and attempted to take another head coaching job with the Lakers, but could not reach suitable terms. As a result, Lue came back to the Clippers, where he was an assistant coach this previous season. Now, he’ll be back in the head chair.