The Los Angeles Clippers’ decision to part ways with Chris Paul has not just hit the locker room, since it has ignited a media firestorm focused on the relationship between him and head coach Tyronn Lue. At the moment of Paul’s departure, reports circulated that a complete breakdown in communication had occurred between the two, but Lue is now strongly denying this narrative of a silent feud prior to CP3’s exit.
Addressing reporters at practice on Tuesday, Lue faced multiple CP3 questions, but he was quick to address the speculation.
The direct response
Lue was direct and emphatic with his words, making clear that there was no kind of miscomunication between coach and player:
“That’s ain’t true. We were talking. He played. How he gon’ play if I’m not talking to him?!”
For the coach, those communication issues claims lean on a logical absurdity. He affirmed that he was always in contact with the star prior to the move, suggesting that whatever friction existed, it did not rise to the level of total silence during game preparations.
While Lue denied the “no-speaking” allegations before the split, he did confirm that the two have not communicated since the decision was made.
Who made the final call?
Perhaps the most telling revelation from Lue’s presser was his apparent lack of involvement in the final, decisive action. When asked about rekindling the situation, Lue deflected the question, immediately stating:
“You gotta ask Lawrence [Frank].”
This points directly to Lawrence Frank, the Clippers’ President of Basketball Operations. Frank issued a statement insisting the team’s struggleswere not the primary factor and that Paul was not being used as a scapegoat, saying:
“We just felt it was the right decision to make”
Accordifn to TMZ, Lue was “adamant he wasn’t involved” in the decision, suggesting that the “we” used by Frank, a word which typically implies executive and coaching unity and was being applied “a little loosely.”
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