Clippers’ Tyronn Lue gets rave reviews for his in-game moves

LOS ANGELES — When a manager figures retired a mode to retrieve from 2-0 bid deficits doubly successful the aforesaid postseason and past threatens to bash it a 3rd clip contempt his squad being undermanned and exhausted, he’s bound to get his proverbial flowers.

And Tyronn Lue did this week erstwhile the NBA released its yearly wide managers’ survey and the Clippers’ manager earned notation successful 3 categories.

Lue finished 2nd successful voting for the “best manager/motivator of people,” down lone Phoenix’s Monty Williams and tied with Golden State’s Steve Kerr, San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich and Miami’s Erik Spoelstra. He besides was 1 of 9 coaches whose antiaircraft schemes warranted votes from the 30 GMs surveyed.

Most notably, helium finished archetypal the canvass gauging “best in-game adjustments,” with 37% of the ballot – 10% amended than runner-up Rick Carlisle, who this play has moved to Indiana from Dallas.

“That was bully to see,” Lue said earlier Wednesday’s preseason crippled against the Sacramento Kings astatine Staples Center, wherever helium hoped his squad would set its modulation defence for the amended aft allowing 30 fast-break points to Denver successful their preseason opener Monday.

“This is simply a recognition to my coaching unit arsenic well,” added Lue, ever gracious. “Just getting everyone connected the aforesaid page, putting successful the enactment each azygous time and conscionable trying to get amended and beryllium better.

“I thought we truly did a bully occupation arsenic a coaching unit of conscionable getting amended each month, each game, and past erstwhile we got to the playoffs, we was capable to marque immoderate adjustments and beryllium better. And we did that.”

But Ivica Zubac said it’s Lue – who had an 11-year NBA vocation arsenic a constituent defender – who is quickest connected the draw.

“He sees it truthful quick, arsenic soon arsenic it happens helium knows what to do,” the Clippers’ halfway said astatine shootaround. “And usually players oregon different coaches it takes a second. He knows it close away, and it’s similar he’s prepared for each concern that happens connected a court: ‘They could antagonistic maine with this, they tin antagonistic maine with that.’ And helium has a solution for everything.”

That’s the amusive of it, Lue said.

“You emotion to beryllium capable to bash that, passim the people of the game,” helium said. “Seeing what’s going connected the level and being capable to set and effort to instrumentality vantage of it connected the violative extremity and defensively. Try to travel up with schemes to dilatory those guys down.”

The manager who led the Cleveland Cavaliers to 3 consecutive NBA Finals and the franchise’s archetypal NBA rubric wasn’t acrophobic to change the Clippers’ rotations during the regular play oregon the postseason successful his archetypal twelvemonth astatine the helm successful L.A.

And Lue mostly got buy-in from players – see: “motivator/manager of people” – adjacent erstwhile those on-court alterations outgo them playing time, Zubac included.

Last postseason, the large antheral played less than 3 minutes successful Game 7 against Dallas successful the archetypal circular to astir 40 minutes vs. Phoenix successful Game 4 of the Clippers’ archetypal Western Conference finals appearance.

Not lone was helium knowing astir those important shifts successful action, helium said helium appreciated his coach’s quality to crook his crippled plan.

Said Zubac: “They made the close prime for voting for Ty.”

IBAKA’S RETURN: TBD

Tyronn Lue said Monday that Serge Ibaka was cleared for interaction aft undergoing backmost country successful June. But, arsenic is typical, the manager avoided predicting erstwhile the seasoned halfway mightiness instrumentality to crippled action.

After signing with the Clippers connected a two-year $19 cardinal woody up of past season, Ibaka missed 30 regular-season games with what the Clippers called “back tightness” earlier returning for the last 2 games connected the schedule, erstwhile helium revealed he’d experienced a pinched nervus successful his back.

In the postseason, Ibaka played 12 minutes, 47 seconds successful Game 1 of the Clippers’ first-round bid against Dallas and past conscionable 5:35 successful Game 2 earlier being ruled retired for the remainder of the Clippers’ run.

Lue said he’s “not sure” astir Ibaka’s targeted instrumentality day this season, but that helium tin confidently accidental the 32-year-old is anxious to marque it arsenic soon arsenic possible.

“I cognize he’s moving and trying to get backmost connected the level arsenic accelerated arsenic helium can,” Lue said. “But we privation to beryllium astute astir it. We privation to marque definite we’re doing the close happening by Serge and erstwhile he’s ready, erstwhile he’s 100%, and the doctors wide him to play, past we’ll get him retired there.

“He’s precise anxious. But we gotta beryllium smart. Can’t fto the subordinate dictate erstwhile they privation to beryllium connected the level due to the fact that a batch of times, they’re gonna get themselves successful occupation due to the fact that they volition play wounded and they volition play astatine 60-70% and that’s lone gonna acceptable you backmost more. So we gotta marque definite helium passes each the tests, does each the close things and past conscionable benignant of spell from there.”