Ty Lue makes breaks silence regarding Clippers' shocking split with Chris Paul originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Following the Los Angeles Clippers’ 115-92 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night, Ty Lue weighed in on the team’s shocking decision to part ways with Chris Paul in the midst of his final season in the league.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"I just think it wasn't a good fit for what he was looking for," Lue said. "It is what it is. Do I want to see CP go out like this? No. I have a lot of respect for him. He's been a friend of mine over the years. You never wanna see a great go out like this. But I'm pretty sure he will find something because he's a great player. ... I didn't wanna see it end like this."
Lue kept it diplomatic in front of media members, but things weren’t all good behind the scenes. A report from ESPN’s Shams Charania suggested that Paul and Lue weren’t on speaking terms for several weeks.
Another report from Chris Haynes suggested that Lue recently refused to meet with Paul over allegations that the latter was a “negative presence” on the team. So, clearly the relationship between coach and player was fractured.
In addition to Lue, Clippers star guard James Harden also spoke with media about Paul’s departure.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"I'm just as confused and shocked as you guys, the world," Harden said. "Definitely surprised me. But not just Chris, it's a lot that we were dealing with. But that is out of my hands. I got to focus on what I got to focus on and what I can control. I guess the front office felt that was the best decision for the organization."
Star forward Kawhi Leonard also expressed surprise. "It was shocking to me," Leonard said. "I guess they had a conversation and front office made a decision."
Paul was hardly playing for the Clippers, so his on-court production probably won’t be missed much. The reason that this is such a big story is because it’s rare to see a future Hall-of-Famer in his last season waived in the middle of the night. In fact, this might be the first time that it’s ever happened.
We’ll get Paul’s side of the story eventually. In the meantime, speculation regarding what went wrong during what should have been a celebratory season for the veteran guard will run rampant, as will speculation about what the future holds for Paul when it comes to his NBA career.
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