KEY POINTS

  • Lue is favorite to be next Nets coach
  • Lue needs to finish year with Clippers first
  • Irving believed to have an influence in Lue's selection

Tyronn Lue is currently serving as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers but could be back to head coaching after the 2019-20 NBA season. The name of the 42-year-old mentor has been frequently mentioned in rumors, most believe he will be the next head coach of the Brooklyn Nets.

As most know, Kenny Atkinson parted ways with the Nets recently with Jacque Vaughn calling the shots on an interim basis. Before the NBA suspended the season, the Nets were on a three-game winning streak. They are currently at the seventh spot of the NBA Eastern Conference with the Orlando Magic not far behind. Brooklyn's chances in the playoffs are not looking that good since they will likely end up facing either the Milwaukee Bucks or the Toronto Raptors in the first round.

This is assuming that the NBA resumes the 2019-20 season. League commissioner Adam Silver mentioned that there is a chance that the season could be scrapped in a previous post. With the Center for Disease Control and Protection announcing that all in-person events involving 50 or more are to be called off for the next eight weeks, Silver has yet to issue an update. The NBA was originally placed on a 30-day hiatus.

Regardless of what happens next, the fact remains that Lue will be in the headlines once the current NBA season comes to a close. Vegas odds pick the one-time NBA champion coach to be the next head coach of the Nets although rumors already came out recently that Kyrie Irving could have an influence on that.

Irving and Lue were part of the Cleveland Cavaliers team that bagged the 2016 NBA title. Lue has a proven track record although that NBA title conquest was a bit half-cooked. David Blatt called the shots for the majority of the season and critics feel that he too deserved credit for that Cavs' run.

For now, Lue will have to focus on his current commitment to the Clippers. The Clips are behind the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference but are expected to be among the top dogs in the postseason. But the question now is whether the NBA season would resume or not. The earliest time it could continue is June. Normally, that would be the crucial stretch leading to the NBA Finals. Unless the league adjusts its calendar, there is a chance that the NBA may scratch the season.

Tyronn Lue
Head coach Tyronn Lue of the Cleveland Cavaliers during the first half of the NBA game against the Phoenix Suns at Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona, March 13, 2018. Christian Petersen/Getty Images