"They've won 17/18 championships": Ex-Laker and current Clippers HC Ty Lue disapproves Purple and Gold disrespect
The LA Clippers defeated their city rivals LA Lakers, 127-116, on Tuesday and their head coach Ty Lue took the opportunity to speak about the now ramped-up competition between the teams.
The 46-year-old, who won two NBA titles as a player with the LA Lakers in 2000 and 2001, said he was proud to say that there is now a rivalry to speak of in the last few seasons between the Los Angeles squads. He said it was a marked sea change when he was still playing.
But he was quick to say though that the LA Lakers are still to be commended for the consistency they have had in winning all this time.
Ty Lue said by way of LA Clippers reporter Farbod Esnaashari on X, formerly Twitter:
"Back when I played for the Lakers, it wasn't too much of a rivalry. It was just one-sided most of the time with the Lakers... the Clippers organization has done a great job of continuing to get better... it's a rivalry now, but they've won 17/18 championships."
The win on Tuesday was the first for the Clippers over the Lakers this season. In their two previous encounters, the Purple and Gold were triumphant, 130-125 in OT on Nov. 1 and 106-103 on Jan. 7.
But while the LA Lakers have had the number of the LA Clippers so far in their head-to-head match-up this season, the LA Clippers own the better record (28-14), sitting fourth in the Western Conference, than their rivals who are ninth (22-23).
The two teams play their final regular season match-up on Feb. 28.
Ty Lue highlights talent and execution as key to turning their season around
Following a 0-5 start to the James Harden era, the LA Clippers have considerably turned things around and are now having steady success. Coach Ty Lue said it is a result of talent and finding the right way to execute their game plan.
Since the rough start with "The Beard" in tow, the LA Clippers have gone 25-7 in their next 32 games to will themselves to a top four spot in the Western Conference with a 28-14 record heading into the halfway point of the season.
The trio of Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Harden is showing the way, with ample support coming from guys like Norman Powell, Ivica Zubac and former league MVP Russell Westbrook.
In a recent interview with The Ringer, Ty Lue spoke about their impressive turnaround to date, saying it is a combination of a lot of elements. He said:
“Half of it is great talent, and I think half of it is execution. We gotta be 100 percent execution, with our talent. That makes for a dangerous team.
“When you have great players that can score on anybody, sometimes it’s too easy. Why would I run and cut over there when I could just catch and shoot it? When you get to the playoffs, it’s a whole different animal, so we gotta start building those habits.”
The LA Clippers won 127-116 over the LA Lakers on Tuesday, their third straight victory. They next play on the road on Friday against the Toronto Raptors.