Tyronn Lue and Daryl Morey are officially feuding.
The Los Angeles Clippers coach fired back at the Philadelphia 76ers’ president of basketball operations Monday for a tweet about the Clippers’ free-throw shooting. But it was Lue’s comments about the 76s that got the ball rolling.
Things started last week when Lue answered a question about 76ers stars Joel Embiid and James Harden’s propensity to get to the free-throw line ahead of Friday’s game against the Clippers. In particular, he was asked how the Clippers would avoid getting frustrated when calls were made against them.
“Well, we don’t have a choice,” Lue replied. “Embiid is number 1 from the free throw line and James is number 3. I think they said if you take away their free throws none of these guys would be in the top 10 in the score so it just tells you how many are coming them to the free-throw line.
“We just have to do a good job of pulling our hands back, making sure we’re playing, not getting them in the bonus and doing the sweep-throughs. They’re going to get some calls for being like that, but we just have to make sure we do our part.”
Tyronn Lue responded to a tweet by Daryl Morey. (Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images)
Harden has made a career out of getting his turn. That hasn’t changed since he joined the 76ers midseason, where he’s averaging 9.8 attempts per game. Embiid, on the other hand, averages 11.8 attempts per game. Both shoot better than 80% off the line when they get there. Lue was right and was ready with the information when he noted that they are in the top three in the league in tries per game.
Morey shoots back
Morey got wind of Lue’s comments and responded on social media on Saturday with some insights into Clippers free throws.
Lue turns up the heat
Things escalated Monday when Lue was asked about Morey’s tweet at a press conference. He said his initial comments about Embiid and Harden were taken out of context. Then he dropped this gem:
The story goes on
“In response to Daryl Morey, should he really tweet anything now?” Lue said. “Last time he tweeted, he cost the NBA a billion dollars. I don’t think he should tweet too much. Just worry about his own team.”
In case you forgot, Morey tweeted in 2019 in support of Hong Kong protesters protesting for autonomy from the Chinese government. He was the manager of the Houston Rockets at the time.
“Fight for Freedom. Stand with Hong Kong,” read Morey’s now-deleted tweet.
The tweet sparked a firestorm of controversy, including Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta many in the NBA dismiss the tweet This is thanks in large part to the league’s significant financial ties to China, where the league is popular. China’s response to Morey’s tweet included removing NBA games from state television broadcasts.
The league may not have lost “a billion dollars,” as Lue suggested. But commissioner Adam Silver estimated in 2020 that China’s crackdown on the NBA would cost the league hundreds of millions of dollars.
The NBA, meanwhile, has been criticized for appearing to put revenue above human rights abuses committed by the Chinese government against the people of Hong Kong.
And now it’s all coming back up in a feud over free-throw shooting.