They just cannot catch a break.

The Los Angeles Clippers lost another nail biter this time to the Minnesota Timberwolves 106-109. The Clippers (6-19) fall to the second to last worse team in the Western conference. This has been a trend of losing streaks, blown leads, and inconsistent play.

Something isn’t right with this picture. 

Lue’s coaching scheme fits James Harden’s style of play

Many fans today simply look at the players when it comes to team results. Which is understandable, when they turn the television on that is what they see the players. However, in team sports coaching matters.

NBA coaches who get paid millions of dollars have a job to do as well. A coach sets up the system of how a team is going to play. For Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue, that system revolves around their point guard James Harden.

For 10 plus years, Harden has played a style of basketball that fits his game. Season after season, fans have witnessed multiple 30, 40, 50 point games by “the beard”. Last night, versus the Wolves he just passed Carmelo Anthony as the 10th leading scorer of All-Time. This season,  Harden is averaging 26.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 8.3 apg, and shooting 44.3% from the field.

In watching the games, Lue’s offensive system seems to be centered around what makes Harden comfortable. Whether it be a high pick set to get Harden open, utilizing spacing for Harden to pile up his assists, or Harden to take plays off defensively to conserve his offense. This style of play falls right into the opponent’s hands while quickly killing momentum.

Having a high usage play maker who dictates everything is the same philosophy Lue used with the same guy he won his only title with.

Harden plays the same way. In contrast, the best player on the Clippers’ has been known to play a different way

Lue’s coaching scheme doesn’t work for Kawhi Leonard

Harden’s numbers not only go towards his offensive talent, but his high usage rate which gives him the opportunity to maximize his statistics. He is tied at 7th in the NBA with ball usage rate. That means the ball is in his hands more than anyone else on the team.

Unfortunately due to age, Harden can no longer carry a team as the number option like he did with the Houston Rockets. On the Clippers, the number one option is the 3 year/$150 million man Kawhi Leonard.

Without Leonard this season, the Clippers are 1-9. Many believed getting Leonard back would be the hat trick for the Clippers to improve their team record, but that theory has fallen by the wayside for the Clippers. They are  5-9 with Leonard on the court. So what is the problem?

Leonard is averaging 25.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 3.0 apg with shooting splits of 49/39/97. By the stats, Leonard is actually having an All-Star season. However, he is doing it with Lue’s coaching style that doesn’t benefit him.There is a power struggle between Leonard and Harden’s styles of play. Leonard’s values of defense first, high efficiency shots, and playing from the inside out. This style gears more towards team success over individual numbers.

Like Harden, Lue is one dimensional when it comes to coaching. He has continued to utilize: small ball, isolation, and spacing. If lacking any of these three components, it seems like Lue cannot operate.  

Lue’s coaching scheme is the problem

The Clippers have lost games in every way possible. They’ve been blown out and lost nail biters going down to the last shot. Moral victories only go so far, the win loss column still reads 6-19. 

So what’s next? The two best players individually are putting up very good stats, and still are struggling to retrieve wins. This goes farther than individual performances, if fans want to see any chance of the Clippers turning things around Lue is going to need to change his philosophy, which is probably close to unlikely.