Lue made sure to highlight what his associate head coach has meant to the team's recent turnaround.
Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue spoke highly of what Jeff Van Gundy has brought to the organization since joining the staff ahead of last season, and his comments paint a picture of a coach who sets the tone through hard work and discipline every single day.
"From day one, just coming in, the no nonsense mentality...he's in the gym at 5 o'clock in the morning," Lue said.
That 5 a.m. commitment has clearly rubbed off on the rest of the team, and the numbers from last season back it up.
During the 2024-25 campaign when Van Gundy first arrived as defensive coordinator, the Clippers jumped from 16th in defensive rating all the way up to third in the league with a 110.3 mark despite dealing with injuries to Kawhi Leonard for most of the year.
Van Gundy transformed the team's identity on that end of the floor and helped them win 50 games.
This Season's Struggles
This year has been a different story for Los Angeles as they entered Wednesday's game at 13-22 in the Western Conference standings after winning seven of their previous eight games.
The defensive rating has slipped to around 118.7 which ranks 25th in the league, but injuries have once again played a major role in those struggles.
Leonard missed significant time early in the season but has been on fire lately, averaging 28.1 points per game while appearing in 17 contests.
He scored a franchise-record 55 points against Detroit on December 28th and has been dominant ever since.
James Harden continues to carry the offensive load with 25.6 points and 8.0 assists per game through 33 games this season, while Ivica Zubac has anchored the paint with 15.0 points and 11.0 rebounds per contest.
A Tough Night at The Garden
Wednesday's game against the Knicks ended up being a tough loss for the Clippers as they fell 123-111 at Madison Square Garden despite building a halftime lead.
Leonard scored 21 points in the first half but went cold after the break, and New York outscored Los Angeles 33-24 in the fourth quarter to pull away.
The matchup carried some extra weight for Van Gundy given his history with the Knicks franchise where he coached from 1996 to 2001 and led them to the NBA Finals in 1999.
His "no-nonsense" approach was on full display during those years in New York, and he has brought that same mindset to Los Angeles.
The loss dropped the Clippers to 13-23 while the Knicks improved to 24-13 and snapped their own four-game losing streak.
For Los Angeles to climb back into the playoff picture, they will need their defense to return to last year's form, and Lue believes Van Gundy's daily commitment gives them the best chance to make that happen.