In July 2013, Lue joined the Los Angeles Clippers' coaching staff. Cleveland Cavaliers (2014–2018) On June 23, 2014, Lue joined the Cleveland Cavaliers as associate head coach, becoming the highest-paid assistant coach in the NBA. Lue had been a top candidate for the Cavaliers' head coaching job, which eventually went to David Blatt. On January 22, 2016, Lue was named head coach of the Cavaliers immediately following the mid-season firing of Blatt. He was signed to a three-year contract. Lue coached the Cavaliers to an NBA championship that spring. In May, the Cavaliers defeated the Toronto Raptors in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, continuing their unbeaten streak in the 2016 playoffs and making Lue the first coach in NBA history to win his first 10 postseason games. Eight days later, Lue led the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals, becoming one of the few coaches to reach the Finals after becoming head coach in midseason. On June 19, 2016, the Cavaliers won their first NBA championship. Lue became the second rookie head coach in two years to win the title, the third head coach (along with Paul Westhead in 1979–80 and Pat Riley in 1981–82) to win a championship after becoming head coach in midseason, and the 14th person to have won an NBA championship as a head coach and as a player. In the 2016–17 NBA season, Lue coached the Cavaliers to a 51–31 record. In the playoffs, the Cavaliers went 12–1 heading into the 2017 NBA Finals before losing to the Golden State Warriors in five games. On March 19, 2018, Lue announced that he would take a leave of absence from coaching the Cavaliers, citing recurrent chest pain. Lue returned to coach before the regular season ended and helped the Cavaliers reach the 2018 NBA Finals, where they lost to the Warriors in four games. Lue's coaching style in Cleveland relied on flexibility and LeBron James's consistency; he shuffled players around James to adjust to matchups. In 2016, his Finals team followed the Warriors' own blueprint to beat them. Lue's style was described as undisciplined and unprepared in the regular season, but in the playoffs, he has been praised for his ability to "think several moves ahead and create matchup advantages". At the 2016 ESPY Awards, Lue was named Best Coach/Manager and the Cavaliers were named Best Team. On October 28, 2018, the Cavaliers fired Lue