Tyronn Lue Taking Leave Of Absence For Health Reasons

10:31am: Lue will be on a one-week plan to address his health issues, a source tells TNT’s David Aldridge (Twitter link). For now, the hope is that Lue will be able to return to coaching next week.

10:04am: Tyronn Lue is taking a leave of absence from his job as the Cavaliers’ head coach for health reasons, he announced today in a statement. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link), Lue had been considering this option for several weeks, but had resisted until now. Associate head coach Larry Drew will take over for Lue on an interim basis, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

“After many conversations with our doctors and [GM] Koby [Altman] and much thought given to what is best for the team and my health, I need to step back from coaching for the time being and focus on trying to establish a stronger and healthier foundation from which to coach for the rest of the season,” Lue said in a statement. “I have had chest pains and other troubling symptoms, compounded by a loss of sleep, throughout the year. Despite a battery of tests, there have been no conclusions as to what the exact issue is.

“While I have tried to work through it, the last thing I want is for it to affect the team,” Lue continued. “I am going to use this time to focus on a prescribed routine and medication, which has previously been difficult to start in the midst of a season. My goal is to come out of it a stronger and healthier version of myself so I can continue to lead this team to the Championship we are all working towards.”

As Lue noted in his statement, he has been battling health problems for several months. The Cavs’ head coach didn’t return to Cleveland’s bench during the second half of Saturday’s game against the Bulls — he has now missed multiple shootarounds, parts of multiple games, and at least one practice this season due to his illness, per Cleveland.com.

It’s not clear at this point how much time Lue will have to miss. We wish him the best during his recovery.

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