Tyronn Lue Reportedly Won't Be Fired Despite Cavaliers' Struggles

Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue is reportedly not in danger of losing his job. 

"We are not firing our head coach," a Cavaliers official told ESPN.com's Adrian Wojnarowski following the Cavaliers' 120-88 loss to the Houston Rockets on Saturday night at Quicken Loans Arena. 

The defending Eastern Conference champions have dropped 12 of their last 18 games and are 6-9 dating back to the start of the new year.

The Cavaliers seemed to be hitting their stride when they improve to 23-8 on Dec. 17, but they've struggled mightily of late and are flirting with a tumble down the Eastern Conference standings. 

According to NBA.com, Cleveland owns the NBA's 23rd-ranked offensive rating (103.9) and 27th-ranked defensive rating (111.1) over the past five weeks. 

"I just think mindset needs to change," Lue said following Saturday's loss, per Cleveland.com's Joe Vardon. "I think we need to do things harder." 

Beyond the on-court struggles, the Cavaliers have reportedly been dealing with locker room strife. 

According to ESPN.com's Dave McMenamin, "a division" has surfaced between "the old guard, the players who were around for Cleveland's success the past several seasons, versus the new guard, the eight players added this season."

"There is no trust out there on the court," a member of the old guard told McMenamin. "This is the worst it's been."

With Lue's job safe and Thursday's trade deadline looming, Wojnarowski reported the Cavaliers will continue to explore ways to upgrade their roster as they cling to hopes of a second-half surge.