Cavaliers Rumors: Tyronn Lue Returning from Absence to Coach vs. Wizards

Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue will return to coaching in the team's Thursday matchup against the Washington Wizards, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com.

Per that report, "Lue missed the Cavs' last nine games because of chest pains, lack of sleep and other health complications."

In his absence, the Cavaliers have gone 8-1 and are now holding a half-game lead over the Philadelphia 76ers for the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Sixers, who have five games left, aren't the only team nipping at their heels—the Indiana Pacers are just two games back of the Cavs, and both teams have four games remaining. 

Interim head coach Larry Drew maintained that the team should adjust seamlessly to the return of Lue after Tuesday's 112-106 win over the Toronto Raptors, per McMenamin:

"Ty's been around the team I would say the last five to six days. He's kind of been gradually getting back into it. I can see that the guys have already embraced him. So, it's just a matter of him being more hands on now once he does get back. I personally, just from what I've seen, it looks like everybody has rolled their sleeves up and just waiting for the day he comes back so they can get to work.

"You can see that the guys, they have totally embraced him, and he has embraced them, as well. But I think that feeling-out period, I think that's over with."

And LeBron James believes the best is yet to come for the Cavs.

"I mean, it's just what I've been telling you guys for a while now," he noted. "We don't know. We don't know what we can become. We don't know. We have no idea. But right now, we're playing good ball and we want to try to continue that. But we don't know what we can become. We have not been whole all year. For multiple reasons, we have never been whole. So, we don't know."

Perhaps getting Lue back will be another piece of the puzzle for the Cavaliers as they seek to become whole.