Ty Lue: Clippers 'Can't Wait to Prove Everybody Wrong' After Paul George NBA FA Exit

Los Angeles Clippers head coach Ty Lue says Paul George's decision to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers in free agency has given the Clippers even more motivation for the 2024-25 season.

"When you lose a guy of Paul George's stature, instantly people [think] oh, they can't win or they're not going to be competitive," Lue told ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk. "But that just challenges me even more. OK, people are counting us out or people don't think we're going to be good.

"That right there just gives me an extra dose of [motivation]. I can't wait to prove everybody wrong."

George announced in July that he would leave the Clippers after five seasons in order to sign a four-year max contract with the 76ers.

George will depart Los Angeles after earning his second straight All-Star nomination, and the ninth of his career, while averaging 22.6 points per game last season.

He was also available for 74 regular-season starts, marking his healthiest season since his 2018-19 campaign for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Through five seasons and 263 regular-season games in Los Angeles he averaged 23.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game as a consistent offensive boost for the Clippers.

George originally had a $48.7 million player option to remain in Clippers for the 2024-25 season.

He said in July on Podcast P with Paul George that after the team was bounced from the first round in six games by the Dallas Mavericks that the Clippers offered him a three-year, $150 million deal, but that talks fell apart after the team would not concede on George's requested no-trade clause.

In ESPN's July survey of 18 NBA coaches, scouts and executives, four coaches listed the Clippers as having the worst offseason in the league for losing George in free agency, per ESPN's Tim Bontemps.

But the Clippers also made some positive moves this summer, including retaining two of last season's stars in Kawhi Leonard and James Harden.

The Clippers also added a potential starter in Derrick Jones Jr., a top-five player for the Mavericks during their run to the 2024 Finals, while bolstering the team's second unit with defensively-focused players like Kris Dunn and Nicolas Batum.

Lue will need both Harden and Leonard, who missed out on the 2024 Paris Olympics with a knee injury but will reportedly be healthy for the start of the season, to remain available in order to power this roster forward without George.

If Harden and Leonard can stay healthy, given the defensive improvements made around them, Lue could be hoping to lead this team back to the playoffs around his two remaining stars next spring.