76ers Reportedly 'Close to a Deal' With Clippers' Ty Lue

The Philadelphia 76ers are rumored to be "close to a deal" with Los Angeles Clippers assistant Ty Lue, according to Jon Johnson of 94 WIP. The news comes just a few hours following the Brooklyn Nets' hiring of NBA Hall of Famer, Steve Nash.

For the last couple of weeks now, Lue's name has been making its rounds as head coaching positions became available around the NBA. However, his name has been mostly affiliated with the Sixers and the Nets.

Now that the Nets are officially out of the running, the Sixers head coaching position seems to be Lue's to lose. A few weeks ago, Lue was linked to the 76ers for the first time before Brett Brown was even fired from the job.

Then not even 24 hours after the Sixers were swept in the first round of the 2020 NBA Playoffs, the Sixers ended a seven-year stint with Brown. Once again, Lue was one of the first names affiliated with the 76ers' head coaching vacancy.

Some other key names connected to the Sixers happened to be Mike Brown, Dave Joerger, and Jay Wright. As of Wednesday, Wright officially made it clear he's staying at Villanova, while the other two didn't exactly gain steam with the Sixers.

From the jump, Ty Lue has been the No. 1 candidate, and Sports Illustrated's own Chris Mannix confirmed that there is some serious mutual interest between Lue and Philly. At this point, it seems it's not a matter of if Lue becomes the Sixers' next head coach -- it could be only a matter of when.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_