SACRAMENTO -- “Wassup Sac-town...”
That was the beginning of veteran NBA point guard Ty Lawson’s tweet late Sunday night. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, the talented, yet troubled guard has inked a 1-year deal with the Sacramento Kings with the hopes of turning around his once stellar career.
Lawson, 28, was traded to the Houston Rockets before the 2015-16 season after six seasons with the Denver Nuggets. He averaged a career low 5.8 points and 3.8 assists in 22.2 minutes per game as both a starter and reserve before being waived on March 1.
The Pacers signed him for the remainder of the season on March 7 where he played in 13 games down the stretch and another seven games in the postseason.
During the 2014-15 season, Lawson posted 15.2 points and 9.6 assists per game playing in the same backcourt with Kings free-agent acquisition Arron Afflalo. He ranked third in the league in assists behind Chris Paul (10.2) and John Wall (10.0).
Lawson instantly gives the Kings a seasoned point guard option to compete with veteran Darren Collison for minutes. Collison is currently facing domestic violence charges stemming from an incident in late May. If found guilty, he is likely facing a league suspension to start the season.
No stranger to league sanctions, Lawson has faced DUI charges four times during his basketball career, including a 2008 arrest during his time in college with the North Carolina Tar Heels and two arrests in 2015.
Similar to last season’s addition of Rajon Rondo, the signing of Lawson gives the Kings a low-risk, high-reward free agent pickup. While his salary is unknown at this time, Lawson will not make anywhere near the $9.5 million Rondo played for last season.
Free agent guard Ty Lawson has agreed on a one-year deal with Sacramento, league sources tell @TheVertical.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) August 29, 2016
Wassup Sac-town... trying to those cowbells back in action
— Ty Lawson (@TyLawson3) August 29, 2016
