Rockets' Lawson laments lack of playing time
Ty Lawson is unhappy yet again.
The Houston Rockets' beleaguered point guard posted an Instagram photo of himself with the caption "Let a dude ball out," at 5:15 a.m. on Wednesday, ESPN's Calvin Watkins reports.
He has since deleted the post.
Despite fervent fanfare following his acquisition, Lawson's transition from Denver to Houston has gone horribly awry. He was expected to take the reins as the starting point guard to ease James Harden's ball-handling duties, but Lawson has inexplicably regressed to the point of being nearly unplayable.
And although Lawson might be disappointed with his lack of playing time, he's made it tremendously difficult for Kevin McHale, and now J.B. Bickerstaff, to give him more opportunities. Quite frankly, he hasn't deserved it.
| Statistic | 14-15 | 15-16 |
|---|---|---|
| MPG | 35.5 | 24.8 |
| PPG | 15.2 | 6.4 |
| APG | 9.6 | 4.3 |
| TS% | 52.6 | 46.4 |
| PER | 18.5 | 9.6 |
| On/Off | +7.4 | -4.6 |
To make matters worse, Lawson was suspended two games for a DUI charge that he picked up last January. He's also facing charges from a second DUI charge dating back to July that has yet to be resolved in court.
In light of Lawson's struggles, backup Patrick Beverley has assumed the starting spot at point guard. Lawson responded by asking for a trade despite continued support from the Rockets. He was also unhappy with his situation in Denver, which helped expedite his exit.
The Rockets currently sit two games under .500 in the seventh seed in the West after winning 56 games and the two seed in 2014-15.
Lawson is owed $12.4 million this season and has a non-guaranteed $13.2-million figure for 2015-16. The Rockets traded a protected first-round pick and four players to acquire Lawson in August.