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Kings meet with Lawson following missed flight: 'He got the message'

Thearon W. Henderson / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The air has been cleared between the Sacramento Kings and point guard Ty Lawson. Now it's time to move onward and upward.

Lawson made headlines Friday for all the wrong reasons when he missed the team's flight to Kentucky where the Kings were set to take on the Washington Wizards in preseason action. To make matters worse, footage of him partying it up in Las Vegas with two of his teammates the night before was released Monday.

The team billed it as a "personal issue" for why the 28-year-old didn't catch his flight. General manager Vlade Divac was ultimately satisfied with the explanation he gave, though.

"We handle it inside (the) house," Divac told reporters Monday. "He got the message, and we move forward.

"He's not going to be suspended."

Head coach Dave Joerger also chatted with Lawson, insisting there's nothing to worry about and "no situation" going on.

"Ty had a personal issue, and that stuff is non-basketball-related," Joerger said. "It's in my hands. The decisions that were made of the plane and all this stuff, that's on me. It's a personal issue. It's, I think, been very inaccurately reported."

Lawson has brought a great deal of baggage with him to his new home in Sacramento, as he's been arrested four times for driving under the influence. He was put in a rehabilitation center as a result for a month following his most recent arrest in 2015.

Related: Kings' Lawson: Bad rap has been 'pretty hurtful'

He split time during the 2015-16 regular season with both the Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers, averaging 5.7 points and 3.6 assists in 66 total games. Lawson then went on to sign a one-year, $1.3-million contract with Sacramento over the offseason.

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