A. J. Lawson Explained

A. J. Lawson
Position:Shooting guard
Height Ft:6
Height In:6
Weight Lbs:179
League:NBA
Team:Dallas Mavericks
Number:9
Birth Date:15 July 2000
Birth Place:Toronto, Ontario, Canada
High School:
College:South Carolina (2018–2021)
Draftyear:2021
Career Start:2021
Draft Year:2022
Years1:2021–2022
Team1:College Park Skyhawks
Years2:2022
Team2:Guelph Nighthawks
Years3:2022
Team3:College Park Skyhawks
Team4:Minnesota Timberwolves
Years5:2022
Team5:Iowa Wolves
Years6:–present
Team6:Dallas Mavericks
Years7:20222024
Team7:Texas Legends
Highlights:
  • Second-team All-SEC – Coaches (2021)
  • SEC All-Freshman Team (2019)

Anthony Randolph "A. J." Lawson (born July 15, 2000) is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Early life and high school career

Lawson grew up in Brampton, Ontario and attended GTA Prep in Mississauga, a basketball academy based out of Mississauga Secondary School where he was coached by David Cooper. In his grade 12 season, Lawson was named an National Preparatory Association First Team All-Star and led the team to second place in the NPA championships.[1] Originally set to graduate in 2019 and ranked 40th in his class by 247Sports as well as fourth-best Canadian prospect by North Pole Hoops, Lawson reclassified for the class of 2018.[2] Lawson committed to playing college basketball for South Carolina over offers from Tulane and Creighton. South Carolina head coach Frank Martin began recruiting Lawson after a late night workout in Columbia on the trip back from a tournament.[3]

College career

Lawson averaged 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game in 29 games played and was named to the Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Freshman team.[4] [5] He was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on November 19, 2018, after averaging 15.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists over a three-game stretch against Norfolk State, Providence and George Washington.[6] Following the season he initially entered his name into the 2019 NBA draft, but decided to withdraw and return to South Carolina for his sophomore season.[7] [8]

Lawson was named to the preseason first team All-SEC and to the Jerry West Award watchlist going into his sophomore year.[9] [10] He was also named the 41st-best collegiate basketball player going into the 2019–20 season by CBS Sports and the 29th-best prospect for the 2020 NBA draft by ESPN.[11] [12] Lawson scored a season-high 28 points on November 15, 2019, in a 90–63 win against Cleveland State.[13] Lawson led the team during the season in total points with 416 and points per game at 13.4 while also averaging 3.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.2 steals per game.[14] Following the season, he declared for the 2020 NBA draft but did not hire an agent.[15] Lawson decided to withdraw from the draft and return to South Carolina on July 29.[16] On January 6, 2021, Lawson scored a career-high 30 points in a 78–54 win over Texas A&M.[17] As a junior, he averaged 16.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He was named to the Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Second Team. On April 19, 2021, he declared for the 2021 NBA draft and signed an agent.[18]

Professional career

After going undrafted in the 2021 NBA draft, Lawson joined the Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks for the 2021 NBA Summer League.[19] On September 22, 2021, Lawson signed with the Atlanta Hawks.[20] However, he was waived on October 7.[21] In October 2021, Lawson signed with the College Park Skyhawks[22] where he played 26 games and averaged 11.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game, while shooting 48.1% from the field.[23]

On April 26, 2022, Lawson signed with the Guelph Nighthawks of the CEBL.

Lawson joined the Dallas Mavericks for the 2022 NBA Summer League.[24] In five games, he averaged 15.6 points and 6.0 rebounds, while shooting 51.9% from the field.[25] Later, on July 19, 2022, Lawson signed a two-way contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves.[26] On October 15, 2022, Lawson was waived by the Timberwolves.[27] On November 3, 2022, Lawson was named to the opening night roster for the College Park Skyhawks.[28] On November 16, Lawson signed another two-way contract with the Timberwolves,[29] but was waived on December 8.[30] Two days later, he returned to College Park.[31]

On December 26, 2022, Lawson signed a two-way contract with the Dallas Mavericks, splitting time with their NBA G League affiliate, the Texas Legends.[32] It was converted to a standard-contract on March 4, 2024.[33] Lawson reached the 2024 NBA Finals where the Mavericks lost to the Boston Celtics in five games.[34]

National team career

Lawson has competed internationally for the Canada men's national under-19 basketball team. He averaged 14.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game in the 2018 FIBA Under-18 Americas Championship as Canada finished second in the tournament.[35] Lawson posted team highs with 18 points and 12 rebounds in Canada's 113–74 loss to the United States in the tournament final.[36]

In the 2019 FIBA Under-19 Basketball World Cup, Lawson averaged a team-best 16.7 points with 3.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game in seven games as Canada advanced to the quarterfinals.[37] He also had the highest scoring performance of the tournament with a 31-point game against Senegal.[38]

Lawson made his debut with Canada's senior men's national team during the first round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 Americas Qualifiers.[39]

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

|-| style="text-align:left;" rowspan=2|| style="text-align:left;"|Minnesota| 1 || 0 || 1.8 || 1.000 || || || 1.0 || .0 || .0 || .0 || 2.0|-| style="text-align:left;"|Dallas| 14 || 0 || 7.6 || .488 || .400 || .250 || 1.4 || .1 || .1 || .0 || 3.9|-| style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Dallas| 42 || 0 || 7.4 || .446 || .260 || .652 || 1.2 || .5 || .2 || .1 || 3.2|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career| 57 || 0 || 7.4 || .461 || .307 || .548 || 1.2 || .4 || .2 || .1 || 3.4

Playoffs

|-| style="text-align:left;"|| style="text-align:left;"|Dallas| 10 || 0 || 3.0 || .444 || .333 || .500 || .3 || .0 || .0 || .1 || 1.1|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career| 10 || 0 || 3.0 || .444 || .333 || .500 || .3 || .0 || .0 || .1 || 1.1

College

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2018–19| style="text-align:left;"| South Carolina| 29 || 28 || 29.9 || .411 || .358 || .667 || 4.3 || 2.9 || 1.1 || .2 || 13.4|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2019–20| style="text-align:left;"| South Carolina| 31 || 31 || 29.1 || .414 || .339 || .724 || 3.7 || 1.9 || 1.2 || .1 || 13.4|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2020–21| style="text-align:left;"| South Carolina| 21 || 21 || 31.3 || .394 || .351 || .700 || 4.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || .1 || 16.6|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career| 81 || 80 || 30.0 || .407 || .349 || .697 || 4.0 || 2.1 || 1.2 || .2 || 14.2

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Trusting the process has kept basketball star AJ Lawson close to home. Iain. Colpitts. Brampton Guardian. April 25, 2018. November 13, 2019.
  2. Web site: Canada's A.J. Lawson commits to South Carolina. Mark. Suleymanov. Sporting News. June 27, 2018. November 13, 2019.
  3. Web site: 'In my mind, we got AJ five years ago.' One man's journey to bring AJ Lawson to USC. Andrew. Ramspacher. The State. February 23, 2019. November 13, 2019.
  4. Web site: South Carolina basketball: Why AJ Lawson's due for big season. The State. October 23, 2019. November 13, 2019.
  5. Web site: Lawson deserves 'a little more respect'. John. Whittle. 247Sports.com. November 13, 2019.
  6. Web site: AJ Lawson earns first SEC weekly award. John. Del Bianco. 247Sports.com. November 19, 2018. November 13, 2019.
  7. Web site: Gamecocks' Lawson Declares For NBA Draft, Eligible To Return. Live5News.com. November 13, 2019.
  8. Web site: South Carolina freshman AJ Lawson declares for NBA draft. USA Today. November 13, 2019.
  9. Web site: A.J. Lawson named Preseason All-SEC First Team by the coaches. WLTX.com. November 13, 2019.
  10. Web site: USC's Lawson Named To Jerry West Award Watch List. Live5News.com. October 15, 2019. November 13, 2019.
  11. Web site: Ranking the Top 100 And 1 best players in college basketball entering the 2019–20 season. Kyle. Boone. Matt. Norlander. Gary. Parrish. CBSSports.com. October 24, 2019. November 13, 2019.
  12. Web site: NBA mock draft: Viewer's guide for our top prospects. Jonathan. Givony. ESPN. November 4, 2019. November 13, 2019.
  13. Web site: Lawson leads South Carolina past Cleveland State 90–63. USA Today. Associated Press. November 15, 2019. January 30, 2020.
  14. Web site: Seventh Woods finishes sit-out season on strong note. John. Del Bianco. 247Sports.com. March 18, 2020. March 21, 2020.
  15. News: South Carolina guard A.J. Lawson declares for NBA draft . April 27, 2020 . . . April 26, 2020.
  16. News: Leading hoops scorer AJ Lawson returning to South Carolina . August 2, 2020 . . . July 29, 2020.
  17. Web site: January 6, 2021. Lawson scores 30, leads South Carolina over Texas A&M, 78–54. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20210107052455/https://gamecocksonline.com/news/2021/1/6/mens-basketball-lawson-scores-30-leads-south-carolina-over-texas-am-78-54.aspx . January 7, 2021 . January 12, 2021. Gamecocks Online.
  18. Web site: Lananna . Michael . AJ Lawson makes NBA decision official, ending his Gamecocks career . . June 16, 2021 . April 19, 2021.
  19. Web site: Mike. Greger. Rookie Guard Ditches Heat for Hawks at NBA Summer League. Heavy.com. August 11, 2021. October 23, 2021.
  20. Web site: Atlanta Hawks Sign Johnny Hamilton, A.J. Lawson, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Jahlil Okafor. National Basketball Association. September 22, 2021. September 22, 2021.
  21. Web site: Hawks Request Waivers On A.J. Lawson, Sign Daquan Jeffries. National Basketball Association. October 7, 2021. October 7, 2021.
  22. News: College Park Skyhawks fall in preseason scrimmage. Clayton News-Daily. October 30, 2021. November 3, 2021.
  23. Web site: Guelph Nighthawks Sign Canadian AJ Lawson. CEBL.com. April 26, 2022. April 27, 2022.
  24. Web site: Dallas Mavericks 2022 NBA2K23 Summer League Roster . July 5, 2022 . National Basketball Association.
  25. Web site: Afseth . Grant . July 19, 2022 . EXCLUSIVE: A.J. Lawson Talks Summer Mavs; How He Earned T-Wolves Contract . July 20, 2022 . DallasBasketball.com.
  26. Web site: Timberwolves To Sign A.J. Lawson To Two-Way Contract . July 27, 2022 . Hoops Rumors . en-US.
  27. Web site: Timberwolves Waive Three Players. National Basketball Association. October 15, 2022. October 15, 2022.
  28. Web site: College Park Skyhawks Roster 2022–23. National Basketball Association. November 3, 2022. November 3, 2022.
  29. Web site: Matt. Stanton. Timberwolves Sign A.J. Lawson to Two-Way Contract. National Basketball Association. November 16, 2022. December 10, 2022.
  30. Web site: Timberwolves Sign Matt Ryan to Two-Way Contract. National Basketball Association. December 8, 2022. December 10, 2022.
  31. Web site: AJ Lawson Returns to College Park Skyhawks. National Basketball Association. December 10, 2022. December 10, 2022.
  32. Web site: Mavs Waive Tyler Dorsey, Sign A.J. Lawson to Two-Way Contract. Sports Illustrated. December 26, 2022. December 26, 2022.
  33. Mavs PR. The Mavericks signed AJ Lawson to a multi-year contract. Lawson played in 28 games for the Mavericks this season, including a 17-point, seven-rebound performance in a win against San Antonio (12/23/23). Both his 17 points and seven rebounds are career-highs.. 1764721314688872776. MavsPR. March 4, 2024. March 5, 2024.
  34. Web site: Boston Celtics defeat Dallas Mavericks to win 2024 NBA Finals. cbsnews.com. June 17, 2024. June 17, 2024.
  35. Web site: Canadian star A.J. Lawson expected to announce Tuesday. Adam. Zagoria. ZagsBlog.com. June 23, 2018. November 13, 2019.
  36. Web site: U.S. blows out Canada to win FIBA Americas U18 title. Lori. Ewing. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The Canadian Press. June 16, 2018. November 13, 2019.
  37. Web site: How close AJ Lawson came to leaving South Carolina, what he learned from Chris Paul. Andrew. Ramspacher. The Charlotte Observer. July 22, 2019.
  38. Web site: Gamecocks' Lawson shines for Canada in win over Senegal. Greg. Brzozowski. ABCColumbia.com. July 4, 2019. November 13, 2019.
  39. Web site: Brampton's A.J. Lawson set to debut with senior men's national team. November 25, 2021. Canada Basketball.