Houston Rockets: The Status Of The Ty Lawson Experiment

Always a tenuous proposition, it appears that the Houston Rockets’ Ty Lawson experiment may be coming to a close after a quick hook on Wednesday night.

The Houston Rockets took a low-risk gamble when they acquired point guard Ty Lawson from the Denver Nuggets this past off-season for what amounted to spare parts. The market for Lawson’s services was at an all-time low in spite of the fact that he came off a career-high in assists, averaging 9.6 assists per game.

It seemed like perhaps all Lawson needed was a change of scenery, some new faces and fresh voices. Lawson was already friends with Rocket superstar James Harden, and looked forward to playing for Kevin McHale, according to Mark Berman of Houston’s Fox 26 in an interview in September.

"“Kevin McHale, he’s a cool coach,” Lawson said in an interview with FOX 26 Sports. “I sat down and had dinner with him, probably like a week ago.“He just keeps everything real. He’s played before, so he knows what we’re going through. He makes everything straight forward, no grey areas. It was fun. We talked about everything, not just basketball, just life. He even had some stories when he used to play. It was a fun dinner.“So I’m excited to play for him.”"

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Those heady times when Lawson looked forward to suiting up for head coach Kevin McHale seem much longer than 10 weeks ago these days. McHale is now out of a job, fired after the Rockets got out to a stunningly bad start with a 4-7 record.

The Rockets have been among the worst in the league in most offensive and defensive categories since the beginning of the season, and it seems impossible for them to string together a full game’s effort on defense.

A year ago the Rockets were tenacious, a team that would battle until the final buzzer almost every night. This season, a 10-point deficit has been enough to break their back and cause them to wave the white flag.

The Rockets have only held one team to less than 102 points this year, and that came in a 96-84 loss to the fairly low-scoring Memphis Grizzlies, and they have lost eight of their last nine games. Their sole victory came in the predictable “dead-cat bounce” game the night McHale was fired and replaced by J.B. Bickerstaff.

It’s worth noting that the Rockets are 1-3 since the coaching change, with their only victory being a home win against the Portland Trail Blazers. They trailed by 17 points in the second half before a fourth-quarter meltdown from the Blazers let the Rockets back into it, and Houston took it down in overtime after Corey Brewer hit a ridiculous last second three-pointer to tie it up.

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During Wednesday night’s 102-93 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, a new page may have been turned on this surprising and grim season the Rockets are experiencing.

It’s no secret that Lawson has been outright bad so far this season for the Rockets. Whether it be as a result of stress and distraction from legal issues stemming from his two DUI’s, or simply a fit and chemistry issue with Harden and the rest of this roster, Lawson has been a glaring negative on the court.

Lawson is averaging 7.7 points per game, shooting 31.6 percent from the floor and 25 percent from the three-point line, and the woes do not end there.

Lawson’s offensive rating is 87, his defensive rating is 112, and that means his net rating is minus-25. That’s 25 points per 100 possessions that the Rockets are outscored by when he is on the floor.

Coming into this season, Lawson had never finished a season with a negative net rating.

Clearly, things simply aren’t working. Having already fired a head coach because the organization doesn’t believe they have time to let things just sort themselves out in the hyper-competitive Western Conference, cutting ties with Ty Lawson might be the next step.

Lawson agreed to turn the 2016-17 season into non-guaranteed salary before coming to Houston, allowing the Rockets to release him and pay only this year’s salary if they so choose, thereby owing none of the $13.2 million he would have been paid for next season.

The Rockets have that added financial flexibility if they do release Lawson, as it’s likely to be difficult to find somebody willing to trade anything for the embattled point guard at this point. It really seems as though Lawson gambled on himself, and he has either lost or is about to lose.

The Rockets’ struggles are not solely Lawson’s fault, however.

Corey Brewer has been terrible, shooting 30.3 percent from the floor and 21.6 percent from long-range.

Trevor Ariza is shooting 36.1 percent from the floor.

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James Harden is scoring buckets, putting up his fourth 40-plus point game of this season on Wednesday against the Grizzlies, but they are as hollow as a 40-point game can possibly be. He’s shooting 38 percent from the floor and 27.1 percent from behind the arc, and shooting 9.2 three-pointers per game.

Just as bad, his defense has been an unmitigated disaster, and his effort on the floor has been mixed at best.

While general manager Daryl Morey is a man of calculation and managed risk, this season is not just any season. That’s been proven by the quick dismissal of McHale just 11 games into the 82-game schedule.

James Harden is just 26, but Dwight Howard is 30, and not a young 30. He’s in his 12th season, and he is already having what might be chronic back issues. The Rockets have a window that might be tightening, and there may have to be decisions made soon about how to proceed with Howard’s future with the Rockets, considering this is a contract year for the big man.

Aside from challenging for a title this year, Morey has indicated that pursuing Kevin Durant may be on the Rockets’ agenda in the coming offseason. It’s not going to be easy to persuade Durant to come to Houston if the Rockets miss the playoffs or have some other dismal fate this season.

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Morey may have some tough decisions on his plate in the coming months, and sending Ty Lawson on his way and eating one year of his salary may be the easiest decision he makes all season.