Raptors sign hometown hero to contract amid injuries
12/12/2024 09:05 PM
The Toronto Raptors' roster has been hit with a few injury issues in recent weeks. Scottie Barnes just went down with an ankle injury and will miss time. Immanuel Quickley and Bruce Brown are both out. And Jakob Poeltl and Kelly Olynyk had been on the injury report, although both players have returned. The Raptors recently added a hometown hero, A.J. Lawson, on a two-way contract to help with depth.
The Raptors previously had all of their three two-way contract roster spots filled, so they made an additional move to waive DJ Carton, who was dealing with an injury as well. Lawson joins rookies Jamison Battle and Ulrich Chomche as the Raptors' three two-way contract players.
Under a two-way contract, Lawson will spend plenty of live game reps in the G League with the Raptors 905. But with the recent injuries, he could see minutes with the big club.
The Raptors are currently 7-18 and near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. Only the Utah Jazz, New Orleans Pelicans, and Washington Wizards are behind them in the standings in terms of the top odds for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
A.J. Lawson returns home with Raptors
A native of Brampton, Ontario, Lawson's NBA career takes him home alongside former AAU teammate and fellow Toronto native RJ Barrett. The pair also played alongside Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard growing up.
Lawson originally went undrafted in the 2021 NBA Draft and began his career in the G League. He got his NBA breakthrough during the 2022-23 season when he signed a pair of two-way contracts with the Minnesota Timberwolves early in the year.
The Wolves ended up cutting him, and he joined the Dallas Mavericks on a two-way contract. Lawson's tenure with the Mavericks ended when he was one of the final cuts before the start of the 2024-25 season. He was playing in the G League with the Long Island Nets before signing with the Raptors.
Lawson suited up in 11 games for Long Island, averaging 24.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.3 steals with splits of 44.3 percent shooting from the field, 32.6 percent shooting from the three-point line and 82.9 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
In total, Lawson has appeared in 57 NBA games from 2022-2024 with the Wolves and Mavericks. He holds career averages of 3.4 points and 1.2 rebounds with splits of 45.7 percent shooting from the field and 30.7 percent shooting from the three-point line.
The former South Carolina star brings additional wing depth to the Raptors amid the injuries to Barnes, Quickley, and Brown.
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