Some folks wear their emotions on their sleeves.
Others don’t need sleeves.
Mavericks’ swingman A.J. Lawson has been fighting the good fight on the basketball court for years. Ever since going undrafted in 2021 after three productive seasons at South Carolina, Lawson has been battling the fates that have made it tough on him.
That’s why he has his life motto tattooed on his right arm: “Beat The Odds.”
And that’s exactly what Lawson has been doing since spending 2021-22 working his way up to the NBA from the G League. He made Minnesota’s team in 2022-23, but played only one game. The Mavericks were always fans of Lawson, who they had on their 2022 summer league team.
They signed him to a two-way contract and he’s been here ever since, now working on a full contract as he and the Mavericks begin play Saturday at the NBA2k Summer League in Las Vegas.
And yet, he’s still fighting the odds. Lawson, who was good friends with Derrick Jones Jr. before the latter left in free agency last week, is one of the players the Mavericks hope can help fill the void left by the defensive-minded Jones.
But the Mavericks also brought in Naji Marshall and Quentin Grimes this offseason, ostensibly for the same reason. With Lawson’s growth in the past two seasons, he now gives them options when it comes to a wing player who can check off a lot of boxes for the coaching staff.
“A.J. has to show he can guard elite players at a high level,” said Jared Dudley, the Mavericks’ assistant coach who is charged with leading the summer-league team. “How you show that is, No. 1, physicality. Him being from Canada, his personality is super-quiet.
“He’s extremely athletic. So he has to be extremely tough, get steals, deflections. Like a Pat Bev (Patrick Beverley) type in the sense that he’ll do anything. A.J., you have to now show it. Defense is not a cute thing. It’s rugged. It’s tough.”
The slender Lawson is capable of defying gravity with his athleticism much the same way he has defied the odds in his career. That ability helped him play in 42 games last season for the Mavericks, averaging 3.2 points. Athleticism is not a problem. But at 6-6 and 180 pounds, he is not an intimidating presence with his physicality. That’s something he hopes to change.
“The emphasis for me is definitely going to be defending,” Lawson said of his goals for summer league. “I want to show I can defend one through four (point guards to power forwards). And also to be able to knock down the open shot. Everybody knows I got speed.”
And he’s gaining experience, something that was helped with last season’s run to the NBA Finals. It allowed Lawson to get his feet wet at the highest level of competition.
“It was great,” he said. “Even though we didn’t get the ring, it was a good experience, to see the guys’ routine, see what they do every day, how locked in they are. The coaching staff, how dedicated they are.
“My first real NBA contract and every day I was thinking, wow, I used to dream as a kid, with my dad on the couch watching the Finals, of being here. And now I’m living it so it was a great experience for sure.”
Born in Toronto, the young Lawson – he turns 24 on Monday – keeps close contact with the Canadian national team, for which Mavericks’ teammate Dwight Powell is playing.
The Canadians are loaded with NBA talent and are serious threats to win a medal at the Paris Olympics that start later this month.
“I got a lot of friends on the team,” Lawson said. “And that’s my country. I’m really excited for what they’re going to do. We definitely got one of the best teams they’ve ever put together. Let’s get it.”
He also said “for sure” it’s a goal to someday be a part of Team Canada. Perhaps in the 2028 Olympics.
But for now, it’s all about showing his skills on the summer league stage, where every executive in the NBA will have their eyes on players like Lawson.
“It’s going to be a dogfight every game,” he said.
The Mavericks’ first opponent will be the Utah Jazz’s summer team, which includes no less than five first-round draft picks over the last two years (9:30 p.m., Dallas time, NBA TV).
“Even though he might be with the Mavericks, he’s playing for all teams,” Dudley said. “Use this opportunity for everyone to see you and what better opportunity than Utah in the first game. If you go have a good game and lock someone up, that’s how you get a deal.
“You’re gifted athletically. But what you can control is your energy and picking up the ball and make it a living hell for some of these offensive players.”
That’s a major key to beating the odds, something Lawson knows plenty about.
X: @ESefko
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