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E-News Sign UpRookie Lawson learning ropes from veteran instructors
While most of America operates on Eastern, Pacific, Central and Mountain time, Nuggets rookie point guard Ty Lawson is adapting to a time zone that can’t be found in TV Guide.
A week before training camp, veteran teammate Anthony Carter introduced the 21-year-old Lawson to NBA Standard Time.
“We had a workout for 9 o’clock and he was late,” Carter recalled. “I just pulled him over to the side and said, ‘If it says 9 o’clock be here by 8:30, 8:45 ready to go - not 9:05, not 9:01.’”
Lawson got the message.
On the first day of camp this week, he woke up at 9 a.m. and arrived at the Pepsi Center at around 10 – about an hour before the scheduled workout.
“It would’ve been difficult for me in the past doing that,” Lawson said, “but it’s (about) growing up, so that’s what I’m going to do. … It’s my life now. It’s my job. Everybody comes to work early.”
As he begins his NBA career, Lawson finds himself in the role of a well-paid intern on a Nuggets roster that features All-Star point guard Chauncey Billups and proven backup Carter. Both have more than 10 years of NBA experience, not to mention the implicit trust of coach George Karl.
Given Karl’s tendency to bring rookies along slowly, Lawson might have to exercise patience before seeing any meaningful playing time.
“Either way, it’s a win-win situation,” he said. “I can learn from one of the best point guards in the league, and then A.C.’s been through a lot. He’s been teaching me a lot so far. I think I’m in a great situation.”
If Lawson needs a personal endorsement, he can walk across the locker room. Power forward Kenyon Martin was so impressed with the rookie in offseason workouts that he felt compelled to share his thoughts with Karl.
“George has a thing - he don’t like to play rookies,” Martin said. “We was in here playing pickup ball one day and I told him, ‘You better get that out of your system. This kid can help us.’”
Selected 18th overall by Minnesota in the NBA Draft three months ago, Lawson was quickly traded to Denver for a future first-round pick. At 5-foot-11 and 195 pounds, he brings a blend of speed and power that should fit well in Karl’s uptempo offense.
“He’s not fast-fast, but he’s quick-fast,” Karl said. “He gets the ball upcourt, but he never loses his balance or his control. His control is very good.”
Karl also has been impressed with the quiet swagger that Lawson carries. The confidence stems from being named the 2008-09 ACC Player of the Year after averaging 16.6 points and 6.6 assists as the floor leader of North Carolina’s NCAA championship team last spring.
“He has a game that’s very confident and he also kind of has a toughness to him,” Karl said. “I think the pedigree of playing on a national championship team is a mental toughness and a mental awareness that very few players have as a young NBA player.”
Lawson’s biggest challenge will be adapting to the speed of the game and the athleticism of those around him.
“Speed of the game is crazy,” he said. “I didn’t know it was this quick. But I’m getting used to it. Chauncey’s teaching me little tricks and how to be crafty.”
Just as he learned from the veterans before him, Billups will gladly serve as a mentor to Lawson.
“I’m going to kind of let him go through it on his own and then when I see him going out of bounds, I’m going to straighten him back up,” Billups said. “That’s just how I learned.
“He’s a proven winner already. What he can bring to the table, we don’t have, with his speed and his quickness. We’re going to need Ty. I’m there with him every step.”
