The Houston Rockets surprised a lot of people a year ago with all of their success leading them to the number two seed in the Western Conference and making it to the Western Conference Finals. The Rockets lost to the eventual NBA Champion Golden State Warriors, but they may have a better roster this season. One of the new additions, Ty Lawson, thinks he may be the missing piece in Houston to help them win a championship, according to Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston.
Lawson has had his issues off the floor with the drunk driving and having to go to rehab, but when he is on the floor, he is a difference maker. Lawson finished third in the NBA a year ago with 9.6 assists per game and should be able to help out James Harden by allowing Harden to play off the ball more often. Last season, Harden had the ball in his hands a lot and was forced to make plays, and while he is more than capable of doing that, he is the Rockets' best scorer, and they want to use him as such.
The off-the-court problems for Lawson definitely raise some doubt for most people, but Harden doesn't seem too concerned, saying that Lawson is "more focused than ever." For his part, Lawson is just excited to be on a team where he knows there is a chance to win and he can be a very big part of it.
"It's a huge chance, the Rockets went to the Western Conference Finals and could have won, but you just needed a couple of extra pieces. So I'm excited to be playing in a situation where I know I have a chance to win," said Lawson.
Lawson is technically in a competition for the starting point guard spot with Patrick Beverley, but Lawson is clearly the better point guard of the two and will more than likely start. Despite that, Lawson just says that he wants to win and that's all that matters.
"I'm about winning. I love being on a winning team. At every level I've played at, high school, middle school, college I won championships. This is a chance to play for one of those and get an NBA ring. I'm ready for it," said Lawson.
Lawson may not be as good as Beverley on the defensive side of the ball, but he definitely brings more to the table on offense and should be able to bring Houston to another level. For his career, Lawson has averaged 14.2 points and 6.6 assists per game to this point while shooting 47 percent from the field and 37 percent from deep.
