Former first-round NBA draft pick Ty Lawson is out of a job in his most recent gig as a Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) player.
The free agent, who has played for the CBA the past two seasons, sent out some social media posts over the weekend that the CBA found offensive to Asian women. The CBA took swift action and banned Lawson for life. Yes, for life.
Lawson, 32, posted several items to his Instagram story over the weekend that sparked an angry response from the Chinese public and the CBA. For one, Lawson used a slang term that is considered insulting to women. There was also a sexual photo of him with a Chinese woman in a club, Yahoo Sports reported.
Both of the controversial posts were on Lawson’s IG story, Ice Cream Convos reported. The first showed an Asian woman giving him a lap dance with a caption that read, “Yolo I guess lol.”
The second post was a statement that read, “Chinese woman Got cakes on the low…. might switch up my stance soon lol”
Following Lawson’s post, angry Chinese basketball fans flooded Lawson’s Instagram with hateful messages, Complex reported.
Twitter also responded, many in favor of Lawson.
Mario Chalmers Burner @csrter1 tweeted, “Ty Lawson said Chinese women have big butts and now they’re calling him every slur in the book? That’s crazy”.
KC Smith @KayCSmooth replied, “Y’all gotta realize Racism is huge in China”
The Oakland Raiders of Las Vegas are 1-0 ! @Raidersince87 weighed in with: “I can 100% guarantee you these are Russian bots”
Lawson, a 5-foot-11 guard, started his CBA career with the Shandong Heroes in 2017. He was transferred in 2019 to the Fujian Sturgeons and his contract ran out at the end of the season in August. The Sturgeons had the option to extend the contract.
The Fujian Sturgeons gave a statement to Chinese news agency Xinhua about the Lawson incident.
“His inappropriate words are inconsistent with the social responsibilities and values abided by our club and have brought serious adverse social impacts to the club and the league. We will not sign him for the new season.”
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Some observers say the problem might be alcohol-related, SI.com reported. The player was arrested four times for driving while intoxicated, the last time in July 2015 in Los Angeles. He later entered a private alcohol treatment program on a court order. Lawson reportedly violated his probation by failing three court-ordered sobriety tests in 2017.
Lawson launched his pro-ball career when he was the No. 18 pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2009 draft. Almost immediately he was traded to the Denver Nuggets, where he spent the first six seasons of his eight-year NBA career. The 2016-2017 season with the Sacramento Kings was his last full season in the NBA after stops with the Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers. In 2018, the Washington Wizards signed him and he played in five playoff games.
