Friday, December 31, 2010

The "Real JLin" Sighting


Game #2 against Bakersfield was a well needed confidence boost for Jeremy. After finally getting more than 20 minutes in a game, Jeremy responded with one of his best efforts as a pro. JLin looked very comfortable taking and making 2 of 3 three pointers. His toughness and competitiveness was very evident, especially after getting fouled and hitting the floor hard. He was very aggressive throughout the game and was rewarded with a parade to the free throw line. This is the Jeremy Lin we've been waiting to see. Off course, this is the D League and Jeremy is still struggling a bit with his handle and assist to turnover ratio, however it's still a good start. I was hoping that this type of game would happen in preseason. Instead, the Warriors for some reason had Monta Ellis playing 35 mpg and JLin barely getting a sniff.

Anyway, Coach Muss will be great for Jeremy. He is an experienced NBA coach and I really like his substitution patterns and just how he has the Bighorns playing. Although they lost, they play hard on defense and actually have a semblance of an offensive system. His Bighorn teammates seem to give him his respect as well as he is in the process of gaining more and more by his play on the court. This looks like it'll be a very good thing both for Jeremy, and us the fans, getting to see him play extended minutes. Look for Jeremy to start getting close to 30 minutes per game this coming weekend.

To watch 1/1/11 vs Idaho 7pm. Click here.
To watch 1/2/11 vs Idaho 3pm. Click here.

To watch a replay of Jeremy's impressive game against Bakersfield. Click here.

Stats from JLin's Game #2 in the D League:

22 minutes
20 points
5-8 fgm-a
2-3 3pm-a
8-13 ftm-a
3 rebounds
2 assists
+19 plus/minus

Looks like the statistician missed a block and at least 1 steal


65 comments:

  1. Missed the game yesterday, good to know I can still watch the whole thing.

    So far i'm just trying to get used to the whole D-League. Where's Bakersfield? Is that all the fans? The announcer thought Jeremy Lin came from China, and that Carl Landry, not his brother Marcus, is on the Jam. Seriously, why would a player of Carl's caliber be playing for them?

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  2. How's the D League's talent compared to the Ivy Leagues or even some of the elite college conferences?

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  3. Talent in the D-league is good but it is a very rugged game. It's a good time for Jeremy to feature his jumpshot.

    Just watching the Warriors in the last 4 games, I sense he will get a call up soon if he continues to play well. Law is either injured or has been very ineffective.

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  4. The d league is basically all the nba scrubs and top college players not ready for the nba

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  5. I must say, I look more forward to these D-league games than I did Warriors games simply because I know Lin will play some quality minutes.

    I hope his productivity keeps up although I don't know how often he will hit his 3's or get foul calls while driving the lane.

    I have been impressed by the Bighorns' ability to play team defense. Their switches are pretty good and everyone seems to understand what to do which is a far cry from the Warriors players.

    I also like seeing how the team has been receiving Lin. I see a lot more high-fives and pats on the butt and laughs with these guys then there ever were with the Dubs. I guess at this level it is easier to recognize the talent he brings.

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  6. nice write-up. 13 FTA is impressive at any level...

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  7. Anonymous #3 said "Law is either injured or has been very ineffective. "

    SINCE WHEN has Acie Law EVER been EFFECTIVE?

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  8. A huge improvement from the first game. He's starting to show a jumpshot and better court vision. His defense has been solid throughout, although he hasn't been fighting over the picks lately.

    I wish he could've gone to the D-League sooner instead of sitting out all those games with a "DNP Coaches Decision".

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  9. Man, I wish Musselman would get the Warriors job. He actually knows what he's doing.

    D-League is bush league in all areas -- commentators are ill-informed and stat keepers are shoddy. JL forced 3 steals in his first game. And two in his second. This happened in Portsmouth, too. Not just to Jeremy but a lot of players.

    Anyway, the one thing D-League will help with is his jumper. At Golden State, he's afraid to take the open shot. In D-League he has the green light and his form looks noticeable better than his college days (consistent release point, no extra lower-body motion).

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  10. There seems to be an important D-League event coming up January 10-13 called the 2011 Showcase. All the teams play in what seems to be a tournament. It would be a good time for Jeremy to shine.
    http://www.nba.com/dleague/news/showcase_100518.html

    Also, I tried to vote for him on the D-League All Star Ballot, but his name isn't listed. Presumably it's too soon. My hope is that he has moved back up before this February game but it would certainly help his cause to get some votes. I emailed the Bighorns front office. Will let everyone know if anything happens, or if you have info, please pass it on. It's time to start "marketing" #7 lol.

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  11. Oops, I guess it's time to start marketing #17

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  12. chicken wang chow dang ya under stang yada a mangJanuary 1, 2011 at 1:48 PM

    gong hay fat chow to all my jlin fan!!

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  13. Lin's starting tonight alongside Miles, but JL has been the one playing the point. Good. Miles needs to work on his scoring and Lin on his playmaking.

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  14. not seeing as much energy by lin tonight, missed 2 layups and a 3 in first quarter although hes gotten a fair amount of rebounds

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  15. ugh, lin misses a bank shot, then a wide open mid range j

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  16. he's not having a great shooting night, agree his energy looks down. but he's still doing good things on the court. if his teammates would hit open shots he might have some assists.... lol

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  17. lol the bighorns' analysis is a huge miles fangirl

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  18. Lin makes a nice 18 footer. In D-League they don't credit steals to the guy who caused them; they credit whomever comes up with it. Lin has had a bevy of forced steals.

    And yeah, Lin's been doing okay (given the fact that it's D-League) running the point. But his teammates can't finish anything.

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  19. yesssss, good 3rd quarter for lin so far, 6 points, made all 3 of his shots:
    2 layups, one on a nice assist by miles and one driving left, and a wide open jumpshot

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  20. solid game from lin today

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  21. haha, is it bad i hope miles reinjures his wrist

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  22. Passing is the only thing left he needs to show during this 2-week stint. His finishes are a lot more diverse. He's making most of his open jumpers. And he's more confident running the point. But he's making some silly passes in the paint for bad TOs.

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  23. maybe miles needs to rest that wrist for say 2 weeks

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  24. I think Lin should stay in the D-League if he's not going to get minutes from Keith Smart, you can see how this playing time is giving him opportunities to improve his game. If he can get minutes for the warriors, then go, play, but if he can't, I think he still has aspects of his game that can improve in the D-League.

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  25. Lin looked pretty good tonight. A little less energy than last game, but he also seemed to have a little better handle. I think he'll improve a lot in D-league.

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  26. any1 hear the comment by the commentators on seeing lin look at the ball instead of looking up when dribbling?
    thoughts?

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  27. They said that when he catches the ball he looks down at it more then some players look at it while dribbling. Not that he looks down at the ball while dribbling. They said that that could be why he finds himself in tough situations, because he's not immediately assessing the floor. I agree with him, it's probably the cause of most of Lin's turnovers.

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  28. yeah, a good unbiased thought by the commentators i think
    hopefully lin hears it, and continues to improves
    if lin can get his passing/pg skills up he really has a chance to be a solid success in the nba. he's got most other skills set already, he just needs the purer pg skills including passing and playmaking

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  29. All in all, JLin needs to prove that he does not belong to d league so that he can get back to NBA soon. He needs to outplay all the players in D league more aggressively. If the commentators still say that JLin "fits well here", that is not a good sign…

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  30. It is really nice to see Lin score a lot (his reverse layups have been nice). I would also like to see him work on his PG skills more now though. While driving to the lane, I'd like to see more passes to the bigs under the basket for easy buckets and assists. Kicking it out to perimeter shooters in the D-league is like a TO. He also needs to not drive into 3 defenders at the top of the key where he usually loses the ball. He does that quite a bit and it looks bad.

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  31. Miles is getting a lot of the assists. I think JLin is still playing a bit like a 2 guard even thought he does get to handle the ball a lot. I didn't watch JLin play much in high school but I'm curious how he played PG in high school.

    The reason I ask is we need to figure out what type of PG JLin will be. I have a feeling JLin isn't going to be a prototypical PG. He doesn't seem to have the great vision of a Kidd or Stockton or the scoring mentality of like a Steve Nash.

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  32. @DL: I think you got a good point here, JLin needs to figure out the type of PG he needs to become, either that or, the type of "guard" that is more natural to him.

    One of the more unsuccessful aspects of his game from his Warrior days was his lack of aggressiveness while running the point. I think he was trying to focus on "distributing the ball" and completely shuts of other instincts he had for the game.

    From his balling in Harvard and some of the pre-season games, he looked like a very natural combo guard to me. In the beginning of the season, I foresaw him to become a combo guard off the bench after a few years in the league. I am not saying that's how he should become, he definitely needs to expand his game on the play-making side, and that'll come with increasing playing time at the designated role.

    I hope Musselman sees that and is willing to develop Lin like a disciple rather than putting him on "survival mode." If so, being in the D-league would really be a blessing from God in disguise.

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  33. Lin actually had 18 points; this crazy stat-keeping is pretty funny. He also had a steal -- not recorded. To be fair, I think an extra blocked shot was added to his total.

    I honestly think they let some random dude do the stats -- out of memory.

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  34. I got a reply from the Bighorns about the all star balloting. A player on assignment from an NBA team is not included in the voting. Makes sense.

    The 2011 Showcase in Texas will be important. Every NBA team sends at least a scout sometimes the GM to view these games. If there's no future with the W's then hopefully Lin can generate interest from another team.

    It's in Musselman's best interest to showcase his best players because it shows he's doing a good job. I agree he's a better coach than Smart (that was an easy one) but there's some sort of personality issue. I seem to recall his coaching style didn't mix well with pampered players with guaranteed contracts, etc.

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  35. That Showcase will be crucial. Smart has indicated Acie Law is now a regular part of the rotation, coming in with 4 minutes left to relieve Curry. Law for Curry, there's a real upgrade LOL. The site that covers the W's statistically says Law has the highest probability that the team will fall back when he is playing (kind of a +/- thing) Not a knock on Law, he's proven he isn't a player. It is a knock on coaching and FO.

    As someone else commented, Free JLin. I'd like to see him finish this year's contract then become a free agent. Doesn't seem like the W's would sign him the second year because of the coming lockout. It's more probable the W's will sign Law to a 5 year deal :)

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  36. I agree with the above said on the comments by the K-love, I would not be surprised to learn that, if you guys would watch that clip again, you will know much about the whole deal, I have TOTALLY given up on that: Lin will not be asked to come back at all at least based on what K-love's current mentality!

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  37. >> It's more probable the W's will sign Law to a 5 year deal :)

    Yeah that sounds a good idea. As a local fan of GSW for over 2 decades, I need a good reason to stop watching my favorite nba team and quitting the season ticket idea. Now I have one.

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  38. Commentators just said this is Lin's last game with the Big Horns, because...

    Warriors called him back up.

    Hope he gets Acie Law's time, coming in for Steph at end of first quarter, and then staying in when Steph comes back and Monta needs a few minutes rest.

    Hope he also gets substituted in with Udoh (possibly Amundson also); I think Dorrell Wright coming off the bench with them would make a nice group off the bench.

    :)

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  39. The commentator says this is Lin's last game before returning to the Warriors. If that's true, I'm almost disappointed. I would have liked to watch Futurecasts a little more. At least until the Showcase

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  40. i hope lin doesn't end up in the same situation as luke babbit who also played great in the dleague AND summer league. he was called up but the coach refuses to play him. these coaches are so damn stubborn. they don't ever want to give the rookies a chance. maybe they are afraid to be proven wrong and lose their job?

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  41. he's gotta stop missing short on those wide-open jumpers...

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  42. wonder if he is going to fly into orlando to play the magics tomorrow? i still hope he gets traded. coach smart will probably make lin look bad any chance he gets.

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  43. Lin is a project... with upside. Having said that, he doesnt deserve any more than 5-10 minutes TOPS in an NBA game right now. He is turnover prone

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  44. that made no sense

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  45. ^^^
    completely true, he has the potential to be a solid role player, but fans cant expect him to be getting 20+ minutes a game. Lin with only 1 turnover that half though, hes getting more confident with the ball in his hand as each game passes

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  46. great drive from lin. but the camera man focused on the ref's butt!

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  47. 5-10 minutes? WTF is wrong with you, 0-5 minutes is more like it. No wonder that post said you didnt make any sense.

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  48. I have no idea why Lin would be called up after only 3 games in the D-League.

    And I have no idea why Antoine Walker a 34 year old veteran with a championship ring is playing in the D-League posting up scrubs.

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  49. To Mr. Chan

    I think Lin is being called up because Acie Law has a wrist injury and flew to NY to see a specialist yesterday and I dont think he would be available to play against Orlando. Secondly Currys ankle is *Shrug* and so they just want to make sure they have a back up back up pg.

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  50. Good info. Agree though that the best thing that could have happened is for Lin to go to that showcase. About minutes, if you have been following Law, you know that Lin will match or exceed his output.

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  51. Boy, this is great! Love watching Jeremy play in DL. He's getting great minutes and that is beneficial to him. I actually hope he stays for a while so that the Warriors can slowly deal with Smart. From what I can tell, Musselman can make adjustments during games while Smart coasts and is clueless. I love when Musselman chewed his players out last time! :) I haven't seen Smart can do that yet.. :)

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  52. I have been following Law, and having Lin match and/or exceed Law's output isnt saying much... hehehe

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  53. This was BY FAR Lin's best all-around game. Got a bit sloppy at the end, but great for 30+ minutes.

    Sweet drive and dishes, ran the fastbreak well, made exciting hustle plays on D, varied his drives to the rim, hit FTs, hit several jumpers (and two 3s).

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  54. Great game for Lin, except for last minutes in 4th quarter.

    I think he really hurt his team by taking poor shots and driving into traffic instead of working the offense for best shot like he did most of the game.

    Don't know if he did that because it was his last game with Reno, but hope Musselman points out he can't do that with the Warriors.

    He ain't Monta and he ain't Curry, so just play the game and let his defense, drives, and assists evolve naturally, instead of forcing things.

    He may not have lost the game per se, but really gave up several offensive series with his knucklehead choices on offense. If he does that off the bench with the Warriors, then I think Smart should pull him, at least temporarily, till he function with team without hurting them with poor decisions such as those in the 4th quarter.

    Miles looked pissed at end of the game, same way I think Lin felt when he wasn't in at end of Bakerfield game and Miles couldn't guard Trey Johnson.

    Watching Law last couple games, he has really hurt them because he can't defend his man. If Lin can defend his man and just not make stupid decisions like he did in 4th quarter, I think he would be a definite upgrade from Law, especially when paired with Udoh behind him when his man does beat him.

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  55. Jeremy had a solid showing in these past 3 DLeague games. We all know he can ball. He just needs more experience by getting PT which smart is unwilling to give him. LOL at the comparisons to acie...Lin is without a doubt better than acie because Jeremy is more versatile. You can always rely on Jeremy for excellent defense and can give you steals and blocks.

    LMAO at these trolls coming out of their caves. I guess when these trolls heard about Jeremy going to DLeague, they decided to flood this blog. Well thanks for visiting and now you know that Jeremy is doing great so you can leave now. There's this X at the corner...all you have to do is click on it. kthxbye.

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  56. bighorn color man is awful.

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  57. I thought the bighorn broadcast team was really good, compared to most other d-league commentators at least. I mean, for his second game the team was absolutely awful, they stumbled over their words and they said Jeremy Lin was from China. At every step of the road it looked like they had no clue what they were doing or where they were going.

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  58. the bighorn analysis guy is an idiot whereas the bighorn play-by-play guy was just ok. often the play-by-play guy tries to get a conversation going about lin (when he is at the ft line) playing for harvard and was undrafted. but the analysis guy obviously knew nothing just kept silent. he would always "miles this, miles that..".

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  59. "he doesnt deserve any more than 5-10 minutes TOPS in an NBA game right now. He is turnover prone."

    That's a common myth. It may seem that he turns the ball over frequently, but in reality, it's not as much as other players. Here's some TO/48min numbers:

    5.3 Nash
    5.3 Westbrook
    5.2 Rondo
    5.1 Wall
    4.8 LeBron
    4.6 Rose
    4.5 Kobe
    4.4 Billups
    4.3 Curry
    4.2 Deron Williams
    4.1 Carmelo
    4.0 Durant
    4.0 Monta
    4.0 D Wade
    3.6 J Lin

    http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/player/_/stat/turnovers/sort/avg48Turnovers/order/false

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  60. hey real-dsb, why do you even bother with that troll aka "Reality Now" guy. he always posting some random nonsense.

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  61. @real-dsb
    those guys do handle the ball a lot mroe though lol

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  62. I don't think lin looked good this game at all, he played ok but he really made a lot of bad decisions. he needs to stop driving into traffic. the thing is musselman has him playing the 2 most of the time with miles playing the point. lin has played very well actually when he is the 1, which is what he is supposed to be developing during this time anyway.

    maybe he gets some nba playing time the next few games with law out but I really think a good 10 or so more games in the d league would be best for his long term development. someone should also redirect musselman that the goal is for lin to play the 1.

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  63. Yeah.. I don't think Lin played that well today. In the 4th quarter he was forcing drives that weren't there, and nearly lost the ball in the lane several times.

    I thought 2 weeks was not enough time for him to work on his game in the d-league. It turns out to be only about a week after all. I am guessing when Law is ready to return, Lin will go on his 2nd assignment to Reno....

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  64. The D-League was definitely helping JLin's game. He got more consistent minutes and was involved in the team offense. He did not have to "Pass the ball to Monta Ellis no matter what".

    As for the TV announcers, I could care less. They are amateur know it alls, and JLin does not listen to them when he's playing on the court.

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