Really hoping Rockets trade off some of their guards, if not Lin might be back in the D league which is neither great nor bad. Still, the Rockets seem like a good situation for Lin.
I personally think this is a bad fit for Lin; for both his mental and physical game. I'm already reading sh1t on twitter that the rockets signed him to continue the stranglehold they have over the Chinese fan-base, and how he was sign as another marketing ploy... And like you guys said, dragic, flynn, and lowry are on the roster... it's going to be hard for Lin to get off the end of the bench... but hopefully dragic gets traded and Lin outplays flynn in practice...
Yao Ming was a marketing ploy, too. Lin got signed this quickly for a reason. The team needs some players with some recognition. Lin is a easy fill as there is a cult following for him already. The average American probably won't know a single player on the Rockets roster this year. Luis Scola? Are you kidding me? I wouldn't be surprised to see Lin start a few games this year. I gotta say he's 2nd string PG, at worst.
Great news. Never doubted someone would pick him up. I just wondered if it would be after training camp or something -- nice to see him signed straight up.
Whatever Houston's motivations are, whatever people say, it doesn't really matter. Why? Because JL's resume is as strong as any 12th-15th man on an NBA roster -- mid-major star, dominant D-Leaguer, impressive Summer Leaguer, good size for PG, great teammate, and he's a steal machine even at the NBA level.
That's a typical resume for a young minimum contract signee.
Oops. Actually, Dragic only makes $2M. Flynn makes $3.2M. Still, signing JL for $800K could save them 1.2-2.4M if they traded one of their current PGs. Houston is going after Nene and Marc Gasol, I think, so that extra salary could make the difference.
The Rockets can gain even more cap space because Lin qualifies under the Minimum Salary Exemption rule and his contract does not count against the salary cap. Thus if they trade or amnesty one of the other players, they gain the fully salary amount for cap space. This assumes of course they think Lin has improved enough to take up a roster space. The fact that they claimed him is a good indication that they believe this is the case.
I posted on YaoMingMania's forum that I thought it was interested the Rockets claimed JLin off of waivers rather than waiting for him to clear and THEN offering him a minimum salary...though isn't JLin's pretty close to minimum?
I guess the Rockets didn't want to compete with the other teams as Jlin could have picked his team he went to if he cleared waivers.
http://twitter.com/#!/JLin7/status/146007625845321728
ReplyDeleteConfirmation!
Really hoping Rockets trade off some of their guards, if not Lin might be back in the D league which is neither great nor bad. Still, the Rockets seem like a good situation for Lin.
ReplyDeleteDragic, Flynn, and Lowry currently on the roster. If Dragic gets traded, Lin is 3rd string at best.
ReplyDeleteMcHale probably remembers Lin from the summer league, so I think he might get some PT.
I personally think this is a bad fit for Lin; for both his mental and physical game. I'm already reading sh1t on twitter that the rockets signed him to continue the stranglehold they have over the Chinese fan-base, and how he was sign as another marketing ploy... And like you guys said, dragic, flynn, and lowry are on the roster... it's going to be hard for Lin to get off the end of the bench... but hopefully dragic gets traded and Lin outplays flynn in practice...
ReplyDeleteYao Ming was a marketing ploy, too. Lin got signed this quickly for a reason. The team needs some players with some recognition. Lin is a easy fill as there is a cult following for him already. The average American probably won't know a single player on the Rockets roster this year. Luis Scola? Are you kidding me? I wouldn't be surprised to see Lin start a few games this year. I gotta say he's 2nd string PG, at worst.
ReplyDeleteLin also posted on twitter that he signed with the rockets.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteGreat news. Never doubted someone would pick him up. I just wondered if it would be after training camp or something -- nice to see him signed straight up.
ReplyDeleteWhatever Houston's motivations are, whatever people say, it doesn't really matter. Why? Because JL's resume is as strong as any 12th-15th man on an NBA roster -- mid-major star, dominant D-Leaguer, impressive Summer Leaguer, good size for PG, great teammate, and he's a steal machine even at the NBA level.
That's a typical resume for a young minimum contract signee.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteOops. Actually, Dragic only makes $2M. Flynn makes $3.2M. Still, signing JL for $800K could save them 1.2-2.4M if they traded one of their current PGs. Houston is going after Nene and Marc Gasol, I think, so that extra salary could make the difference.
ReplyDeleteThe Rockets can gain even more cap space because Lin qualifies under the Minimum Salary Exemption rule and his contract does not count against the salary cap. Thus if they trade or amnesty one of the other players, they gain the fully salary amount for cap space. This assumes of course they think Lin has improved enough to take up a roster space. The fact that they claimed him is a good indication that they believe this is the case.
ReplyDeleteI posted on YaoMingMania's forum that I thought it was interested the Rockets claimed JLin off of waivers rather than waiting for him to clear and THEN offering him a minimum salary...though isn't JLin's pretty close to minimum?
ReplyDeleteI guess the Rockets didn't want to compete with the other teams as Jlin could have picked his team he went to if he cleared waivers.