Jeremy makes his home debut at the Garden tonight. There is some good news and some bad news.
First, the good news: The next five games are against horrible teams (Toronto, Charlotte twice, Washington, Detroit) and none have a backup guard as quick as Isiah Thomas.
Next, the bad news: Iman Shumpert is ahead of schedule and should be back in 1-2 weeks. Also, it looks like the only way JLin gets meaningful minutes is if someone gets hurt or is in foul trouble. The only other time he probably gets besides garbage time is if the Knicks are up 30 or more early.
Also, as I mentioned before, one of Jeremy's biggest obstacles is that he didn't play much point guard in college. You can really see how he can struggle bringing the ball up against strong pressure. Or doing simple point guard duties like coming to get the ball quick and strong if the outlet is being challenged. I think not playing Asian ball actually hurt him with his handles. Of course, NJB and AAU had stronger competition and helped develop his play against bigger more athletic players. However, in Asian ball he would've had to go against a lot of smaller, quicker players and he'd have to work on his ball handling skills a lot more. Many people say his shot was his biggest problem. Although his form and mechanics were not great, his actual shooting percentage in college, and the D-league is more than adequate. His biggest problem was just confidence and of course playing time and just being comfortable out there on the court. His shooting form looks much improved, so I hope this summer he really works on his handles more than anything.
Finally, Jeremy is just in a very tough position as he knows he may not have much time to show what he can do in game situations. Thus, you see him force things in garbage time. Remember, this is so much different than if you're coming in under the normal rotation. If and when he gets some rotation minutes in these next few games, Jeremy will play his game and he will be fine.
Lin should avoid dribbling so close to the sideline when bringing the ball. Doing PNR so close to the sideline is just asking to be stripped.
ReplyDeleteLin is definitely in scoring guard mode. His Kamakazi blind drives into the paint may earn him free throws in GSW, but he has to expect to get less call in NYC. He is no longer the home crowd's favourite.
He can do fine against small quick guards. You can't get through state championships, AAU, D-I, Summer League, D-League and a host of NBA games without facing a few and at least holding your own.
ReplyDeleteFor better or worse, the simple truth is that JL *choked* last night. He came in and tried to force a highlight reel play (like the one he made against the Spurs) on every single touch instead of simply protecting the ball and passing it over Thomas' head.
He was understandably so eager to impress that he had a meltdown. It happens to every player at some point, even many stars. The problem is that most fringe NBA players have very little margin for error, which is why you see so many conservative Acie Law-style PGs...nothing special, but nothing awful. JL tried the opposite and it failed him last night.
Should have stayed with the Rockets to be honest... Just a much better fit and again, he had Training camp to go to unlike New York....
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ReplyDeleteit was not his choice to leave the rockets...
ReplyDeletehe really just needs to calm down and have fun on the court like he said to the reporter during an interview right when he got picked up by the knicks. i dont think it's that he doesn't have the handles, or isiah thomas (never even heard of him before - well not the one that's currently playing at least) was too quick. he's just putting too much pressure on himself to perform. i still believe he has the skills to play at the NBA level.
what it comes down to is that he needs be reminded that he's playing for God...and he needs to trust that God will guide him throughout his NBA journey. regardless of the outcome, he's truly representing not only as an asian american but as a christian in the NBA. go JLin!
Hope JLin gets some playing time tonight. I'm from Toronto but I'll cheer for the Knicks tonight. I remember JLin had some decent minutes last year when he played against the Raptors (re: Raptors vs Warriors - Nov 8 '11) during Asian Heritage Night. Hopefully he gets some playing time tonight once again with the Raptors! We are easy to beat unfortunately! :P
ReplyDeleteHe should have played Asian ball? Really guys?
ReplyDeleteThere's really no need to overanalyze the kind of ball he was playing in high school. He's in the NBA. He made it. He'll obviously prove himself if he gets minutes. It's really that simple.
Even Steve Nash, HOF point guard, two-time MVP, had an embarrassing meltdown. Remember 2006 playoffs against the Lakers? Smush Parker stripped the ball from Nash along the sideline in the final seconds of regulation. And Nash made the same mistake against Luke Walton, getting tied up near the sideline in the final seconds of OT. Two ugly TOs in a short span against forgettable 2nd stringers.
ReplyDeleteJL just needs to calm down and play smart.
Looks like the Knicks are getting blown out @ home. 51-34 at the Half in favor of Toronto. Raptors shooting 54% vs. 28% for the Knicks.
ReplyDeleteIf they get down by 30, Maybe Jeremy Lin will play the 4th quarter in a lost cause. Here's hoping.
Even the best of the players will make mistakes and have aweful games. I'm looking at the stats for tonight's game. L. Fields, 10 minutes and 1 turnover, 0 rebounds and 0 points. M. Bibby, 13+ minutes, 1 turnover, 3 rebounds (wow), and 0 points. Those numbers sure do not speak for point guard material even in the D-League let alone the NBA, yet Mr. L. Fields is the starter for the not-so-mighty Knicks in the past few games.
ReplyDeleteTake your pick folks, from what I can see, JLin has a lot of upside and can not fare any worse than some of the NBA guards out there. I know he just needs consistent playing time on the floor to show and improve his skills. Whether that opportunity will come from the Knicks or another team or even D-League, I am sure it'll just be a matter of time before someone really catches on and recognizes his ability to contribute to the team like he has done so many times in the past.
Regardless of how it ends up with the Knicks, JLin is going to have a lot of basketball fans follow him. So let's all cheer him on.
Go JLin!
When Mike Bibby has a bad game, they say that he had an "off" game, or the defense was too good at stifling him. He still gets to play 15 minutes.
ReplyDeleteWhen Jeremy Lin has a bad game ... he's written off as a bad player. After less than 5 minutes on the court.
Same old story ... he never gets a chance.
No minutes for Jeremy tonight. Iman Shumpert is expected to be back in the rotation on Wednesday.
ReplyDeleteEven if Jeremy gets released by the Knicks, there will be other teams willing to bring him on simply because he has a cult following.
ReplyDeleteI would not want to be in that position of "Token, symbolic, Asian-American player" who never gets a chance to play. If anything, that would be a dis-incentive to play him.
ReplyDeleteAs a basketball player, his income is directly tied to how he performs on the court. He's making bare minimum as it is ... and the companies won't endorse him anymore if he keeps getting waived from teams and becomes irrelevant to basketball.
I feel sorry for anyone who watched the entire game on TV, waiting for Jeremy Lin to check in. people like me :(
We should write a letter to boycott the NBA if Jeremy doesn't get his minutes! OCCUPY NBA!
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ReplyDeleteShut the site down huh... lol. Gimme a break. This is the NBA. Jeremy Lin is a grown up, he doesn't need kid gloves and should be able to take the criticism. And the criticism on this site absolutely mild compared to the rest of the internet.
ReplyDeleteSafe to say Lin will now be warming the bench unless there's garbage time. And if the Knicks go after KMart, he will get cut. And you guys saying, well Nash or Landry Fields or whoever have bad games too so it's not fair to Jeremy are missing the point. Jeremy Lin is still playing to prove that he belongs in the NBA. All the other guys have already proven they're NBA caliber, bad game or not.
It's like this: During the 15:22 that Mike Bibby was in as the point guard, the Raptors were outscoring the Knicks by 18 points ! Everytime he entered the game, the Raptors went on a run. When he subs out, The Knicks make a comeback to close within a few points, then Bibby subs in again and Toronto goes on another scoring run.
ReplyDeleteThe coach has to notice this.
It wouldn't be a problem if Bibby was scoring points, but he was 0 for 3 and 0 assists tonight.
One could imagine that if Jeremy Lin was in the game .... even if he doesn't score any points, he could at least put up more defense than Bibby, or got an assist ... anything that would have helped the Knicks close the gap.
God is in control and Jeremy believes that. Jeremy's job is to glorify God by working hard and be a testimony whether he plays or not. If it be God's will, he will get a chance at some point. It's a huge blessing that he even has a chance to compete at the NBA level.
ReplyDeleteI really have no clue what's going on with the Knicks. While JLin might not yet be capable of being an adequate backup pt guard, I don't think anyone can honestly say it can get worse than how Bibby has played so far. I feel JLin is trying so hard in 1 or 2 minutes to prove his worth rather than having the game come to him and just play basketball. Having said that though, I prefer his aggression now rather than some of the earlier games last year with the Warriors where he just defers the ball to Monta or Curry.
ReplyDeleteThe Knicks suk so bad!!! Poor Jeremy :(
ReplyDeleteJeremy Lin playing 3 on 3 in the Knicks' practice. First play, he hits a long jumper, making it look easy!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.twitvid.com/UXDTC
http://www.dopewar.com
Thanks lazy. I'll embed.
ReplyDeleteJeremy has to prove himself to D'Antoni, and D'Antoni has to be looking at the PG spot really hard because Bibby is not his solution, despite being a veteran. Let's hope Jeremy gets enough practice time in to show he's unselfish and smart with the ball and can hold his own defensively. D'Antoni does keep a short rotation, though, but it's in flux b/c they're just waiting for Baron Davis to get healthy.
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