awwwwww come on! So he goes from "will be ready to play Monday" to missing 3 straight games? This is getting me paranoid. Will he play anytime soon? Can we somehow get a real explanation as to what the problem with his knee is?? I need my Lin fix dang it!
hi J - I think your intuition is correct. It's long, but here's my take:
Here's today ESPN on Jeremy Lin's absence, subtitled 'What are the Knicks missing most without Jeremy Lin?' http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/knicks/post/_/id/15558/opening-tip-jeremy-lins-absence
Some experts are essentially saying the same thing as what we've been saying, about the importance of Lin in the Knicks lineup.
After thinking a bit more, I no longer loot for the Knicks for the rest of the season. I can't support spiteful and jealous people. I can't support big public mouths. After getting MD fired, woodymelo (CarAn) still can't stop himself from mouthing off in an undisciplined manner.
After the win against Orlando on March 28th, this is what woodymelo had to say: "Right now, with the coaching change, we've been playing extremely well. Guys seem to be responding pretty well. We've been really locked in on our mission right now."
That public comment is an oblique jab at Jeremy Lin, one of his teammate - and Lin is forced to play in a such negative environment (but unlike woodymelo, Lin would never complain or deliberately try to make the new coach look bad). In the short blurb, notice how he mentions *right now* twice. And *with* the coaching change ?!!!
Apparently, all those rumblings about woodymelo's complaints were true, EVEN THOUGH D'Antoni is said to have COMPROMISED (for the sake of woodymelo upon his return) the very successful strategy with the new PG that won the Knicks 8 games in a row during the Linsanity (after 8-15). And despite D'Antoni's compromise, woodymelo said regarding D'Antoni's coaching “I had to sacrifice, and it was a sacrifice that I made,”. I mean, was Mike D'Antoni the coach or was he not??!!
There is an interesting article, in which the author Sam Gardner from FoxSports writes, regarding 6 straight loss upon woodymelo's return: "Then a funny thing happened. Carmelo Anthony happened. And what a difference a ‘Melo made." "Anthony, who had played just six minutes in the previous eight games as he recovered from a groin injury, returned to the Knicks lineup the following night against New Jersey, and just about immediately, everything went straight to hell." http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/Mike-D'Antoni-resigns-Carmelo-Anthony-New-York-Knicks-031412
I hope Lin is allowed to rest and heal more fully. Going by their glee that has *a little more* to do with than just about winning, I think that W & the team is now arrogant enough to prefer playing without Lin - UNTIL they lose. With Lin's injury and woodymelo's continuing jabs and innuendos, the Knicks wouldn't get anywhere too far either way. That's my gut feeling after reassessment, but we'll see.
Again - like many Lin fans - more than ever - I hope that Jeremy Lin plays for the Lakers next year ; he can emphasize that he'd like to play for his home state. The Lakes have consistently performing mega stars and they would never feel insecure about sharing a little bit of limelight with another player (like Celtics). Lin deserves to get the whole pressure and tension off of him, poor fella.
Lin has already earned his $600,000 many times over.
Let guys like Baron Davis (amnestied at something like $12 million this season) earn their dollars.
As far as I'm concerned from a money standpoint, Lin can shut it down this season and come back next year.
Of course, I expect to see Lin back when he's fully healed. I would expect a nonplaying 12th man who suddenly got thrust into a starring role playing 30+ minutes a night to physically break down at some point.
Next season, Lin will come back more prepared to play heavy minutes. Baron Davis might not even be around at that point.
Ha! Many of us feel the same way about "sit the rookie strategy".
I just *know* that you're right.
Cynical motive.
It's just the 2 games so far, but they don't want to share the current winning streak with Lin.
1) The coach-firing-inspired win streak to "prove" that Dolan did the right thing by woodymelo and the fans... 2) The two(2) wins without Lin to "prove" the rightness of W's comment that Lin should sit and that Lin isn't needed.
You guys just watch: As soon as they start losing again, they will ask Lin to "step up and be a man, play with the sore knee... woodymelo played while still hurting. We were kind to his body, letting him stand in *his sweeet spot* by the post for easy baskets.... be the playmaker running all over the place and try to limit your shots unless it's *absolutely* necessary; we need to make the playoffs.... lmao, haha, hehehe.
Ha, I am right again ! Atlanta covers !!! There are a lot of talents and egos in the NBA, not much smarts. Jlin is smart, not b/c he went to Harvard, b/c I watch him play and can tell, 'cause I have eyes and can recognize. And I am smart !
you were right on the ball feltball! another prediction come true! To be fair though, Woodson did allow Shumpert who's a rookie to play and he's been playing great
I feel the way likes yours about "sit the rookies strategy"! That's why I never like the new coach! Hopefully Knicks will fire him and get Phil Jackson to coach Knicks next year!
Shump is another kind of rookie in two ways. I will NOT comment on one type... but the socond type is the Thumbs-up Shump is *defense*; that is W's kind of man!... Also, it wasn't Shump who inadvertently upstaged C.A. ... Lin and C.A are not even playing the same position. Imagine if they did? Whoa! Thank God.
If this extended rest let's Lin regain his freshness and explosiveness and optimizes him for stretch run (second week of April) and playoff run, than I am for it.
I suspect him resting also has something to do with other egos in locker room (like the ones who made that comment (don't know if this quote was made up by papers) about D-Leaguer doing anything he wants and telling everyone else on court what to do (Stat?, Davis?, Smith?) wanting to get headlines about winning game and being clutch player, etc.
Hope Knicks win these games with Lin out, but also hope television ratings plummet back to pre-Linsanity levels so everyone know who is really buttering their bread (Knicks doing better and NBA doing better means there is more money for everyone).
Melo hopefully accepts being the workhorse who has to score during game to keep team in game, but doesn't have to get acclaim for getting game winning shot (Shump has really stepped up while Lin is out).
Woodson slowing down offense, and Lin out, still hasn't eliminated all of the unforced errors such as Baron Davis always trying to make home-run pass and turning the ball over.
Lin playing D'Antoni speed ball, just at the edge of out of control, I think would have been a more dangerous team in playoffs, because he can break down defense such as Bulls and create controlled chaos for Knicks to take advantage of. Bulls can probably destroy standard Woodson isolation ball and play as a much more disciplined team.
Taking care of himself and staying health is number one priority. Rest now and flourishing later is much better than working over time and risk damaging future opportunities
True... But I don't think they have such a noble or even common-sense motive. They seem to positively radiate with happiness that Lin didn't participate in the last 2 winning games (Stou and Jeff often not mentioned as MIA also).
They would not want Lin back while winning - not even for 10 minutes; but might ask Lin to play *if* they get scared of not makig the playoffs. THEN, once they make the playoffs, it's possible that they could, again, be super motivated to play like supermen(even, and especially, without Lin); the fact is, anything can happen in the playoffs; teams almost treat it like a brand new but very short season (and they will nurse the injuries after it's over).
Sound like Jeremy may be out for this season ... I am really concerned on what is the situation now.
" Woodson set off some alarms at shootaround Friday morning when he was talking about the status of Amare Stoudemire and Jeremy Lin .Woodson sounded uncertain whether either player would come back this season." quoted from http://mobile.newsday.com/inf/infomo;JSESSIONID=E6C325CAF12E27FC521E.3221?site=newsday&view=sports_blogs_item&feed:a=newsday_5min&feed:c=sports_blogs&feed:i=1.3633483
Don't worry. The Knicks medical staff is just fine and so will Lin be.
It's better to hold Lin out if his knee still hurts. We don't want him to blow his knee out the way Ricky Rubio did.
In the NBA, players come back when they feel ready. Brandon Roy and Yao Ming both played against the advice of doctors, as did Michael Jordan when he lost nearly his entire 2nd year due to injury. Lin will return when Lin feels ready to return.
I agree with the better be safe than sorry later approach to let Jeremy rest for 3-8 games:
- Lin would avoid permanent/chronic injury and only come back when 100%. You don't want him to come back less than 100% and underperform because it will just give ammunition to the haters and jealous teammates to downplay his contributions on the court. And money-wise, he would be in a better position to negotiate better contract ($4M-$5M mid-level exception?) w/ major playoff contributions.
- Let other players earn their money and realize how much they missed Jeremy on the court. Let them feel the tired legs and aching back so they clamor for Jeremy to come back.
Other than Tyson, Jeffries, Fields, Novak, Shump, and Melo/Amare to some level, I don't think other players realize how much they need Jeremy for a deep playoff run. I have nightmares of Black Hole Melo trying to play hero ball w/ iso after iso plays and pass to JR for threes.
They need to give this injury a true diagnosis. No such diagnosis as sore knee...overuse injury, sure (nebulous and really a poor diagnosis by any physician), but is it a patellar tendonitis, partial tear, quadriceps strain? When they keep it up in the air, it can make the athlete look bad.
Anyway, basketball needs Jeremy Lin. It's so boring watching the team without him. I probably would've never watched the bulls without Jordan.
Lin running D'Antoni's speedball offense would have been much more dangerous in playoffs if Melo, Stat, and others had bought in:
"When the Heat's training camp finally opened after the five-month lockout, Spoelstra explained his new philosophy to his players by appealing to its offensive freedom. Inspired by Kelly's gridiron principles, Spoelstra laid out a simple offensive blueprint: spread the floor, maintain spacing and create controlled chaos.
By doing this, Spoelstra was essentially burning his playbook and relying on his players' basketball IQ to make decisions. The Heat coach had to think long and hard about taking his hands off the wheel. Ultimately, he decided that easing off might be a good thing with players of this basketball acumen.
There is, however, a fluid framework in place, with infused elements of Rick Adelman's elbow offense and a motion dribble-drive offense, something Spoelstra picked up from his trip to Lexington, Ky., to see Calipari. Spoelstra's pitch to his team involved a very simple transaction of trust:
Do what I want, then you can do what you want.
The concept isn't an entirely new one for the Heat. In the middle of last season, as something of a motivating technique, Spoelstra told his players that if they locked down the defensive end and created turnovers, they could run all they pleased. But that didn't seem to change much of anything. After all, it was midseason and habits are difficult to adjust on the fly. But after a crushing Finals loss to Dallas, the Heat were ready for a fresh start. Now, the team seems fully on board with what they call "the triangle on steroids," and players have even adopted Spoelstra's "pace and space" terminology in their press conferences.
You could see it in action early in the first quarter of the team's first preseason game against Orlando. LeBron quickly dribbled up the court with Hedo Turkoglu defending and immediately fed the ball to Wade on the right block. Turkoglu turned his back for a moment and that was it -- James made the read, darted to the baseline off Wade's left shoulder, and by the time Turkoglu knew what was going on, Wade had already given the ball to LeBron on a handoff. LeBron soared to the basket and finished a reverse layup on the other side of the rim.
That wasn't a play call. It was a read.
"And that's the way we like to keep it," Spoelstra said, recalling the possession. "We want to continue to develop more actions where the two of them are involved and it's not necessarily scripted."
Spoelstra made a grand total of three play calls during the entire game. Yes, it was preseason, but the Heat won by 33 points.
What happens when the Heat lose three games in a row this winter? What happens when the Chicago Bulls go on an 8-0 run down the stretch of a crucial game? What happens when Spoelstra needs to take advantage of a hole in the opposing defense with sharp X's and O's?
It remains to be seen, but the potential benefits are hard to ignore, and the players seem happy with the tweaks. LeBron says he loves where the Heat's offense is right now. Wade believes Spoelstra has done "a great job."
And Bosh? He's gushing about Spoelstra's new groove for a different reason: You can't really scout it.
This is perhaps the greatest potential benefit of all. Opponents knew where LeBron, Wade and Bosh would be last season because they memorized Spoelstra's playbook. The Heat were predictable, and that's what made them beatable at times, especially in the playoffs.
Armed with a unique roster, Spoelstra is thinking outside the box and the plan seems to be working for now. With his own spin on "Showtime" in place, Spoelstra is hoping his moment of clarity in Oregon will lead to a moment of triumph for Miami."
Joe - I enjoyed reading your piece very much. Thanks.
Miami Heat would be another good team (besides Lakers) for Jeremy Lin to go to this offseason. It so happens that those two teams could use another PG. Maybe another guidance from God to steer things Lin's way. God helps those who help themselves (I'll bet Lin is helping himself by setting a goal to move on to a better environment and working towards it).
An MRI could just be precautionary, but phrases like "I don't know when or if he'll be back" and the general vagueness about his return makes it seem the Knicks are hiding something.
If the MRI shows a tear, then Jeremy should get surgery right away and sit out as long as it takes (even if it means the end of his season). If there's no tear, then I'm fine with Jeremy toughing it out for the rest of the season.
So Tuesday sounds like the date he'll return. Hopefully, Jeremy can use this time not only to heal, but to look at video and revamp his approach a little.
Melo finally has confidence in his shot again while Chandler is struggling offensively (due to his wrist injury). So Jeremy needs to adjust as a result.
I think what Jeremy is doing, is good. His body is still getting used to NBA in terms of logging in high minutes. Going form sitting on the bench to logging in 35+ mins a night. He will be fine...his body will adjust.
This is a fan site for Lin, so my comments are favoring Lin. This is contract year for Lin. I believe Jeremy has already shown what he is capable of doing on the court, so it is better for him to get healthy and not risk his career.
Right now with the Knicks it is all about Antony is trying to show his worth (~$18 mil/yr), so the NY fans and media will get off his back. I don't think he really likes the game. I think he is lightyears behind LeBron James, who was pick in front of Antony. Look how hard L James works on his game, and how he improves every year. Antony looks out of shape every year and plays the same game when he was a rookie.
Jeremy is smart, works hard, and loves basketball, so if he stays healthy, he will work on improving his game during the off season. Godspeed Jeremy!
Conspiracy theorists, get a grip ok? Lin is legitimately hurt, just like Stoudemire, just like Jeffries, just like Melo was earlier this season, and just like Davis was for practically the entire year. Day after day the same old nonsense ...
And like I said yesterday, the Hawks really need this game. They've lost 2 in a row and are playing at home. If they go into a long slide, they might drop into the 7th or 8th spot and get crushed in the 1st round of the playoffs, which for them would make this season a total failure. The Knicks would have had a tough time beating the Hawks even if they had Lin and Stoudemire.
The NBA ain't college football, and it isn't even college basketball. You aren't going to win them all. Even those great Celtics and Lakers teams from back in the day never hit 70 wins. So if you are going to lose anyway, why not just rest your hurt players?
The Knicks should beat the dreadful Cavs tomorrow night, then they get a few days of rest for the big showdown against the Pacers. I say that it should take about 31 wins to make the playoffs (based on Milwaukee being 23-27) so the Knicks need about 6. That's the good news. The bad news: of the 14 or so games that they have left, a good number of them are tough. On the road against Indiana and Orlando, back to back against Chicago, on the road against Milwaukee, at home against Miami and Boston, on the road against Atlanta, and at home against the Clippers. There are only 4 "easy games" during the entire month of April: the Nets, Cavs, Wizards and Bobcats. Add that to the Cavs game tomorrow night, and even if they sweep all the easy games - and as we saw in the debacle against Toronto that can't be guaranteed - they'll still need several wins against good teams.
Bottom line: Lin needs to rest until he is healthy, because making the playoffs is going to be a real challenge, and the other considerations need to take a backseat. They have the entire offseason to sort that out, including a decision to make on the permanent head coach. But right now, THE KNICKS need to make the playoffs for back-to-back seasons for the first time in ten years. Lin has already played a vital role in getting the Knicks in position, but he can't help the Knicks close the deal by getting into the playoffs on a gimpy knee.
Melo isn't HAVING to carry the team, he is CHOOSING to.
"No one passing to Novak."
Exhibit A. And Shumpert is playing very well, but not getting anywhere near the touches he needs. This loss is on Melo. I hope that Woodson lets him know it, even if Melo winds up with 50 points. As a matter of fact, I hope Woodson reads Melo the riot act even if they WIN. Yes, Melo is playing a good defensive game (5 steals) but that does not give him the right to have more than twice as many shots as everybody else.
Oh yes ... Baron Davis and J.R. Smith playing horribly when the team needs them the most ... real nice.
Melo doesn't HAVE to carry the team. He is CHOOSING to. The guy has 21 shots, 5 turnovers but only 2 assists. No one is passing to Novak? That means Melo isn't.
Relax. Things will be okay because Jeremy is still human. Remember how long it took for you to heal a sore knee, sprained ankle, injured wrist? A long time. Now you're expecting Jeremy, a player who has played major minutes in a month to heal instantaneously?! He has only missed a few games. It's going to be okay. Relax
Washington is about to beat Philly, so this could have been a great game to pick up game in loss column vs. them.
Philly has easiest remaining schedule and probably needs to lose a few games they shouldn't for Knicks to catch them. Boston and Miami have 3 games in April, plus games against Philly and the Knicks.
Exactly, with the other Knicks players' injuries, they always have a description of the injury and a timetable for return.... Amare 4-6 weeks, Bill Walker 5 weeks, etc.
They won't even release the extent of the injury and how long we can expect him to be out. At least let the Lin fans know so they don't get their hopes up.
No timetable until they know how serious the knee injury is, which they won't know until the MRI results are back. It is very likely that they went ahead and gave Lin the MRI because there was no real improvement in the condition of his knee.
Ugh. This game stinks. Even if the Knicks somehow win this game, Anthony has taken 20 shots when no one else has taken more than 8. Meanwhile, he has 4 turnovers BUT ONLY TWO ASSISTS. Way to be a team player and leader who makes the other guys on his team better, Anthony!
All right. Hawks are pulling away. Davis took 8 shots. Smith took 9 shots. Anthony took 23 shots. Shumpert had his chances, but no one else really had an opportunity to do anything with the ball. You can't have 3 guys taking 40 of the 65 shots.
Yeah, Melo goes off and Knicks still lose going away.
Just think about how badly Bulls will destroy the Woodson / Melo isolation offense.
They really could have used Lin's dribble drive penetration and clutch shooting (shots or free throws) starting about the 5 minute mark of fourth quarter. Knicks were getting close then, and then Melo missed two jumpers and I think had a turnover.
Plus Shump should have been put in instead of Davis after short rest for most of fourth quarter.
"Lin spoke briefly with Dennis Scott of NBA TV before the Hawks game on Friday. Scott said he was told by Lin the knee injury isn't serious, and that his resting is mostly precautionary. Scott was left with the impression Lin would suit up if the playoffs started today."
If this is true, then after tonights loss, Woodson might have to rethink things because the Melo show isn't going to cut it and BD can't physically start at PG right now.
If this is true, then after tonights loss, Woodson might have to rethink things because the Melo show isn't going to cut it and BD can't physically start at PG right now.
From what I've seen, Lin has absorbed more of a physical beating than any other player I've ever seen in the NBA. Doubtless there are additional aches and pains other than the knee.
There's the mental toll too. Playing for Woodson who doesn't respect his game takes a toll too. It's hard enough to battle opponents, let alone one's own coach amd teammates.
Even if Woodson chose to bench Lin for good this season, Lin has still proven his ability to DOMINATE at the NBA level. Should the Knicks release him or let another team outbid him in restricted free agency, Lin will simply go to another team.and dominate there.
Here's a thought. When New Jersey loses Deron Williams, they should forget about Dwight Howard and target Lin who's every bit as talented and comes without the attitude problems. Even if they had to trade a player or two to get Lin, it would be worth it. Lin would be worth more in wins and franchise value to the Nets than either Dwight Howard or Deron Williams anyway.
Excerpt from this article ( http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/31/sports/basketball/new-york-knicks-versus-atlanta-hawks.html) Weird.
"While Stoudemire is doubtful to return in the regular season with a bulging disk in his back, there is some mystery surrounding Lin, who has missed the last three games with a left knee injury. He poked his head out of a door to the Knicks’ training room before the game, then ducked back in and shut the door when he saw a few reporters standing in the hallway."
If anything I could see the Knicks media machine trying to minimize the seriousness of Lin's injury so people don't freak out since it happened at the same time as STAT. The Knicks FO aren't doing Lin any favors by the way they've tried to explain it. They are scared people won't buy tickets if the say he'll be out for a week or two so they say "he could go tonite"...then when he doesn't, they sell tickets but make Lin look bad. I hate Dolan.
If anything I could see the Knicks media machine trying to minimize the seriousness of Lin's injury so people don't freak out since it happened at the same time as STAT. The Knicks FO aren't doing Lin any favors by the way they've tried to explain it. They are scared people won't buy tickets if the say he'll be out for a week or two so they say "he could go tonite"...then when he doesn't, they sell tickets but make Lin look bad. I hate Dolan.
awwwwww come on! So he goes from "will be ready to play Monday" to missing 3 straight games? This is getting me paranoid. Will he play anytime soon? Can we somehow get a real explanation as to what the problem with his knee is?? I need my Lin fix dang it!
ReplyDeleteI think maybe is the coach tried not to let JLin plays the game
ReplyDeletehi J - I think your intuition is correct. It's long, but here's my take:
DeleteHere's today ESPN on Jeremy Lin's absence, subtitled 'What are the Knicks missing most without Jeremy Lin?' http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/knicks/post/_/id/15558/opening-tip-jeremy-lins-absence
Some experts are essentially saying the same thing as what we've been saying, about the importance of Lin in the Knicks lineup.
After thinking a bit more, I no longer loot for the Knicks for the rest of the season. I can't support spiteful and jealous people. I can't support big public mouths. After getting MD fired, woodymelo (CarAn) still can't stop himself from mouthing off in an undisciplined manner.
After the win against Orlando on March 28th, this is what woodymelo had to say: "Right now, with the coaching change, we've been playing extremely well. Guys seem to be responding pretty well. We've been really locked in on our mission right now."
That public comment is an oblique jab at Jeremy Lin, one of his teammate - and Lin is forced to play in a such negative environment (but unlike woodymelo, Lin would never complain or deliberately try to make the new coach look bad). In the short blurb, notice how he mentions *right now* twice. And *with* the coaching change ?!!!
Apparently, all those rumblings about woodymelo's complaints were true, EVEN THOUGH D'Antoni is said to have COMPROMISED (for the sake of woodymelo upon his return) the very successful strategy with the new PG that won the Knicks 8 games in a row during the Linsanity (after 8-15). And despite D'Antoni's compromise, woodymelo said regarding D'Antoni's coaching “I had to sacrifice, and it was a sacrifice that I made,”. I mean, was Mike D'Antoni the coach or was he not??!!
There is an interesting article, in which the author Sam Gardner from FoxSports writes, regarding 6 straight loss upon woodymelo's return: "Then a funny thing happened. Carmelo Anthony happened. And what a difference a ‘Melo made."
"Anthony, who had played just six minutes in the previous eight games as he recovered from a groin injury, returned to the Knicks lineup the following night against New Jersey, and just about immediately, everything went straight to hell."
http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/Mike-D'Antoni-resigns-Carmelo-Anthony-New-York-Knicks-031412
I hope Lin is allowed to rest and heal more fully. Going by their glee that has *a little more* to do with than just about winning, I think that W & the team is now arrogant enough to prefer playing without Lin - UNTIL they lose. With Lin's injury and woodymelo's continuing jabs and innuendos, the Knicks wouldn't get anywhere too far either way. That's my gut feeling after reassessment, but we'll see.
Again - like many Lin fans - more than ever - I hope that Jeremy Lin plays for the Lakers next year ; he can emphasize that he'd like to play for his home state. The Lakes have consistently performing mega stars and they would never feel insecure about sharing a little bit of limelight with another player (like Celtics). Lin deserves to get the whole pressure and tension off of him, poor fella.
Lin has already earned his $600,000 many times over.
ReplyDeleteLet guys like Baron Davis (amnestied at something like $12 million this season) earn their dollars.
As far as I'm concerned from a money standpoint, Lin can shut it down this season and come back next year.
Of course, I expect to see Lin back when he's fully healed. I would expect a nonplaying 12th man who suddenly got thrust into a starring role playing 30+ minutes a night to physically break down at some point.
Next season, Lin will come back more prepared to play heavy minutes. Baron Davis might not even be around at that point.
My prognostication urge is back so for all you bettor, here is a prediction :
ReplyDeleteWoodson will loose to his old team tonight and Hawks will cover the 3.5 point.
I believe Woodson is implementing his "sit the rookie strategy", and will soon learn he needs the Rookie.
Ha! Many of us feel the same way about "sit the rookie strategy".
DeleteI just *know* that you're right.
Cynical motive.
It's just the 2 games so far, but they don't want to share the current winning streak with Lin.
1) The coach-firing-inspired win streak to "prove" that Dolan did the right thing by woodymelo and the fans... 2) The two(2) wins without Lin to "prove" the rightness of W's comment that Lin should sit and that Lin isn't needed.
You guys just watch: As soon as they start losing again, they will ask Lin to "step up and be a man, play with the sore knee... woodymelo played while still hurting. We were kind to his body, letting him stand in *his sweeet spot* by the post for easy baskets.... be the playmaker running all over the place and try to limit your shots unless it's *absolutely* necessary; we need to make the playoffs.... lmao, haha, hehehe.
Ha, I am right again ! Atlanta covers !!! There are a lot of talents and egos in the NBA, not much smarts. Jlin is smart, not b/c he went to Harvard, b/c I watch him play and can tell, 'cause I have eyes and can recognize. And I am smart !
Deleteyou were right on the ball feltball! another prediction come true! To be fair though, Woodson did allow Shumpert who's a rookie to play and he's been playing great
DeleteI feel the way likes yours about "sit the rookies strategy"! That's why I never like the new coach! Hopefully Knicks will fire him and get Phil Jackson to coach Knicks next year!
Deleteanon:
DeleteShump is another kind of rookie in two ways. I will NOT comment on one type... but the socond type is the Thumbs-up Shump is *defense*; that is W's kind of man!... Also, it wasn't Shump who inadvertently upstaged C.A. ... Lin and C.A are not even playing the same position. Imagine if they did? Whoa! Thank God.
feltball -- of course you're smart! The whole world can see and hear that, chuckle.
DeleteIf this extended rest let's Lin regain his freshness and explosiveness and optimizes him for stretch run (second week of April) and playoff run, than I am for it.
ReplyDeleteI suspect him resting also has something to do with other egos in locker room (like the ones who made that comment (don't know if this quote was made up by papers) about D-Leaguer doing anything he wants and telling everyone else on court what to do (Stat?, Davis?, Smith?) wanting to get headlines about winning game and being clutch player, etc.
Hope Knicks win these games with Lin out, but also hope television ratings plummet back to pre-Linsanity levels so everyone know who is really buttering their bread (Knicks doing better and NBA doing better means there is more money for everyone).
Melo hopefully accepts being the workhorse who has to score during game to keep team in game, but doesn't have to get acclaim for getting game winning shot (Shump has really stepped up while Lin is out).
Woodson slowing down offense, and Lin out, still hasn't eliminated all of the unforced errors such as Baron Davis always trying to make home-run pass and turning the ball over.
DeleteLin playing D'Antoni speed ball, just at the edge of out of control, I think would have been a more dangerous team in playoffs, because he can break down defense such as Bulls and create controlled chaos for Knicks to take advantage of. Bulls can probably destroy standard Woodson isolation ball and play as a much more disciplined team.
Taking care of himself and staying health is number one priority. Rest now and flourishing later is much better than working over time and risk damaging future opportunities
ReplyDeleteTrue... But I don't think they have such a noble or even common-sense motive. They seem to positively radiate with happiness that Lin didn't participate in the last 2 winning games (Stou and Jeff often not mentioned as MIA also).
DeleteThey would not want Lin back while winning - not even for 10 minutes; but might ask Lin to play *if* they get scared of not makig the playoffs. THEN, once they make the playoffs, it's possible that they could, again, be super motivated to play like supermen(even, and especially, without Lin); the fact is, anything can happen in the playoffs; teams almost treat it like a brand new but very short season (and they will nurse the injuries after it's over).
Sound like Jeremy may be out for this season ... I am really concerned on what is the situation now.
ReplyDelete" Woodson set off some alarms at shootaround Friday morning when he was talking about the status of Amare Stoudemire and Jeremy Lin .Woodson sounded uncertain whether either player would come back this season."
quoted from
http://mobile.newsday.com/inf/infomo;JSESSIONID=E6C325CAF12E27FC521E.3221?site=newsday&view=sports_blogs_item&feed:a=newsday_5min&feed:c=sports_blogs&feed:i=1.3633483
Lin's injury has got to more serious than the Knicks are admitting.
ReplyDeleteThe Knicks' medical staff seems to be a joke to me. See their handling of Stoudemire, Melo, and Davis.
Lin went from being day-to-day to possibly out of the season?!
WTF!
Don't worry. The Knicks medical staff is just fine and so will Lin be.
ReplyDeleteIt's better to hold Lin out if his knee still hurts. We don't want him to blow his knee out the way Ricky Rubio did.
In the NBA, players come back when they feel ready. Brandon Roy and Yao Ming both played against the advice of doctors, as did Michael Jordan when he lost nearly his entire 2nd year due to injury. Lin will return when Lin feels ready to return.
I agree with the better be safe than sorry later approach to let Jeremy rest for 3-8 games:
ReplyDelete- Lin would avoid permanent/chronic injury and only come back when 100%. You don't want him to come back less than 100% and underperform because it will just give ammunition to the haters and jealous teammates to downplay his contributions on the court. And money-wise, he would be in a better position to negotiate better contract ($4M-$5M mid-level exception?) w/ major playoff contributions.
- Let other players earn their money and realize how much they missed Jeremy on the court. Let them feel the tired legs and aching back so they clamor for Jeremy to come back.
Other than Tyson, Jeffries, Fields, Novak, Shump, and Melo/Amare to some level, I don't think other players realize how much they need Jeremy for a deep playoff run. I have nightmares of Black Hole Melo trying to play hero ball w/ iso after iso plays and pass to JR for threes.
I couldn't agree more. Wait till tomorrow, the second of back to back to see how the idiots melo and davis feel.
Delete+1 really good point
DeleteI can't stand DB dumb face, Melo!
DeleteMelo thinks he is the savior, the point is he's not That good!
DeleteThey need to give this injury a true diagnosis. No such diagnosis as sore knee...overuse injury, sure (nebulous and really a poor diagnosis by any physician), but is it a patellar tendonitis, partial tear, quadriceps strain? When they keep it up in the air, it can make the athlete look bad.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, basketball needs Jeremy Lin. It's so boring watching the team without him. I probably would've never watched the bulls without Jordan.
That's true! I didn't even watch the last 2 games.
DeleteLin running D'Antoni's speedball offense would have been much more dangerous in playoffs if Melo, Stat, and others had bought in:
ReplyDelete"When the Heat's training camp finally opened after the five-month lockout, Spoelstra explained his new philosophy to his players by appealing to its offensive freedom. Inspired by Kelly's gridiron principles, Spoelstra laid out a simple offensive blueprint: spread the floor, maintain spacing and create controlled chaos.
By doing this, Spoelstra was essentially burning his playbook and relying on his players' basketball IQ to make decisions. The Heat coach had to think long and hard about taking his hands off the wheel. Ultimately, he decided that easing off might be a good thing with players of this basketball acumen.
There is, however, a fluid framework in place, with infused elements of Rick Adelman's elbow offense and a motion dribble-drive offense, something Spoelstra picked up from his trip to Lexington, Ky., to see Calipari. Spoelstra's pitch to his team involved a very simple transaction of trust:
Do what I want, then you can do what you want.
The concept isn't an entirely new one for the Heat. In the middle of last season, as something of a motivating technique, Spoelstra told his players that if they locked down the defensive end and created turnovers, they could run all they pleased. But that didn't seem to change much of anything. After all, it was midseason and habits are difficult to adjust on the fly.
But after a crushing Finals loss to Dallas, the Heat were ready for a fresh start. Now, the team seems fully on board with what they call "the triangle on steroids," and players have even adopted Spoelstra's "pace and space" terminology in their press conferences.
You could see it in action early in the first quarter of the team's first preseason game against Orlando. LeBron quickly dribbled up the court with Hedo Turkoglu defending and immediately fed the ball to Wade on the right block. Turkoglu turned his back for a moment and that was it -- James made the read, darted to the baseline off Wade's left shoulder, and by the time Turkoglu knew what was going on, Wade had already given the ball to LeBron on a handoff. LeBron soared to the basket and finished a reverse layup on the other side of the rim.
That wasn't a play call. It was a read.
"And that's the way we like to keep it," Spoelstra said, recalling the possession. "We want to continue to develop more actions where the two of them are involved and it's not necessarily scripted."
Spoelstra made a grand total of three play calls during the entire game. Yes, it was preseason, but the Heat won by 33 points.
What happens when the Heat lose three games in a row this winter? What happens when the Chicago Bulls go on an 8-0 run down the stretch of a crucial game? What happens when Spoelstra needs to take advantage of a hole in the opposing defense with sharp X's and O's?
It remains to be seen, but the potential benefits are hard to ignore, and the players seem happy with the tweaks. LeBron says he loves where the Heat's offense is right now. Wade believes Spoelstra has done "a great job."
And Bosh? He's gushing about Spoelstra's new groove for a different reason: You can't really scout it.
This is perhaps the greatest potential benefit of all. Opponents knew where LeBron, Wade and Bosh would be last season because they memorized Spoelstra's playbook. The Heat were predictable, and that's what made them beatable at times, especially in the playoffs.
Armed with a unique roster, Spoelstra is thinking outside the box and the plan seems to be working for now. With his own spin on "Showtime" in place, Spoelstra is hoping his moment of clarity in Oregon will lead to a moment of triumph for Miami."
http://espn.go.com/nba/truehoop/miamiheat/story/_/id/7378111/nba-oregon-ducks-football-muse-erik-spoelstra-miami-heat
Joe - I enjoyed reading your piece very much. Thanks.
DeleteMiami Heat would be another good team (besides Lakers) for Jeremy Lin to go to this offseason. It so happens that those two teams could use another PG. Maybe another guidance from God to steer things Lin's way. God helps those who help themselves (I'll bet Lin is helping himself by setting a goal to move on to a better environment and working towards it).
Without JLin, I am watching HGTV now....
ReplyDeleteJeremy had an MRI with results pending...yikes...I don't think that is standard for a day to day diagnosis.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketball/knicks/ny-knicks-coach-mike-woodson-jeremy-lin-amar-e-stoudemire-play-season-article-1.1053643
Darn it. That is not a good sign.
DeleteAn MRI could just be precautionary, but phrases like "I don't know when or if he'll be back" and the general vagueness about his return makes it seem the Knicks are hiding something.
If the MRI shows a tear, then Jeremy should get surgery right away and sit out as long as it takes (even if it means the end of his season). If there's no tear, then I'm fine with Jeremy toughing it out for the rest of the season.
Non surgical treatment is better result but slow process.
DeleteSo Tuesday sounds like the date he'll return. Hopefully, Jeremy can use this time not only to heal, but to look at video and revamp his approach a little.
ReplyDeleteMelo finally has confidence in his shot again while Chandler is struggling offensively (due to his wrist injury). So Jeremy needs to adjust as a result.
I think what Jeremy is doing, is good. His body is still getting used to NBA in terms of logging in high minutes. Going form sitting on the bench to logging in 35+ mins a night. He will be fine...his body will adjust.
ReplyDeleteThis is a fan site for Lin, so my comments are favoring Lin. This is contract year for Lin. I believe Jeremy has already shown what he is capable of doing on the court, so it is better for him to get healthy and not risk his career.
ReplyDeleteRight now with the Knicks it is all about Antony is trying to show his worth (~$18 mil/yr), so the NY fans and media will get off his back. I don't think he really likes the game. I think he is lightyears behind LeBron James, who was pick in front of Antony. Look how hard L James works on his game, and how he improves every year. Antony looks out of shape every year and plays the same game when he was a rookie.
Jeremy is smart, works hard, and loves basketball, so if he stays healthy, he will work on improving his game during the off season. Godspeed Jeremy!
Conspiracy theorists, get a grip ok? Lin is legitimately hurt, just like Stoudemire, just like Jeffries, just like Melo was earlier this season, and just like Davis was for practically the entire year. Day after day the same old nonsense ...
ReplyDeleteAnd like I said yesterday, the Hawks really need this game. They've lost 2 in a row and are playing at home. If they go into a long slide, they might drop into the 7th or 8th spot and get crushed in the 1st round of the playoffs, which for them would make this season a total failure. The Knicks would have had a tough time beating the Hawks even if they had Lin and Stoudemire.
The NBA ain't college football, and it isn't even college basketball. You aren't going to win them all. Even those great Celtics and Lakers teams from back in the day never hit 70 wins. So if you are going to lose anyway, why not just rest your hurt players?
The Knicks should beat the dreadful Cavs tomorrow night, then they get a few days of rest for the big showdown against the Pacers. I say that it should take about 31 wins to make the playoffs (based on Milwaukee being 23-27) so the Knicks need about 6. That's the good news. The bad news: of the 14 or so games that they have left, a good number of them are tough. On the road against Indiana and Orlando, back to back against Chicago, on the road against Milwaukee, at home against Miami and Boston, on the road against Atlanta, and at home against the Clippers. There are only 4 "easy games" during the entire month of April: the Nets, Cavs, Wizards and Bobcats. Add that to the Cavs game tomorrow night, and even if they sweep all the easy games - and as we saw in the debacle against Toronto that can't be guaranteed - they'll still need several wins against good teams.
Bottom line: Lin needs to rest until he is healthy, because making the playoffs is going to be a real challenge, and the other considerations need to take a backseat. They have the entire offseason to sort that out, including a decision to make on the permanent head coach. But right now, THE KNICKS need to make the playoffs for back-to-back seasons for the first time in ten years. Lin has already played a vital role in getting the Knicks in position, but he can't help the Knicks close the deal by getting into the playoffs on a gimpy knee.
Knicks aren't doing well vs Hawks, Melo having to carry the team, BD is making me wanna change channels...No one passing to Novak.
ReplyDeleteWith STAT/Lin out, if Melo gets injured its game over...
Melo isn't HAVING to carry the team, he is CHOOSING to.
Delete"No one passing to Novak."
Exhibit A. And Shumpert is playing very well, but not getting anywhere near the touches he needs. This loss is on Melo. I hope that Woodson lets him know it, even if Melo winds up with 50 points. As a matter of fact, I hope Woodson reads Melo the riot act even if they WIN. Yes, Melo is playing a good defensive game (5 steals) but that does not give him the right to have more than twice as many shots as everybody else.
Oh yes ... Baron Davis and J.R. Smith playing horribly when the team needs them the most ... real nice.
Melo doesn't HAVE to carry the team. He is CHOOSING to. The guy has 21 shots, 5 turnovers but only 2 assists. No one is passing to Novak? That means Melo isn't.
DeleteRelax. Things will be okay because Jeremy is still human. Remember how long it took for you to heal a sore knee, sprained ankle, injured wrist? A long time. Now you're expecting Jeremy, a player who has played major minutes in a month to heal instantaneously?! He has only missed a few games. It's going to be okay. Relax
ReplyDeleteBaron Davis is a turnover machine!
ReplyDeleteSo many stupid decisions in first half, and now he is jumping in air before having play set and turning ball over.
Shump looks to be playing Lin's role again, stepping up and making big shots when needed.
Washington is about to beat Philly, so this could have been a great game to pick up game in loss column vs. them.
DeletePhilly has easiest remaining schedule and probably needs to lose a few games they shouldn't for Knicks to catch them. Boston and Miami have 3 games in April, plus games against Philly and the Knicks.
Exactly, with the other Knicks players' injuries, they always have a description of the injury and a timetable for return.... Amare 4-6 weeks, Bill Walker 5 weeks, etc.
ReplyDeleteThey won't even release the extent of the injury and how long we can expect him to be out. At least let the Lin fans know so they don't get their hopes up.
Well, putting a timetable on Lin would cause the Lin-ophiles to stay away for the games that he was out for.
DeleteBesides, it's highly probable they just can't pinpoint the injury. And even if they did, it's hard to tell how long it will take Lin to recover.
No timetable until they know how serious the knee injury is, which they won't know until the MRI results are back. It is very likely that they went ahead and gave Lin the MRI because there was no real improvement in the condition of his knee.
Deletehttp://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/playerbreakingnews.asp?sport=NBA&id=1772&line=177142&spln=1
That's true, if no Lin in the games, I will stay away the games :)
DeleteUgh. This game stinks. Even if the Knicks somehow win this game, Anthony has taken 20 shots when no one else has taken more than 8. Meanwhile, he has 4 turnovers BUT ONLY TWO ASSISTS. Way to be a team player and leader who makes the other guys on his team better, Anthony!
ReplyDeleteAll right. Hawks are pulling away. Davis took 8 shots. Smith took 9 shots. Anthony took 23 shots. Shumpert had his chances, but no one else really had an opportunity to do anything with the ball. You can't have 3 guys taking 40 of the 65 shots.
DeleteYeah, Melo goes off and Knicks still lose going away.
DeleteJust think about how badly Bulls will destroy the Woodson / Melo isolation offense.
They really could have used Lin's dribble drive penetration and clutch shooting (shots or free throws) starting about the 5 minute mark of fourth quarter. Knicks were getting close then, and then Melo missed two jumpers and I think had a turnover.
Plus Shump should have been put in instead of Davis after short rest for most of fourth quarter.
Melo is a very selfish player, he plays the games for his own show!
Deletej Mar, you are preaching to the choir.
DeleteMello score a lot of points but team still loose, sounds familiar ?
ReplyDelete"Lin spoke briefly with Dennis Scott of NBA TV before the Hawks game on Friday. Scott said he was told by Lin the knee injury isn't serious, and that his resting is mostly precautionary. Scott was left with the impression Lin would suit up if the playoffs started today."
ReplyDeletehttp://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/story/_/id/7755094/new-york-knicks-jeremy-lin-misses-third-straight-game-sore-knee?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
Sounds like Knicks are keeping Lin out, not Lin.
Unfortunately, it keeps pointing back to jealousy of Linsanity in Knicks locker room.
If this is true, then after tonights loss, Woodson might have to rethink things because the Melo show isn't going to cut it and BD can't physically start at PG right now.
DeleteIf this is true, then after tonights loss, Woodson might have to rethink things because the Melo show isn't going to cut it and BD can't physically start at PG right now.
DeleteI see nothing wrong with Lin getting more rest.
DeleteFrom what I've seen, Lin has absorbed more of a physical beating than any other player I've ever seen in the NBA. Doubtless there are additional aches and pains other than the knee.
There's the mental toll too. Playing for Woodson who doesn't respect his game takes a toll too. It's hard enough to battle opponents, let alone one's own coach amd teammates.
Even if Woodson chose to bench Lin for good this season, Lin has still proven his ability to DOMINATE at the NBA level. Should the Knicks release him or let another team outbid him in restricted free agency, Lin will simply go to another team.and dominate there.
Here's a thought. When New Jersey loses Deron Williams, they should forget about Dwight Howard and target Lin who's every bit as talented and comes without the attitude problems. Even if they had to trade a player or two to get Lin, it would be worth it. Lin would be worth more in wins and franchise value to the Nets than either Dwight Howard or Deron Williams anyway.
Jealousy will cause losing the games, opportunity to the playoffs, basketball is suppose teamwork!
ReplyDeleteWOW, I never saw that many Lin haters around there after this lose without Lin playing.
ReplyDeleteExcerpt from this article ( http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/31/sports/basketball/new-york-knicks-versus-atlanta-hawks.html)
ReplyDeleteWeird.
"While Stoudemire is doubtful to return in the regular season with a bulging disk in his back, there is some mystery surrounding Lin, who has missed the last three games with a left knee injury. He poked his head out of a door to the Knicks’ training room before the game, then ducked back in and shut the door when he saw a few reporters standing in the hallway."
If anything I could see the Knicks media machine trying to minimize the seriousness of Lin's injury so people don't freak out since it happened at the same time as STAT. The Knicks FO aren't doing Lin any favors by the way they've tried to explain it. They are scared people won't buy tickets if the say he'll be out for a week or two so they say "he could go tonite"...then when he doesn't, they sell tickets but make Lin look bad. I hate Dolan.
ReplyDeleteIf anything I could see the Knicks media machine trying to minimize the seriousness of Lin's injury so people don't freak out since it happened at the same time as STAT. The Knicks FO aren't doing Lin any favors by the way they've tried to explain it. They are scared people won't buy tickets if the say he'll be out for a week or two so they say "he could go tonite"...then when he doesn't, they sell tickets but make Lin look bad. I hate Dolan.
ReplyDelete