Jlin is the only Asian guy in the nba and he has to perform at sometimes ridiculous levels just to belong. He deserves the Jackie Robinson award for dealing with all the crap hes had to deal with. That said he still needs to play better so does 5 foot 8 ty lawson.
not to mention gallo airballed a 3 with a minute left. won't hear a peep about how gallo/lawson are bench material and not worth their contracts, though!
We're all facing racism everyday. Some just don't admit it or in denial of its existence. I've become JLin's fan not only because of his basketball talent but also of his courage and strength dealing with racism everyday. JLin's games have been slow on the offense but I don't get why his fans on this fansite keep bashing him. C'mon man, haters and racists all over the U.S.A do that to JLin everyday already. The least we all JLin's true fans can do is be a little more supportive of the guy who could change how America will look at Asian Americans differently. So yeah, give the guy a break and let him develop his game. He will be great; you all just wait and see.
The reason a lot of fans cannot quit bashing Lin on this website is because racism against anti-American males is so ingrained into this culture by media and by schools.
There is open season on hunting Asian American males in this country. It's actually considered racist NOT to hunt Asian American males!
I do not watch TV or participate in academia, plus I work mostly for myself. I thus don't see Lin with the anti-Asian eyes that all but a tiny handful of Americans do. I see him simply as a strong supertalented NBA STAR who's had the roughest career by far of any player I've ever seen.
Even Asian Americanss are not immune to anti-Lin racist rhetoric. After all, Asian Americans are AMERICANS first and foremost and are thus susceptible to negative media propaganda against Asian American males.
Try to see Ken Burns documentary on "The West", and you will see the US history can be summarized into a story of how Whites took away land from Native Americans and Mexicans. If you really study the American history, you will see Native Americans really suffered so much and got stepped on, and I even understand if some Mexicans feel that some parts of the US belongs to them. Columbus is no hero to Mexicans. The only people who would take in run away black slaves were Indians. Their culture and way of life was not conducive to the Western capitalistic attitude, and they could easily have left the early colony settlers to die during the winter.
for all the discrimination he received getting into basketball, it was all reversed and turned to his favor when he did well. his uniqueness and marketability to the asian audience got him places much further than any other black player of his caliber. we as asians have to be honest about this.
There's nothing at all positive about Asian Americans agreeing with Stephen A Smith's anti-Lin race based haterade.
Asian American sellouts that believe that Lin is somehow being done a favor by having racist taunts thrown at him or being overly criticized for playing his game and making his money are making it worse not just for Lin, but for other Asian Americans as well.
There are plenty of Asian Americans who happily sell out their own people by identifying with racists like SAS, they spare themselves from racism. Those fools think that they're better than other Asian Americans if they show the world that they can hate on their own kind. They couldn't be MORE WRONG.
There is nothing positive about racism. And I don't see Jeremy Lin as being "much further" than any black player of his caliber. He's still WAY BEHIND, thanks to the anti-Asian attitudes that the media holds and that sellout Asian Americans are propagating.
And as far as Asian American history goes, America has an AWFUL history.
Going back to the 1800s, Chinese workers were imported to do essentially slave labor and were mercilessly discriminated against. Let's not even get into the Japanese internment camps and the prohibitions on immigration (especially of Asian women) that still resonate today.
A typical weapon used to hate on Asian Americans is that "Other ethnic groups have had it worse, so shut up and stop complaining when you're discriminated against for being the model minority". Naturally, plenty of sellout Asian Americans identify with that and hate on their own people using "But blacks or Native Americans or Hispanics or EVERYONE ELSE has had it worse".
That Asian Americans are expected to have racism against them dismissed because "other races have had it worse" is TOTALLY SHAMEFUL and DESPICABLE and RACIST.
cmon KHuang, you cant go calling everyone a sellout now. discrimination of any kind is equally bad for anyone, no one is trying to win the "we've got it worse" contest.
the topic could go many directions so i'll just keep on Jeremy.
undoubtedly there were many reasons Linsanity happened.
1) it was a classic cinderella / underdog story 2) it was in NY, one of the biggest stages in the NBA 3) and without a doubt, it was an Asian-American, a rare event that's happened
we have to admit that Jeremy's massive rise to popularity was partially due to his ability to attract an asian demographic. whatever racism that held him back from gaining the respect and trust of others before Linsanity was also the same thing that turned into his favor once he was able to truly shine.
this is no different than say a Danica Kirkpatrick who as a woman faced all sorts of biased for being in a sport dominated by only men. but when she can prove herself, guess what, she's the next huge thing in racing.
i think thats the points Rob and SAS were making in the video VIA posted. the story may be about race, but its not about racism.
btw, i do think SAS makes some borderline racist remarks, but in that particular video he stated the issue pretty fairly if you ask me. what in that video did he say you had an issue with?
Once again pz, you TWIST MY WORDS the way Asian American sellouts typically do.
You accuse me of "calling everyone a sellout". Nowhere did I do that. That's your twisted anti Asian American fantasy, trying to make another Asian American seem like a blanket racist the way the media does.
You're the one trying to LOSE the "we've got it worse" contest. You are the one saying that Asian Americans need to be "more sensitive in talking about ourselves as victims". Thus you pooh pooh the legitimate gripes of Asian Americans who indeed have been victims of racism, including Jeremy Lin and the other members of this board that you have zero respect for because of your blind identification with the haterade spewed by the mass media.
I am Asian American, but I violently disagree with you that all the haterade hurled toward Lin has been "all reversed". That's typical SELF HATING Asian American behavior, pretending like people are now allowed to hate on Lin more than they hate other less honorable and less capable players.
Similarly, Jeremy Lin should definitely not listen to your Asian hating advice that he has to be more "sensitive to other races" when he does his "griping. Even though you have absorbed the racist haterade that dictates that Asian American men who speak out against racism should be ridiculed and labeled as crazy, Jeremy Lin is a true Asian American who is proud of his roots and answers to nobody.
Keep in mind that as you bash Jeremy Lin and other Asians here for standing up for themselves in the face of racism, your skin ain't getting any less yellow.
i do believe anybody of any race, particularly those that can claim discrimination, shouldn't ever gripe about it.
barack obama wouldn't be president if he was always griping about his challenges of being black.
you also don't hear every black nba player talking about whatever discrimination challenges they've had to face in their lives even though they most likely faced some.
last year we had the first asian-american coach to win an NBA title. there was little fanfare over spoelstra's being asian, nor did you hear him talk about the challenges he faced getting to where he was because he was asian.
i am jeremy fan, of the player and personality, but for his benefit i dont think talking about discrimination he's faced and bringing on the race issue to himself is a wise choice. he has enough to worry about his game than to worry issues he's bringing onto himself.
by the way i'm a brown asian. it gets darker and lighter depending on the sun.
The Heat game is already 2 games ago. NBA has a long season with games every couple days. I am happy with JL as long as he keeps fighting and working hard every game and find ways to make the team win.
This is my first post. I been following Jeremy since his breakout game last Feb 4th against Brooklyn. Hes on my fantasy team this year and I been playing him every game. I just wanted to show my support. Lets go Jeremy!
Second shot at Portland. Contain LMA and get some inside scoring. Lets see if our big men can get the job done. Lots of long, defensively sound guys on the Blazers. It will be difficult to get out of his shooting slump against such guys, but hoping for the best!
And great banner! I like it just as much as the old one!
Part of that is Lin's fault. Blaming racism is the default rationale and valid, but it's also true that Lin hasn't been a consistently high level performer over his career.
Good observed that he wasn't impressed with Lin at times only to be surprised by high-level performances from Lin later on. My experience watching Lin has been similar. I learned of him in college and watched him in person when Harvard came to Columbia. While he was the best player on the court and Harvard would win, he didn't look like an NBA-caliber player. Then he would pull out a UConn performance and look like a completely different player. So it's hard for me to blame the bias of scouts for doubting him.
It was like that with the Knicks. Before the Feb 4 Nets game, Lin got chances, but while he showed flashes of NBA talent, he didn't look like a keeper. That's not saying Lin didn't play hard. His effort was there, just as it was there when I watched him in person in college. But for some reason, the quality level of Lin's play fluctuates.
This article reminds me of this: - What's it like to play on the same basketball team as Jeremy Lin? - What's it like to play basketball against Jeremy Lin?
Lin only looks "inconsistent" if he's measured strictly by box score output like points and assists.
In truth, Lin is VERY CONSISTENT in doing whatever it takes for his team to be winning.
This year, the inexperienced Rockets would be the worst defensive team in the NBA were it not for Lin quarterbarcking the defense. On offense, guys like Asik are being hand delivered easy shots so that they can score easily because of Lin.
Lin is Lin. A WINNER. He'll have to attack more, just as Kelvin Sampson said he wants Lin to.
From the quora piece: "The best player on the other team was pretty good (close to D-1 walk-on level), and started trash talking with Jeremy. That's when he got mad and switched to a gear I hadn't seen from him at that point, and started dunking. I think he scored nearly every basket for our team that game - we won, clearly."
I agree with Eric. Lin has been very inconsistent this year, even on defense. He gets picked off his man very easily and ends up chasing his man alot from behind. Vasquez did this several times and made open shots or passed to Lopez who was open because Asik had to help out Lin. While the Rockets will be patient for the time being because they have spent a lot of money on marketing Lin (bobble head day), he needs to play better consistently or his minutes will go down. Douglas has been looking good as of late. I'm driving to Portland to support him tonight. I hope he has a break out game!
His defensive numbers are superb and Houston's team defense has been excellent. Lin is the BEST defensive PG in the entire NBA!
ztrta has correctly pointed out that Lin is getting double teamed on defense. Since nobody can get by Lin 1-on-1, it takes a TEAM EFFORT to score on Lin.
This is the NBA where the best defenders can get scored on by even scrubs. Lin's playing incredible defense and Houston's coaches have finally recognized that.
Jeremy seriously needs to develop (or re-discover if more appropriately) a floater in the lane and a pull up mid range jumper as I am sure his driving layups and crappy 3 point shooting are all over the opponent scouting reports and have become too predictable now.
From game to game, I'm looking more at the evolution of Lin's role and usage, viz Harden, than his stats. Right now, Lin is defending and rebounding well, and is taking care of the ball and passing well when he has the ball. In other words, right now, Lin is a quality role player.
What would Lin's role look like if no Harden trade? It would look like Harden's role, because Lin's role was taken from him and given whole to Harden. And Harden's role looks a lot like Lin's role under D'Antoni last season. Harden's role is the role we looked forward to watching Lin in when Lin joined the Rockets. The Rockets haven't yet figured out Lin's new role after the Harden trade, but it seems to be moving in an Eric Snow (Lin) to Allen Iverson (Harden) direction.
The better the Rockets look as a team and the more they win while Lin is a role player supporting Harden, the more that Lin's role with the Rockets will be defined as a role player. If it ain't broke, then don't fix it, right?
Those Knicks teams were before my time, but the change in Lin's game since the Harden trade reminds me of the stories of how Earl 'The Pearl' Monroe changed his game when he joined the Knicks to fit a subordinate role with Walt 'Clyde' Frazier's team-leader PG role. The Monroe/Frazier G/G combo turned out to be a championship formula for the Knicks. Lin subordinating his game to Harden's rising star may turn out to be a winning G/G formula for the Rockets, too. After all, Snow/Iverson was good enough for the 76ers to reach the Finals. When Monroe is interviewed now, however, you can tell his Knicks experience is bittersweet. Monroe's adjustment was good for the team, but he also lost part of his basketball soul and shrank his legacy.
The Blazers defended Harden well in their 1st meeting. It will be interesting to see whether the Rockets will adjust their gameplan in the 2nd meeting to emphasize Lin in the offense to press the advantage of Lin versus the rookie as opposed to Harden versus the Blazers' veteran wings. Or whether the Rockets, coming off Harden's 30 points in a win, will keep featuring Harden with Lin in a support role.
Thanks for the analysis. So far, the team has envisaged a supporting role for Jeremy.
One observation is that from the beginning Jeremy has always been a supporting role player on the Rockets. KMart was in the Harden role before the trade. I watched every pre-season game and it was obvious even then that Lin was not being featured on offense.
Again, there is a possibility that the team is transitioning and Jeremy's role may increase as the season goes on.
For now, I will support Jeremy in doing the best he can in the role that he has been given.
I disagreed with both of you. A leading role has to be fought for, not to be given. You might argue it's given to certain high draft pick players like Harden or Irving or Lillard. But the truth is that if they don't continue to perform in that leading role, it would be taken away from them too. Lin was given less opportunities and margin of errors than those players due to whatever reasons, but that's life. Bottom line is that Lin still needs to hit his shots and perform in the gaps. If he performs exceptionally well in his current "role player" role, the coaches would have no choice but to try to expand his role. But now he doesn't even do well as a "role player", how would you expect someone to just give him the keys right away especially considering his relative lack of resume? I think he can and will turn it around though. Let's go.
Also, Eric's insistence of mentioning his Knicks in his every post here on a Lin fan site is too damn annoying. Please just let it go.
Lin would never be a Eric Snow because he's a better player. If he's as good as I think he's, he will grab the control of the team sooner rather than later no matter who he plays with or who the coaches are.
Yes, no doubt Jeremy just like any player will have to fight to get a different role. But that doesn't mean that the team does not already have role for Jeremy in mind, and in this sense has given him the supporting role. From the team's perspective, it is one of giving a certain role and not giving another. The team has given Jeremy the supporting role, 'solid PG' role, or whatever they want to call it. The team has also given Kmart/Harden the offensive centerpiece role.
I think you want more emphasis on a people having to fight for what they think they deserve, and I am all for that. Most players cannot expect the leading role handed to them on a platter. Even if they are handed such a role, they must work hard to keep it or in more fighting words, protect it from other players. To change the team's mind to give Jeremy a different role, yes, it is up to Jeremy.
My use of 'given' is to emphasise the fact that you can be given a role that plays to your strengths and a role that doesn't. Jeremy's strength is maximised when he is given a leading role.
The point is that it can always seem 'unfair' that you are 'given' certain roles which don't cater to your strengths.
The interesting thing is how Jeremy responds, how he should respond, or how this should play out. Should he accept this role? Should he play his way in to a leadership role by being 'more aggressive'? Or should he hope for a trade?
Quite frankly I think Jeremy is happy with his current role. Just a few basketball months ago, he was fighting for a role as a rotation player. This is what he envisioned for his own development.
Of course as fans, our expectations have changed. For Jeremy, he likely feels this role is right in line with the stage of his development as a basketball player.
I don't think Jeremy is "satisfied" with his current "solid PG" role playing role if this is what you wanted to mean. He might come off like that in front of the media but taking control of the team is not done through media but in the games. Let's not forget this is a guy who was a leader and a star in every step of his career, he's competitive as hell. Even the team has given Harden the centerpiece role as of right now and Lin the supporting role, but I really believe that Lin will seize every opportunity coming his way to change it up, especially once the losses/injuries inevitably pile up, just like he did in NY last year. This is a guy who could wrest control away from Melo, there is no reason to think he couldn't do the same from a lesser player in Harden!
As for your questions, 1. No, I don't think Lin would accept his current role forever. 2. Yes, I think Lin would play himself into a leadership role, especially when once Harden's proved to be incapable. 3. No, he wouldn't hope for a trade because he's a fighter, not a quitter.
I agree with your answers as well. The question is the time frame for the change and this will depend on expectations.
What I mean regarding expectations is that where expectations are to merely to make the playoffs, Harden may not prove to be sufficiently "incapable" for change to occur anytime soon. The team may not feel the need for a change in Jeremy's role. Perhaps next year the expectation is to make it deeper in the playoffs and there will be more urgency for Jeremy to play a bigger role. But even then, at least from the perspective of the team, it seems like the team will rather rely on acquiring a second all-star player (as if Jeremy isn't capable of filling that role!) to get them there.
Jeremy himself may not feel the need to change his own play in light of his own expectations for the team. This is consistent with NY. I don't believe Jeremy intended to 'wrest control' as an ends in itself, but as a means to get the team to perform at a level that a loaded team like that is expected to perform. In Houston, the expectation for a 'young' and 'inexperienced' team is simply to gel. They team seems to be satisfied to merely make the playoffs. If this is also Jeremy's expectations, then he won't feel so much pressure to wrest control because even without doing so, the team will probably achieve that objective with Jeremy's limited role (on offense that is, since defense an aspect where the player himself defines his own role).
I have posted before that my personal expectations is that Rockets should make somewhere middle of the pack out of the playoff teams. If that is also the expectations of the team or Jeremy, either the team will give Jeremy a greater role (assuming they recognise that he is capable of getting them there and not some acquired all-star) or Jeremy himself will wrest control from the team to get them there himself.
Bottom line is, I don't believe Jeremy (in light of my assumptions about the team and Jeremy's expectations for the team this season and perhaps expectations about himself at this stage of his career) has much urgency to be wrest control in order to be that player which will elevate the Rockets to an even higher level.
You believe Lin is happy with a smaller role than he had earned with the Knicks last season, was actually playing for the Knicks when he was hurt, and would have played for the Knicks this season? If Lin does feel a step back in his career is best, and his current role is in line with the stage of his development as a player, then that means Lin also feels Dolan was right not to bring him back as the PG for the contending Knicks. This is pretty much the sly putdown of Lin in the Adrian Wojnaraski? article - that Lin isn't ready to lead a contender, which he would have done as a Knick and doesn't have to do as a Rocket.
Cara,
Structure matters. There's only so much Lin can do to change his role if his means of proving himself are preemptively given to Harden. It's not like when Lin was a Knick and he controlled the ball.
It makes sense to talk about the Knicks when talking about Lin. The Knicks are the best reference point for Lin because his Knicks history represents the best of Lin so far in his pro career. Not only his best days, Lin's Knicks history is his only NBA point of comparison, unless you want to skip back to his Warriors days.
Lin's role with the Rockets, as a matter of structure, can be judged against his roles last season with the Knicks or Felton's role this season with the Knicks, which is tailor-made for Lin and would have been Lin's role.
Lin as a Knick continues to be the best reference point to judge Lin as a Rocket. We believe Lin can do more as a Rocket only because we saw him do more with the Knicks. Had Lin stayed a Knick in Felton's role, he would be doing more now. Lin earned cachet as the Knicks PG that the Rockets apparently didn't accept as transfer credit.
Lin himself invites the comparison because he has confirmed, repeatedly, that he wanted to return to the Knicks, looked forward to his role on the Knicks, and believed all along he would be a Knick, until he wasn't.
Lin is intentionally deferring to Harden to make him realize that Hero ball will not win a lot of games. As the losses pile up, Harden will be more frustrated and also the coaching staff. They will be forced to change the offense and thus expand his role. Once he received the role he SHOULD get, then we'll see the fearless Lin.
Wilc, I understand your point but what you forgot most is that Lin is A WINNER. He might not have the expectation of this team being a championship contender, but he will do whatever to make this team win as much as possible and won't settle for anything else other than winning. I think right now he, just like everyone else, is waiting to see if Harden is capable of fulfilling that leadership role. Once he (not the team) realizes Harden is incapable (and Harden IS incapable), he will slowly wrest control from Harden. Last year it took 23 games and when the Knicks were 8-15 before Lin took control, believe me, it won't take this long in Houston because the players here are even less capable than the Knicks!!
I believe Jeremy is happy with playing whatever role is needed to help his team to reach whatever expectations are for that team.
Jeremy would have been happy with the role he would have had had he been retained by the Knicks, so no I don't believe Jeremy is glad that Dolan did not sign him.
He would have been happy because he would have also had the room to grow last season. He was not asked to 'lead' the Knicks and would not have been asked to do so even this season.
You see, after the 1st 2 games, Harden either has his head getting bigger or he has somebody whispered to him to start his own Beardsanity instead of building "The Best BackCourt", so he went to the coaching staff and maybe directly to Morey to have the gameplans designed to sustain his Beardsanity.
Cara, very true, I overlooked that although Jeremy says that the team's expectation is to merely make the playoffs, it is likely his competitiveness "to win as much as possible" will drive him to gradually (even if subconsciously) take control!
Jeremy, Harden, and the team have contributory roles in Jeremy deferring to harden.
Jeremy is contributing the deference by not being aggressive enough.
The team is contributing by giving Jeremy his supporting role.
Harden is contributing by playing iso too much. I've got theories as to why he's playing iso so much, but I'm still not convinced that the reasons is because he's preoccupied with stoking his own fame.
Eric, sorry your Knicks are not a better situation than the Rockets for Lin although Lin would be fine either way.
As indicated by the yahoo article, I think Lin has slowly realized that Houston are a better situation for him. Here, as of this moment, he only has an unproven James Harden to beat out for the leadership role. In NY, he would have Carmelo, a player with a better resume than Harden (although Lin has already beat him once), a HOFer in Jason Kidd (the true leader in the current Knicks now) and a couple of pretenders like JR Smith to compete for the lead role. And most importantly here in Houston he has a head coach who is also a true leader who he can relate to!
Wilc, I think you totally missed the point. Yes, Lin is a team player who will do whatever to help the team win. But he's also a big time competitor and winner who won't settle for losing. Yes, he was not "asked" to lead the Knicks or Rockets or any team but he WILL lead once the team needs him to. Neither the Knicks nor Rockets have Tim Duncan, Lebron James or this type of leader that the team can succeed with Lin playing a supporting role!
Mike Woodson >>>>>>>........> McHale + Sampson + Morey Frontcourt Players of the Knicks >>>>>>> Frontcourt players of the Rockets
Lin will probably be the second option to Anthony. Felton looks good right now because of Woodson and Melo. Lin also have chandler who can actually finish layups and dunks. Lin might average 9-10 assists if he is still with the undefeated Knicks.
Janelin7, what Harden or Morey think doesn't really matter, the fact remains his "Breadsanity" only lasted a grand total of 2 games and not sustainable! Harden can ask the game plan to totally be designed for him, but the bottom line is that he still needs to produce to keep the control of the team. If he's able to sustain it, good for him, he's the next Lebron James. Then, let him be the leader and Lin would be happy to play his role player role!
On one hand I wish I could just take things at the face value but on the other, I really couldn't help feel sick to my stomach when Jeremy playmaking skills are not utilised fully. IDK for sure whether Jeremy is happy with his current role though. If he isn't happy leading to him losing his confidence and performing poorly in the coming games, then my imagination may run even wilder...
As a Lin boss, Les Alexander > James Dolan, one is happy to pay Lin 8 millions a year, one is happy to pay 1 million.
As a Lin coach, Kevin McHale > Mike Woodson, one is a true leader who Lin can relate to, one is a just follower and company man.
As a Lin teammate, James Harden > Carmelo Anthony, one has already shown he's willing to accept a supporting role once someone else steps up as a leader as shown in OKC where he conceded to the more capable Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, another one is an unwilling teammate who wouldn't take a back seat when clearly he is not a leader and Lin is.
I am not sure if Houston is the best place for Lin the whole career wise, but it's clearly better than the NY Knicks!
Cara, but whether Jeremy needs to lead is dependent on how much the team wins. If they continue winning at a rate in line with the team expectations, the events of the team not succeeding or jeremy settling for losing which triggers Jeremy to lead on your scenario may not occur. I prefer to see that Jeremy will be the de facto leader on any team not because of scenarios predicated on standards of expectations, but Jeremy's raw drive to win as much as he can.
That is his drive to win as much as he can will trigger him to take over.
So even if rockets make the playoff or whatever other expectations they may have, Jeremy's drive to win every single game will trigger that innate leadership skills. I think to Jeremy every game is a winnable game and that will be why he will be dissatisfied with poor team play that leads to losses. Then, he will take control from any player which is preventing the team from succeeding or being in a position to win any given game.
Janelin7, lol, you said it yourself, it's just your imagination! I am sure you are also a girl who would cry watching a movie when it's totally not for real!
Believe me, Lin would not be happy with his current role once the losses pile up and then he would change up the situation. Also his won't let anything affect his confidence. This is a guy who beat all the odds to make the nba with great perservance. He wouldn't make this far if he lost confidence that easily. Have more faith in a guy and remember why you like this guy. If he's a quitter who loses confidence in every obstacle, we all wouldn't be on this site!!
Wilc, whether we like it or not, as an Asian, Lin will never be handed the keys to a basketball team ever. But as his history has shown us (in Harvard and in NY), whenever the opportunity arises, he will seize that opportunity and never look back. And no need to worry about that expectation stuff and not having the opportunity, because the Rockets will not go 82-0 and because he's not playing with Tim Duncan or Lebron James, the opportunity will surely arise. What he now needs to do and he is doing now is to sharpen his other skills (D, shooting) and get ready when that opportunity to take over arises. It might be sooner rather than later!
If neph and Eric are naive enough to believe that Lin earning $1 million on a one year contract playing for the Knicks is "better" than $25 million guaranteed for the Rockets, then they indeed think Lin is a TOTAL SCRUB.
JLin is all about the team. [He plays bball The Right Way.] Like someone said, he could have been more selfish at Harvard, pad his stats, etc. Instead, he did what was needed from him at the moment, to help the team to W.
On both Harvard and the Nyk, a vacuum opened: - Housman's injury-plagued jr year - Melo/ Amare out
and on both occasions, he organically stepped in, to lead.
The vicissitudes of life. You never know how things will develop. Opportunity could be just around the corner, and when it opens up, JLin will be up to the task [as always.]
[Oh, and not implying anything dark here, with all the talk of injuries and such...]
Harden is being appointed for a leadership role right now, but so what. If he's that good and is a real leader and can sustain and keep his role, good for him. But guess what, the Houston Rockets once thought they traded for a leader in Tracy McGrady or the NY Knicks still think they have got a leader in Carmelo Anthony. Duh!
to all lof, please gather together and vote for lin everyday for the allstars game, because firstly the nba is a business, if he gets voted in as a starter, the rockets owner will feel that he could make more money out of jeremy lin, so hopfully, he will command his coaches to let jeremy lin play to his strength, which is having the ball in his hands to make plays, with lots of screen and rolls provided, instead of passing the ball after crossing half court to harden and go the corner of the 3 point lin and forcing lin to take 3s which is not his strength, because i prefer that the owner put jeremy lin in a position to create exciting linsanity basketball 2.0 instead of boring iso-harden 1.0. secondly i feel that jeremy lin importance to asian americans in basketball, is equally important to Chuck Cooper the first african american who played in nba, who pathed way for future african americans. so that future asian americans children can at least hope and dream that they can one make it the nba too.
I'll vote for JLin if he start to play like an allstar. Untill then, I'll just wait on that vote. Believe me, JLin himself would want that too. If you ask him whether he plays up to allstar level recently, he would say "No". I don't want JLin to play in the allstar game and be ridicule by the whole league and JLin haters out there.
I'm a Jeremy Lin supporter from Holland. Wish him all the best for tonights game. I like the rhythm of his movements and his mentality as a sportsmen. I would say he left his mark already in this world. According to his own words God let him do things above his own imagination and capabilities. I hope to see more of Jeremy excactly because of this confession.
I also watched that game being a SPURS fan. The Spurs were about to win that game with a 12-point lead in the 4th quarter. But the Knicks came back and beat my SPURS in SAN Antonio. Unbelievable.
Felton was surprisingly impressive. Melo was very unselfish; Probably ten times more unselfish than harden.
That was a good game for both teams. Great passing teams. Very unselfish basketball. Very Limited isolations unlike the recent James Harden Rockets' games.
Hello this is my first time posting. here are my thoughts on Felton: he SHOULD BE AND IS EXPECTED TO BE BETTER than Jeremy Lin because he has lots of seasons playing in the NBA.He played for about 4 teams and is currently being mentored by Jason Kidd. The Knicks should give thanks to LeBron, because if he hadn’t won his ring Melo won’t learn and accept the concept of team ball.now, he tends to pass the ball around, so he can get that ring.really, when LeBron won that ring, everyone is like, so when will yours be, Melo?Felton better get his ring/s NOW because when CP3 enters free agency,I am sure as the sun rising in the East that Dolan will go after him, and if he says yes, who will be getting the boot? Felton is the number 1 candidate and Priogni the second.heck, Dolan wouldn’t be chasing Jason Kidd out of NY, wouldn’t he? btw, the Knicks offense is structurally like D'Antoni's offense.
Dude, no doubt that the Knicks are balling this year, but there's no way Felton is better than JLin. Yeah he had a good game, and I give the Knicks credit for playing tough D down the stretch. They made the Spurs look lost during that stretch. But over all a good game deserves a good praise. That's it.
Felton is better for the Knicks, but not better than Jeremy.
if there's one simple reason they're all getting it done is because as JR Smith said, there are no locker room issues because everyone is happy what everyone else is getting paid. Had NY matched Jeremy's contract, JR is right, there would have been serious jealousy issues that kill chemistry.
there was one moment last year you could hear the jealousy. a bit after Linsanity, the Knicks had a special PR event for premium ticket holders where they did a Q & A. When asked about Linsanity, Tyson said " i couldn't believe my career has come to this " and it was clear he meant that he couldn't believe after winning a title he'd be diminished by some kid coming from the D League. IMO Jeremy wasn't resigned because of locker room jealousy.
it's also funny how easily everyone forgets Felton's pathetic perfomance in NY before he got traded to Denver.
Felton isn't better, but he is PLAYING better than Lin right now. Watching the Spurs game it was obvious: The guy attacks relentlessly. He passes well, handles well, and shoots well. Hey, sounds like someone we knew who had nothing to lose back in February.
If you walk, talk, think, and act like a winner, you are a winner. That's Felton right now. He might not be as good, but he sure knows his place in the universe, and knowing, really, is half the battle.
Jeremy is no where near that state. He gets withdrawn whenever he screws up and takes a few games to snap out of it. Look at the Heat game last year when he got shut down...Fast forward few days ago, the Hornets game was terrible, just because of a very embarrassing air ball vs Heat.
It would be interesting tonight, IF he somehow produces, it means he's gained from since last year, and that's a good thing.
Which brings up another point...Lin is not a natural leader. He may inspire, and lead by talent alone, but he's not a leader by character. He defers to someone first chance he gets.
Read his interviews, he goes on and on about "finding his role" instead of any clear insight about what the team needs. That's just it, a natural leader have a tendency to DEFINE his role, not wait for someone to do it for him. I'm sure the coach told him what to do, and he's just following instructions, this is what got him in trouble in the first place with Melo, because he was D'Antoni's floor general and wasn't passing to Melo.
Whereas Harden has been around, took him no time to become alpha.
Rockets need a vet really bad, they need to get another big that's been around the block to lead for now. Jeremy as a player still have a lot of maturing to do, I'd be pleasantly surprised if he manages to make a lot of progress in that department this year.
Great teams make mistake. How can Spurs blow up a 12 points lead? When Lin leaves the Knicks, I am rooting against them. Felton did shut the months of the doubters. I wish Lin could do well, no matter what roles he is having now in Houston.
Tim Duncan this year is finally starting to show his age.
His footspeed has deteriorated significantly compared to last year. Duncan can no longer get to spots fast enough to run his offense and cover for his teammates defensively.
As Duncan goes, so do the Spurs. This year, the Spurs are nowhere near as good as last year. I LOVE Duncan more than I do even Jeremy Lin, but even I can see the signs of physical slippage. Duncan is still GREAT, though.
The Spurs are simply not that talented outside of Duncan. He's been a true one man team, carrying all of those guys that would likely struggle or be out of the NBA were they playing with other teams.
The last few games of the Rockets have been unbearable. They are beating Bad teams such as Detroit and New Orleans. They beat Atlanta by a small margin with Harden shooting 70% or more while scoring 45 points. Basically, this offense will not be enough to beat the next three road games. The next teams will have a better frontcourt. Unless they are changing their PREDICTABLE offense, say hello to 3 more losses.
There have been knee concerns on Lin. However, I don't buy it. Defensively, Lin is moving very quickly and staying in front of his man. In rebounds, he's able to jump high for those boards.
Is his explosiveness 100%? No, but he is still capable of moving quickly.
It is either: 1. He lost his confidence 2. He is allowing Harden to play his style. Once the losses pile up, the lead role will be TAKEN by Lin. When that happens, Lin will suddenly EXPLODE and produce the way he usually does.
I think Morey wants Jeremy to play defense and Harden run the offense. This strategy won't beat good teams. The bigger Harden's head grows, the more iso balls will be played, and, Harden will demand for the ball too even if the game plans not dictated that way.
Jeremy lost his confidence as he might still in shock as things unfold...
Like I said, if Harden plays SELFISHLY in the next three ROAD games then expect three losses. Portland, Lakers, Utah are quite a challenge.
When the Rockets keep on losing, either the coaches will change the offense or someone is gonna get FIRED.
Jeremy is letting Harden play HERO ball. Soon enough, Harden will realize that he is incapable of playing hero ball without the team suffering. Then, we'll see a more aggressive Lin.
If Jeremy Lin starts doing his midrange thing and stops living at the 3 pt line, then the Rockets will happily shift the offense to him.
There is no player in NBA history that can sustain a long term career shooting strictly from 3 point range. Even Lin''s ex gunner Novak was a total NBA scrub before Lin fed him assists.
Basketball is a fluid sport where the ball goes where it needs to. If Jeremy Lin can start taking higher percentage shots, the ball will go to him.
We're talking the GREATEST young point guard of the modern generation!
Lin's got the defense and even passing COMPLETELY SOLVED. He's at an All NBA 1st team level in terms of making scrubs around him better and in terms of stopping people. Nobody in the NBA does those things better (Ok, maybe Duncan on offense for SAS).
Lin's sole weakness is that errant jump shot. I want him to get that fixed. I do not see Lin becoming the next Ason Kidd - Lin's proven himself as a scorer too much for that.
Once Jeremy Lin figures out how to attack off the ball in the NBA, it's OVER for opponents. With even just an average jump shot, Lin would easily be THE BEST point guard in the entire NBA!!!
it's very unlikely that jeremy will start shooting mid range jumpers and forgo the 3, at least any time soon.
he has said it himself - they (jlin, coaches) believe that a "good" shot is either a 3, layup, or free throw. and knowing how stubborn he is, he will NOT take what he considers to be a bad shot. if he has an open mid range jumper, he will either look for another teammate that has a better shot, such as a 3, or a layup. this is why we haven't seen him shoot the 15ft jumper or floater in the lane. if you're gonna take it to the lane, get a layout of draw a foul, instead of settling for a floater.
i personally don't agree with this at all but that's their mindset.
Fighton, I firmly believe it's Morey's advanced stats influence, especially considering Lin never talked about this "3/layup/free throw" approach before he got into Houston and considering almost all Houston guards (past or present) like Lowry, Dragic, Martin, Harden also used this same approach and have non-existent mid range game. Lin should never let such a non-basketball person influence him so much, unfortunately he's such a coachable person that probably take his manager/coach's words to heart.
I still believe Lin's own smart and his other basketball people like his dad will help him figure it out though.
True, Jason Friedman was extolling the 3/layup/FT on twitter, attributing his belief that "mid-range shots are FAR less efficient for majority of league unless your name is Dirk" to Morey's magic numbers.
That's the bad side of a non-basketball person who knows nothing about basketball but its stats taking over your basketball game plan. Morey's messing up Lin's game damn. I hate Morey so much and hope Les Alexander come to the sense and fire him soon!
The Nuggets are also a team who is managed by a young GM who is into this advanced stats stuff. Their team as a whole also live by this "3/layup/FT" midset.
In my opinion, this "3/layup/FT" approach works great for 12-16 point scorers like Harden when he's scoring his 16 ppg off the bench in OKC. And this approach is also imo one of the reasons the Nuggets got a bunch of 12-16 scorers but none better than that as this approach makes a player's game too inconsistent. To be a more consistent prolific scorer like 20 ppg, a mid range game is absolutely neccesary. And the "unless your name is Dirk" comment is just plain wrong and hilarious. Kobe, Wade, Westbrook, Durant, Carmelo, Parker or in the past Jordan, Bird and many more all have a great mid range jumper. To totally abandon and ignore it is ignorance at best.
I don't expect the Rockets to change their offense for this game. I'll be counting the turnovers of Harden in this game. He didn't have a lot against the Hornets. I'll be expecting Batum and Matthews to provide more challenge for Harden.
Not expecting Lin to produce a lot in a ISO-HEAVY system.
Re-watching the Hornets game on League Pass. I confirmed that the announcers dumping on Lin were Clyde Drexler and Bill something, it's the comcast rockets home team. On away games Matt Bullard is the analyst not Drexler.
Besides, Lin did NOT have a good game against the Hornets. Being that passive is unacceptable and uncharacteristic of the Jeremy Lin that historically has attacked teams from all over the court.
When Lin plays badly, he deserves to be called out. When Lin plays well, he deserves to be called out.
Absolutely Lin is HELLBENT on constant improvement, and absolutely Lin takes full ownership.
That's why Lin's so impeccable in defense and passing. He's the best defensive point guard I've ever seen in my decades of watching the NBA, and he along with Bob Cousy are the two best point guards I've ever seen at making scrubby players better.
Lin's also completely solved the turnover "problem". I didn't see it as a "problem", but his coaches have and thus Lin's fixed that.
Lin only has to repair his shooting. My Lin watch is on because I KNOW he's going to start hitting shots even with that unnatural jump shot form that he learned from Doc Scheppler. Once Lin starts hitting his jumpers, he'll have reached his full potential as a player.
look yall, Clyde Drexler can say whatever he wants, he's F'in Clyde Drexler. he was an amazing player who's earned his stripes to critique anyone in the league.
every player who's ever had a big contract is under the microscope and open game for criticism if they don't live up to it. big contracts for young/unproven players can be a curse and Jeremy now has extra pressure to prove himself, but you can't hate on people who bring it up. there have been other players with big contracts who underperformed and have gotten reemed by sports analysts and rightfully so.
Clyde Drexler has both complimented AND criticized Lin. And even if it was, Clyde Drexler is a Hall of Famer who's earned the right to criticize 99.99999% of NBA players!
Even we here on this board have NO IMPACT on Lin's game. Talk, including our own, means NOTHING.
Realistically, Rockets could very well go winless on this road trip. I just hope they stay competitive and no blow outs. Marking my calendar for next Friday when Knicks come to Houston. It would be poetic justice if the Knicks come into Houston undefeated 10-0 (which is looking likely if they can beat Memphis today) and suffer there 1st loss to the Rockets! :)
almost everybody from Knicks threw Jeremy under the bus, from Dolan to Carmelo to Tyson to Felton to JR. now who's next? Novak? some Knicks fans are practically saying Jeremy didn't do anything for the Knicks last season.
No need to care about it. The good thing about nba is that it's a 82 game season and a nba career is 10-15 year long. We will know who gets the last laugh later, not after 6 games.
They forgot the "small sample size" knock already?
I watched the Knicks vs Spurs last night and I must say the Knicks looked good. Rockets need to step it up to beat them next Friday, especially Jeremy. I would rather that Jeremy would charge the lane and get bloody noses than him standing in the corner jacking up 3's. He had zero free throw attempts in the last game which shows he is no longer attacking the paint. Last year he got to the line regularly. He needs to snap out of being so passive otherwise he will begin losing the confidence of his teammates and coaches. He's making the Knicks look like genius' right now. Wake up Jeremy!
The Knicks BETTER look good, considering they're paying big time luxury tax.
The Rockets, on the other hand, are overachieving at 4-4 so far. Every loss they had was actually a winnable game, and that's despite having one of the youngest rosters in the league.
Jeremy Lin's Rockets are doing JUST FINE. We'd like to see more scoring out of Lin, but otherwise there's nothing to dislike about his game.
Lin's success isn't the Knicks' downfall, and the Knicks doing well isn't validation that dumping Lin was the right thing to do. I'm just happy both teams are doing well.
Lin "wrested control away from Melo"? I am sorry, but when did that happen? Linsanity happened when Melo was injured. Also, Melo and D'Antoni were feuding BEFORE Linsanity because Melo didn't want to accept the (diminished) role that D'Antoni wants his small forwards to play. Despite the soap opera tabloid drama, Melo getting D'Antoni fired had nothing to do with Lin and would have happened anyway. As a matter of fact, had it not been for Linsanity, D'Antoni's firing would have come a lot sooner and been much less controversial.
And incidentally, I don't get all the cracks against Woodson. In case you forget, Lin was putting up much better numbers under Woodson than he has in Houston AND had a much bigger role in the offense. Woodson also insisted for months that he wanted Lin as his starting PG, right up until the Knicks front office told him to be quiet because they weren't going to match Houston's offer. And Woodson frequently put the ball in Lin's hands and had him lead the team and run the offense, especially in the 4th quarter, something that he rarely had his PGs do when he was in Atlanta. Had Lin stayed in New York, he would be the one averaging 16 ppg for a 6-0 team instead of Felton, and Lin would be the one getting most of the credit for their success.
I am sorry, Cara, but I watched Woodson lead a Hawks team whose starters would be backups on Woodson's current Knicks team to 50+ wins, and also consistently take them to the playoffs. I am embracing Lin being with the Rockets - because I don't exactly have a choice if I am going to keep rooting for Lin am I? - but Woodson is a very good coach who highly respected Lin's ability, and Lin would have thrived under Woodson.
I keep going back to that Philadelphia game as proof. The Knicks needed that win badly to make the playoffs, and Lin was struggling with his shot. Woodson could have played it safe and let Melo continue to jack up and miss shots. Had they done that and lost, no one would have blamed him for staying with his All Pro scorer. Instead, he went to Lin and put it all on him to win the game for the Knicks in the 4th quarter, and did so even though Lin was struggling with his jumpshot. And by doing so he took a huge risk. Had that not worked and the Knicks lost, everyone would have demanded to know why Woodson chose to risk the Knicks' playoff chances on Lin and not Melo. And no, it wasn't because Woodson had no choice. Iman Shumpert is a talented combo guard who can do a lot of things with the ball in his hands. The Knicks also had Mike Bibby, Baron Davis and Toney Douglas. Woodson gave Lin that role in the offense because he wanted to, and because he knew that Lin could play.
I am sorry, but that is night and day, 180 degrees different from how Lin is being used in Houston right now. Right now, we are HOPING that the Rockets go back to using Lin the way that Woodson did, because while that is not Linsanity under D'Antoni, it is better than what is going on right now. Taking all these shots at Woodson because he got the job when D'Antoni got fired (good grief, someone had to take over the team ... if Woodson hadn't gotten the job someone else would have) is really just rejecting what actually happened in New York last year.
totally agree on Unknown. Woodson is the man. But why not Knick just try to offer a bit lower offer to Lin? Maybe Lin would accepts it base on the big market that Knick have.
You are the one lying because you have a personal vendetta against Woodson. And your vendetta is totally irrational, merely because Woodson got the job when D'Antoni was fired. You know perfectly well that Woodson is not the Knicks owner or GM, and he also doesn't have as much clout with the organization over personnel matters as a Phil Jackson or another big name coach would. Whether to retain Lin or not wasn't Woodson's call, and it was obvious based on his behavior before and after the decision that he didn't agree with letting Lin walk. The things that you are saying that are flat out not true are indefensible.
The causes are varied, and Anthony is not solely to blame. But multiple people with ties to the team cite a growing divide between Anthony and his teammates that is threatening to derail the season." ---
"Although Anthony and D’Antoni never found common ground, the coach had the strong backing of Amar’e Stoudemire, Tyson Chandler, Jeremy Lin, Jared Jeffries, Landry Fields and Steve Novak, the core of the team."
Sure. Ignore the part about how D’Antoni at that time was desperately trying to trade Melo for Deron Williams in order to save his own job.
Sorry guys. Linsanity happened when Melo (and Stoudemire) were injured. When Melo came back, things fell apart and D'Antoni got fired, which would have happened even earlier had D'Antoni kept starting Toney Douglas.
Incidentally, the New York media despises Melo. They wanted the Knicks to dump Melo for players, picks or whatever and go forward with D'Antoni and Lin. Didn't happen. D'Antoni got fired, was replaced with Woodson and the rest is history. No reason to try to go back and rewrite it because you don't like the outcome.
No matter what people say, the truth is that Jeremy Lin had it set up so that both he and Melo could succeed together. They DID, after a brief power struggle in which Woodson handed the ball back to Lin.
Melo vs. Lin is ANCIENT HISTORY. Both players are doing well with their respective teams (Lin at 4-4 is VERY respectable, no matter how lame his scoring is). Respect both guys and MOVE ON.
By the way unknown, I totally disagree with your notion that the starters on Woodson's Hawks team would be backups on the Knicks.
PG: Young All Star Mike Bibby vs. Raymond Felton. Bibby, by far.
SG: Max Contract Joe Johnson vs. Ronnie Brewer. Johnson, by far.
SF: Marvin Williams vs. Carmelo Anthony. This is the only matchup where the Knicks are clearly better. Anthony over Williams by a lot.
PF: Josh Smith vs. Amare Stoudemire. The hobbled Stoudemire has not been more effective than a pogo stick healthy young Josh Smith. Smith over Stoudemire for me.
C: Al Horford vs. Tyson Chandler. Horford can score in a way Chandler cannot, plus Horford defends well too. Advantage, Horford.
My count is 4-1 Woodson Hawks starters over Woodson Knicks starters.
@Unknown, What is your infatuation with Woodson? What has he proven?..nothing. You talk like he's the second coming of Phil Jackson, Rudy T, or even Jerry Sloan. He can't be considered even close to Dantoni who's at least made it to the conference finals.. It seems like you are quite new to the NBA.
I'm not understanding this infatuation with Woodson and the Knicks. Woodson played Jlin out of necessity- he was their only real playmaker and ball-handler at the time. Had Jlin stayed, he would have played behind Felton and Kidd. The Knicks would have used him as trade bait, and how would that have benefited him?
Woodson is mediocre coach and the Knicks are fools gold. They are peaking now, but Woodson's Knicks will lose in the 2nd round this year, and all the screaming about Melo will begin again. This team is built to win now, and they will win a lot of regular season games, and that's it. They'll be competitive with Miami, but no way they can beat them.
Woodson is a good defensive coach, but his offensive schemes ar e mediocre. What adjustments did he make in the first round playoff series against the Heat last year?...feed the ball to Melo and watch him struggle? Great coaching job.
More nonsense. 1. The Knicks traded for Felton only after they didn't match Lin's offer sheet. And they only initiated trade talks for Felton after Houston and Lin withdrew their original offer sheet and submitted the second. The Knicks had to take a major luxury tax hit to pay Felton $10 million a year. There is no way they would have paid Lin, Felton and Kidd.
2. " Woodson played Jlin out of necessity- he was their only real playmaker and ball-handler at the time."
Untrue. See what I wrote above. Toney Douglas - who beloved D'Antoni started for much of the season before Linsanity - was still on the team. So was Baron Davis. And Iman Shumpert, who D'Antoni also tried to play at PG for a time while Lin was on the bench, was on the team also. It is hilarious to see you claim that Woodson played Lin out of necessity when in fact that was true of D'Antoni. D'Antoni went to Lin as a last resort in order to keep from getting fired, and did so when Melo and Stoudemire were injured. Woodson kept playing Lin when Melo and Stoudemire was healthy. And in case you didn't notice, when Lin got injured, the Knicks kept winning without him. Remember? What you are saying is exactly the opposite of what actually happened.
3. "What adjustments did he make in the first round playoff series against the Heat last year?...feed the ball to Melo and watch him struggle? Great coaching job."
OK, and what would YOU have done? Jeremy Lin, Iman Shumpert, Baron Davis and Amare Stoudemire WERE ALL INJURED. So what would you have done? Let Tyson Chandler carry the offense? Or Jared Jeffries? (Actually Jeffries was hurt too.) Or maybe see how far Steve Novak can carry them? Or let J.R. Smith take over? (Actually, J.R. Smith took plenty of shots during that series. He just missed them all.)
Why are you guys so bent on reinventing history just because Woodson was the guy who got the job when D'Antoni got fired?
No one is reinventing history.But I think you drank too much of the Melo juice. Plus your statements are false or not 100% true. So I suggest you troll on outta here.
1. "The Knicks traded for Felton only after they didn't match Lin's offer sheet. And they only initiated trade talks for Felton after Houston and Lin withdrew their original offer sheet and submitted the second."
- JLin's first visit with the Rockets was July 4:
Chris BroussardVerified @Chris_Broussard Jeremy Lin will visit the Houston Rockets tomorrow, sources say. 11:44 AM - 3 Jul 12
- That very same day, Nyk promised Felton the starting position:
Zxxxxxx Hxxxx @zxxxx I'm at Dolans fourth of July party. Felton was there, he said he's on the Knicks. Take it FWIW #Knicks 8:02 PM - 4 Jul 12
Zxxxxxx Hxxxx @zxxxx Center Island, NY, Dolan's 4th of July party. Felton is here. He's a Knick 8:04 PM - 4 Jul 12
2. "Woodson played Jlin out of necessity- he was their only real playmaker and ball-handler at the time." Untrue. See what I wrote above. Toney Douglas - who beloved D'Antoni started for much of the season before Linsanity - was still on the team. So was Baron Davis. And Iman Shumpert, who D'Antoni also tried to play at PG for a time while Lin was on the bench, was on the team also."
- TD, who was playing atrociously. BDiddy, who was always 50/50 with his injury. Iman Shumpert, why? When he can simply use JLin?
"It is hilarious to see you claim that Woodson played Lin out of necessity when in fact that was true of D'Antoni. D'Antoni went to Lin as a last resort in order to keep from getting fired..."
- True, D'Antoni did play JLin out of necessity. This does not preclude Woody doing the same thing. The only difference, D'Antoni gave JLin affirmation, Woody withheld it.
"Woodson kept playing Lin when Melo and Stoudemire was healthy." - So did D'Antoni, no?
The fact is, Woody was never hot on JLin [and Landry too, for that matter.] Until Dolan orderd him to scare away the bidders in FA with "one million dollars," Woody would never commit on record to assuring JLin the starting position. C'mon, you know this...
woody never like Lin , he admitted that Lin was not that good . At the time when player jealous at Lin . He did not protect Lin at all . He try to cut down Lin 's role on the court as much as he can and gave credit that to Melo instead.
You mention the heat series with the knicks and how Woodson didnt adjust. Question is how was he supposed to adjust. His starting PG, SG, and backup PG all were not playing by game 2. HIs starting PF was lost for a game. The refs were giving the heat tons of ticky tack calls on one end and no calls on the other end (how many games have you seen where one team shoots 33 FTs in a QUARTER).
Knicks are not fools gold if you watch any of the games this season since they are winning the games with defense and offensive discipline. They run in essence a ball control offense where they do not turn the ball over and usually get up a good shot which keeps opponents from running on them and forces them to play against the knicks half court defense.
Lin would be doing very well in woodson offense and his defense would be useful as well. Its a shame he isnt a knick, but things happen for a reason. Lin was offered more money than the knicks were willing to pay for an unknown commodity and no one can blame them for that. Lin got paid and now has a chance to grow with a team without the pressure of playing in NY. WIN WIN.
@Unknown, You are a funny person. You should try to follow the NBA more closely rather than spout of about stuff you don't know or understand. I need some humor for the day though..here's to edumucating you:
(1) The Knicks hadn't confirmed what to do with Jlin even after the Felton trade. It took a few days after the trade before they declined to match Houston. (2) Toney Douglas was HORRIBLE last year as the PG. That's the whole reason why they played Jlin...totally out of desperation. (3) Cmon man...you have to make some adjustments rather than dump the ball to Melo on the low block. That's too predictable.
(4) Also if you think Iman or BD (who could barely walk at that point were the answer), I have some large bridge in Brooklyn I can send you. I'll give you my bank account #.
My addiction was to watch the daily Korean or Taiwanese mini series in TV which runs into hundreds of episodes. The story lines always have the underdogs, the baddies, the jealousies, hatreds,the slanders, plots, failures,sadness, persistence, determination,and finally the good always triumph. And now my addiction is the story of JLin's NBA journey and my daily routine is to surf the nets for news, comments, and watch his games highlights. It beats all reality shows and mini series!
New banner on the website, maybe well see a new Lin. instead of taking those 3pt shots i want to see him take a drible step or two inside and shoot a midrange that I know he can knock down easily.
The Rockets coaches should tell Jeremy Lin to attack the basket and just see what happens. See if he can get to the basket, and if not to start aiming for mid-range and pull-up jumpers. What the Rockets are doing is not sustainable. Harden is not going to average 26 points per game for the entire season. If he averages 18-19 the Rockets should be thrilled. Also, Harden cannot average 40+ minutes a game. Even if he physically could, you do not want him to. Also, his scoring percentage is very low ... 44.1%. Against good defenses, it is even lower. Also, no one else on the team is averaging 12.5 ppg. Marcus Morris and Patrick Patterson are the only ones averaging over 45% shooting. It is bad offensive design, a bad offensive gameplan.
Yes, the Rockets are 4-4, but with victories over the Pistons, Hawks and Hornets that are 1-8, 3-4 and 3-3. (Two wins over the 1-8 Pistons.) It is the responsibility of the coaches to come up with a better gameplan than this, which is to give Lin more opportunities and to allow him to create more opportunities for others. Harden is scoring low percentage and also isn't passing the ball. He is averaging 4.5 assists per game but that is misleading. 1/3 of his assists came in the first game of the year. Take that away, and he has only 24 assists in 7 games, not nearly enough. And even a lot of those are in garbage time.
The Rockets can't just let one guy dominate everything on offense. Even if Harden were good enough to, it isn't necessary. Lin is also a very good offensive player, and with the ball in Lin's hands, Lin can create for everybody, including Harden, where Harden only seems to want to create for himself. And yes, it is the coaches' duty to help get Lin involved. It is not all on Harden to pass the ball, though he should. They are responsible for making sure all the players reach their potential.
Yes, there was a time to explore, feel things out and learn about the team. But now it is 8 games in. The coaches know what guys can and can't do by now. It is time for Harden ball to stop and to get back to real basketball.
For instance, Harden is the shooting guard, not Lin. It is Harden who is supposed to be the one standing out on the wing waiting for the ball to be kicked out to him by either a big man who gets double-teamed or a PG on penetration, not Lin. Not just that, but the SG is supposed to move without the basketball to find an open space off the ball so he can catch and shoot like Reggie Miller and Jeff Hornacek used to do. But they have Lin doing that stuff when that is not his game and that is not what a PG is supposed to do. It makes no sense.
If I was coaching Lin right now, I'm not sure exactly what I'd do.
Here's a player who's lost confidence in his broken jump shot, yet he's so good in everything else that he HAS to play.
Does a coach ram the ball into him anyway, letting him fire brick after brick which damages his confidence even further? Or does a coach run him off the ball which still doesn't help because then he's still required to shoot that girly jump shot of his?
This is why I'm not entirely against Lin being played off the ball for now. If I'm Lin's coach, I'd give him a chance to find his game on his own terms. Then once he found his jumpshot, I'd start giving him the ball more and more until he's back to being "Jeremy Lin"!
KHuang, I really don't think Lin's jump shot is that "broken" as you made it out to be. Even last year, he's always shooting better off the dribble than catch and shoot spot up shooting. Then, this year, he needs to shoot all of his jumpers off this spot up shooting due to the system and none off his dribble, hence the general impression he's getting so much worse. He's shooting worse than last year, but not that much worse.
And also the bigger reason his scoring is down so much is that he gets much less free throws. I read from somewhere that the refs called less fouls in the lane this year compared to previous years except the superstar calls, for example the Nuggets are a driving team whose game plan depends on getting to the line but for some reasons suddenly they could not get the same calls this year and as a result shot much less free throws this year than last despite having almost the same personnel. I suspect this influenced Lin too somewhat.
I'm totally uncomfortable watching Lin's funky looking jumper. Even though I am all for guys NOT being picture shooters, I would like to see better body mechanics from Lin.
When Lin defaults to the NBA style shot that his dad taught him, he's a GREAT shooter in the NBA.
I should also point out that there's actually no such thing as a "great jump shooter" in the NBA. Even the great shotmakers like Ray Allen or Michael Jordan or Larry Bird will have 0-6 three point shooting nights with 9-25 two point shooting. Defenses are too good in the NBA to let any shooter fire at the rim with impunity.
I don't think that the Rockets have the frontcourt players or the depth to make a deep playoff run, but they can make the playoffs if they use Lin properly. And yes, using Lin properly means that everyone else - including Harden - gets used properly too. But letting this current style of play continue means no one, including Harden, maximizes their talents. Harden would actually score about as much if Lin handled the ball. He wouldn't turn the ball over nearly as much, and his shooting percentage would be higher. It is better to average 20 ppg on 50% shooting with 2 turnovers a game than average 20 ppg on 40% shooting with 5 turnovers a game, and it really looks like the latter is where Harden is headed, especially when they start playing better teams and defenses.
The new team, new players, new system, new season thing was good for the first 8-10 games. But now we are 10% into the season. The coaches need to put in a real offense now, and that means with Lin running the offense as the PG. And it also means not wasting Lin's offensive game. Lin can average 18-19 ppg. So right now the Rockets are just throwing away 7-8 ppg on Lin alone, and that doesn't including how Lin will help find shots for everybody else. So you can really say that the Rockets are costing themselves 15-16 ppg by playing this way, if not more. It is bad coaching and needs to change. Even if Lin's shot isn't falling, he can still get to the free throw line. That is putting points on the board, and getting the other team in foul trouble. So much potential that is being wasted for no good reason.
Even if Lin were given the ball on every play, his inability to hit jump shots would result in a Rondo like collapsing of defenses on other players. Unlike Rondo who has two Hall of Fame shotmakers and an entire team of shotmaking veterans, Lin has only one guy that can sort of make shots and that's Harden (great game by Harden against the Hornets, btw!)
I think that the Rockets are playing to their full capacity right now despite Lin being pretty much nonexistent on offense. When a players loses confidence in his jump shot, no offensive scheme can make that player hit shots.
I have a different take on Lin's role than most people. LET HIM find his shot as the secondary option. Over time, Lin can pick his spots and make shots. As Lin demonstrates more and more shotmaking proficiency, he'll get more and more responsibility.
It's only a matter of time before Lin rediscovers his jump shot and becomes the Lin that everybody knows he can be. When that happens, he'll be a COMPLETE player capable of playing on or off the ball. That'll make him a deadly weapon, likely an All-NBA caliber player!
My take is that Lin does not yet have AT THIS POINT an offensive game to average 19 points per game, so it might take an offseason and many games to develop one, in addition to having the mental fortitude to do so. Even if Lin gets more touches, I do not see him efficiently reaching 19 points per game level. Even if he hits 2 out of 5 3 pointers per game (40%), this leaves 13 points which he needs to get through other means. It will be a long process and not a sure one.
The bottom line: Lin might need the entire season and off-season to improve his offensive game and shooting percentage to develop into 18+ points, 8-10 assists per game type of PG. Hopefully, there will be gradual improvement in all aspects, but I do hope Lin will get play-off experience with Rockets even if they lose in first round.
C Paul's career average is 18.8 points and 9.8 assists per game. Maybe 16 points and 7 assists -- Tony Parker -- type then. One good thing is Lin is playing this season better than his career average.
Question for yall, if Kevin McHale goes on permanent leave , prayers for his daughter btw, who do yall think should be the next coach? Sampson or bring in someone else? Who would be the best coach for Jeremy?
I didn't know he went on a permanent leave; that's too bad. I wonder what disease his daughter is suffering from? Too bad D'Antoni got hired by Lakers. I was surprised how low salary D'antoni was willing to get paid to get Lakers job. Phil would have gotten 3 or 4 times more.
he's not on permanent leave, but who knows if its this long already. there were already a lot of rumors this would be McHales last year coaching anyway so maybe he might leave earlier now.
ya and seriously 4 million / year??? and everyone knows Dantonis contract is really 1 year anyway, win or get fired. Phil would have demanded at least $14 million / year.
@eb5attorney, If only the Knicks would make it past the 2nd round. They have a small chance to advance to the finals, but they will NOT beat the Heat. Melo, Woodson, and that cesspool of nepotism will be exposed..mark my words. Enjoy your short lived success Knicks fans. Next year will be the blow up.
Of course I don't want this AS coach because he didn't treat Lin very well. I hope they can bring Sloan as he likes P&R which was Jeremy's best. Really hope this will happen soon.
Sloan would be awesome, but he's really old now and unless its a for sure title contending team i doubt he'd come back. he wasn't even seriously in the run for the Lakers job which probably meant he's not available.
ESPN is touting the Knicks as the best team in the Eastern Conference and are even kinda touting the upcoming Memphis-NYK game as a possible preview of the NBA finals. OMG!
The Knicks remain the ONLY undefeated team in the NBA, with Ray Felton leading them in a stirring comeback win over the Spurs in San Antonio yesterday.
It's only a matter of time before ESPN launches RaymondFeltonSanity! ROFLOL.
But I'll say this: From what I've seen of their games, their isolation heavy offense is eventually going to be exploited.
Teams are constantly shifting their defenses in the NBA. The Knicks, particularly with Mike Woodson as coach, have not yet demonstrated the ability to adapt to those shifting defenses. Until they demonstrate that, I will hesitate on calling them contenders.
To go far in the playoffs, one has to be able to adapt to any kind of defense. That's why I am so encouraged by Jeremy Lin efforts to adapt to his current situation. If Lin can adapt to playing his current role, he'll become a COMPLETE player who can succeed no matter what's thrown at him.
When healthy they have the talent to adapt. This will be even more so when Shumpert and Stoudemire come back. When that happens, they can be pretty effective with Kidd, Shumpert, Novak, Stoudemire and Wallace/Camby on the floor (with Melo on the bench) for spurts. They can also do different lineups. They have a number of guys that can play different position. I am not claiming that they will win the NBA title or anything, but I would be surprised if they don't at least go to the Eastern Conference finals.
Looking forward to tonight's game! Another opportunity for JLin to excel. I am thoroughly enjoying his progression with the Rockets. Yes, there are some ups and downs, but if you look at the past 12 months and take all that into consideration, we fans have so much to be happy about. Lin is a starter, is paid big bucks, and has the opportunity to play improve his game.
I remember a year ago just waiting for Lin to get into the game and play some garbage time minutes. :) So let's put everything into perspective and keep supporting. He and the Rockets are going to figure out how to win by playing team ball.
Once Harden and JLin plays like we know they can, they will be a good, good team. Tough to defend two guys who can both attack, create, and shoot! Double up on one frees the other, triple up on the two frees up the rest of the Rockets for dunks or uncontested jump shots. So enjoy the process folks. We are witnessing history in the making!
Exactly. Great post! Thanksgiving is coming up and we need to be thankful for all that Jeremy has accomplished. He has motivated me to become a better person and live life to the fullest. Positive energy and an optimistic attitude FTW!
People really need to adjustment their expectation of Lin performance for this year. First, 2011-2012 Knick is still a better team than the current Houston team. (even many may disagree with me.) Second, Harden is currently playing Lin role during Linsantiy and Lin is playing Shump role. Third, since Harden become PG of Houston, there will be more ISO play because Harden don't have the same court vision as Lin. Houston do passes the ball but they don't really set picks. For some reason I think Houston is in love with the 3balls. Unless Houston start to really disturb the balls and P&R, we won't witness the same type of play from Lin.
Most importantly, I believe it is more important that the Houston win more game as a team instead of having Lin filing up the stats sheet and still looses games. If you are a true Lin fan, you will know Lin excel in Team environment. This is the true reason we love Lin. This is also why the Knick is winning. Knick is currently Kidds and Felton's team. Not Melo. Sometime the attitude how you play the game is more important than individal skills. I am sure most can agree with me if Lin play more aggressive just like last year, he probably will have better stats. But than, it will be about Lin and not about the team. I don't believe Lin want to be the same as the old Melo........
I agree with you that Lin will not play like he did in Knicks as right now he just passed the ball to Harden then waiting in the 3 points line for ball to come. I don't quite get it since when he became Novak?! He has less ball than he did under Woodson so how can he have good number? Look at Felton, 20 balls for last night. Rockets' system no need any PG as everyone it's their own PG, no play making, all they do just shooting the ball.
when Harden handle the ball there are only three option, either Harden drive to the basket, Harden shoot the ball, or Harden pass to inside the post for layup. Since Lin is not Houston center, there is really no other opportunity for Lin to score unless he is while open. That is why I said Lin is playing Shump role. He is defending more than he is attacking. This may be good for Lin's long term development, but most fans just don't have the patient to wait years before Lin become a all round player. They want to see Lin do what he has been doing during Linsanity. It is call instant gratification. Fans are just human......
Yes, it's good for Lin to improve his D. But for most of the fans they only look at his number... since he didn't have good number so in Houston they all think Asik is doing a lot better than Lin. I don't get it. How come they can't just let Lin play like what they did in their 2nd games. Both Harden & Lin were doing well. But now Lin got less balls with no power to conduct the offense.
By the way, if Lin and Harden wants to be good together, they need to watch how Kidds and Felton plays last night in the Knick's game. The ball should not stop at one PG hands.
Not gonna happen with the way the Rockets offense is being set up.
PG Usage Rate:
Raymond Felton - 25.8 Tony Parker - 26.8 Jrue Holiday 26.7 TONEY DOUGLAS - 19.7
Jeremy Lin - 18.6....tied with Rodrigue Beaubois and barely above John Lucas III.
Fact is he's not really being used on offense. Toney Douglas is being used more than Jeremy. Mario Chalmers has low usage but that makes sense because Lebron, Bosh and Wade are on his team. Rockets have Harden and who else. Asik? Parsons? Patterson? Lin should have a usage AT LEAST over 20 on that team.
Harden leads the league in usage for shooting guards, surpassing even Kobe, when he's not nearly as good.
Rockets are going all-in on Harden and marginalizing Lin.
Lin has no confidence in his own scoring, so he passes the ball. Coaches can't plow offenses through him if he keeps getting rid of the ball, so they plan their offense without Lin. Lin shrinks even more.
I keep saying that it's up to Lin, not the coaches. ATTACK. Lin didn't get here by being passive!
I do not think it's entirely up to Lin. Instead, I am more inclined to believe its all coach's instruction. In the post-game interview, the coach Kelvin has already come out with the excuse that Lin's left-hand is still not good enough, so they will not let him play more until he can improve his left hand. This is totally nonsense - I have not seen anyone complain his left hand this season, even those most anti-Lin columnist.
I get what you are saying to a degree, BUT I believe that Lin can score more, if only at the free throw line, if the ball were put in his hands. Even if the doesn't score more, the Rockets would still benefit because Lin would be running the show and getting people involved instead of Harden seeking his own shot. You have other people on that team that have proven ability as catch and shoot types. Why not let them do that? And let Lin slash and penetrate. The strategy is bad, and it is frustrating.
Who'd have thought that Unknown would believe more in Lin's scoring capability than KHuang does??!!!
Good points, Unknown. Get Lin to initiate plays and hopefully his jump shooting will improve, is what you and others here are saying. I WANT to believe you.
What I'm hoping for is that Lin gets a "Screw this, I'm just gonna PLAY" attitude. Then instead of trying to playing Twister with his feet and doing that funky T rex no arm Mini Me zero followthrough that he learned all too well this summer, he just lets the ball FLY the way Lin has all his life until this year.
I predicted this summer that Lin might start the season in an extended shooting slump. I want Lin to bust out of his convoluted jump shooting form and just FIRE.
Since Daryl Morey is into basketball analytics, I did another analysis on why Harden and Lin connection didn't work after winning 2-0. Perhaps it will help to convince him to "nudge" the coaching team to return the PG and primary playmaker role to Jeremy.
Many of us have been saying that it's a travesty to stuck Jeremy as a spot-up 3PT shooter in the corner and simply give the ball to Harden to create in the offense.
ok, and I managed to find time to draw a sketch of the Dynamic Duo - Lin and Harden :) Not my best work but it will have to do for now. Hope you enjoy it. Please tweet it to @dmorey if you think it will help Jeremy!
How do we know it's true? In this short analysis, I will show that these general observations from many fans watching the game are validated by the statistics of lower 3PT%, worse +/- and Lin's lower usage rate (USG%) 3PT% in Game 3-8 which also pointed to the lack of ball movement expressed by Houston coaches. Houston coaches would need to right the ship by insisting Jeremy Lin to be the primary playmaker and let Harden be the best scorer.
... 1. Worsening trend of +/- Stats 2. Plummeting 3PT% for both Harden and Lin 3. The Usage Rate % (USG%) validated that he deferred too soon by giving the ball on offense to let Harden be the primary playmaker in Game 3-8.
Unfortunately in the last interview, Kelvin has already said that Lin's left hand is not good enough for them to let him play more PnR. This is obviously just an excuse in response to all the fans angers... I doubt they will change this style unless the top fire the incompetent coach or trade Lin away.
for Kelvin's PnR argument, that's definitely not a justification to let Harden be the PG because Jeremy proved in the first 2 games he made the whole team and Harden better being the PG even without the PnR. I don't know why they walked away from that. And Lin proved he had good chemistry with Asik to do high PnR in the preseason.
Folks, Lin is not slashing and attacking as much for a reason. If you had a knee sugery, been unable to run hard for 3-4 months until recently, you'd be tentative as well. Slow, steady progression is the key, and JLin is slowly getting back to form. It is absolutely true that it is up to JLin to score and fill up the stat sheets. And yes, KHuang, you have said that numerous times, and I totally agree. :)
Folks, there are plenty of opportunities for JLin to shine on this Rocket's team. For example, he can learn to be a better spot up shooter, move better without the ball, and develop a better mid-range shot or floater, etc.
As for putting your hands up and blaming the world when things don't go one's way, that should never be in one's dictionary. There are winners in life and there are losers. Winners find opportunities even during the toughest moments of life and turn every setback into step stones for future success. Unfortunately, it is true, most losers just complain.
Change a coach, change a team, change a system, etc. then things will be better they say; my question is, when will folks realize that the most important change is always within ourselves? When a person grasps that concept, it is the most powerful eye-opening experience one can have. You'll realize, like JLin has, nothing can keep you from achieving your dreams!
11 million man Ty Lawson (who I like and rate highly) scored 0 point against the Heat in 35 minutes of playing time.
ReplyDeleteProof that bad games can happen to everyone! Let's hang in here, guys and girls!!
BTW, the new logo is nice and let's hope it brings good luck to Jeremy!
Jlin is the only Asian guy in the nba and he has to perform at sometimes ridiculous levels just to belong. He deserves the Jackie Robinson award for dealing with all the crap hes had to deal with. That said he still needs to play better so does 5 foot 8 ty lawson.
Deletenot to mention gallo airballed a 3 with a minute left. won't hear a peep about how gallo/lawson are bench material and not worth their contracts, though!
DeleteWe're all facing racism everyday. Some just don't admit it or in denial of its existence. I've become JLin's fan not only because of his basketball talent but also of his courage and strength dealing with racism everyday. JLin's games have been slow on the offense but I don't get why his fans on this fansite keep bashing him. C'mon man, haters and racists all over the U.S.A do that to JLin everyday already. The least we all JLin's true fans can do is be a little more supportive of the guy who could change how America will look at Asian Americans differently. So yeah, give the guy a break and let him develop his game. He will be great; you all just wait and see.
DeleteThe reason a lot of fans cannot quit bashing Lin on this website is because racism against anti-American males is so ingrained into this culture by media and by schools.
DeleteThere is open season on hunting Asian American males in this country. It's actually considered racist NOT to hunt Asian American males!
I do not watch TV or participate in academia, plus I work mostly for myself. I thus don't see Lin with the anti-Asian eyes that all but a tiny handful of Americans do. I see him simply as a strong supertalented NBA STAR who's had the roughest career by far of any player I've ever seen.
Even Asian Americanss are not immune to anti-Lin racist rhetoric. After all, Asian Americans are AMERICANS first and foremost and are thus susceptible to negative media propaganda against Asian American males.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteTry to see Ken Burns documentary on "The West", and you will see the US history can be summarized into a story of how Whites took away land from Native Americans and Mexicans. If you really study the American history, you will see Native Americans really suffered so much and got stepped on, and I even understand if some Mexicans feel that some parts of the US belongs to them. Columbus is no hero to Mexicans. The only people who would take in run away black slaves were Indians. Their culture and way of life was not conducive to the Western capitalistic attitude, and they could easily have left the early colony settlers to die during the winter.
Delete"pz", Psy is not all that fat, somewhat like Felton, I would say. You can't get that fat when you have to dance so much. :)
Delete@eb5attorney LOL , ok ok chubby asian fella
Deletei'll check out that documentary, love ken burns and sounds really interesting thx
"Even Asian Americanss are not immune to anti-Lin racist rhetoric."
Deletefor once i agree with Stephen A Smith.
Deletefor all the discrimination he received getting into basketball, it was all reversed and turned to his favor when he did well. his uniqueness and marketability to the asian audience got him places much further than any other black player of his caliber. we as asians have to be honest about this.
There's nothing at all positive about Asian Americans agreeing with Stephen A Smith's anti-Lin race based haterade.
DeleteAsian American sellouts that believe that Lin is somehow being done a favor by having racist taunts thrown at him or being overly criticized for playing his game and making his money are making it worse not just for Lin, but for other Asian Americans as well.
There are plenty of Asian Americans who happily sell out their own people by identifying with racists like SAS, they spare themselves from racism. Those fools think that they're better than other Asian Americans if they show the world that they can hate on their own kind. They couldn't be MORE WRONG.
There is nothing positive about racism. And I don't see Jeremy Lin as being "much further" than any black player of his caliber. He's still WAY BEHIND, thanks to the anti-Asian attitudes that the media holds and that sellout Asian Americans are propagating.
And as far as Asian American history goes, America has an AWFUL history.
DeleteGoing back to the 1800s, Chinese workers were imported to do essentially slave labor and were mercilessly discriminated against. Let's not even get into the Japanese internment camps and the prohibitions on immigration (especially of Asian women) that still resonate today.
A typical weapon used to hate on Asian Americans is that "Other ethnic groups have had it worse, so shut up and stop complaining when you're discriminated against for being the model minority". Naturally, plenty of sellout Asian Americans identify with that and hate on their own people using "But blacks or Native Americans or Hispanics or EVERYONE ELSE has had it worse".
That Asian Americans are expected to have racism against them dismissed because "other races have had it worse" is TOTALLY SHAMEFUL and DESPICABLE and RACIST.
cmon KHuang, you cant go calling everyone a sellout now. discrimination of any kind is equally bad for anyone, no one is trying to win the "we've got it worse" contest.
Deletethe topic could go many directions so i'll just keep on Jeremy.
undoubtedly there were many reasons Linsanity happened.
1) it was a classic cinderella / underdog story
2) it was in NY, one of the biggest stages in the NBA
3) and without a doubt, it was an Asian-American, a rare event that's happened
we have to admit that Jeremy's massive rise to popularity was partially due to his ability to attract an asian demographic. whatever racism that held him back from gaining the respect and trust of others before Linsanity was also the same thing that turned into his favor once he was able to truly shine.
this is no different than say a Danica Kirkpatrick who as a woman faced all sorts of biased for being in a sport dominated by only men. but when she can prove herself, guess what, she's the next huge thing in racing.
i think thats the points Rob and SAS were making in the video VIA posted. the story may be about race, but its not about racism.
btw, i do think SAS makes some borderline racist remarks, but in that particular video he stated the issue pretty fairly if you ask me. what in that video did he say you had an issue with?
Once again pz, you TWIST MY WORDS the way Asian American sellouts typically do.
DeleteYou accuse me of "calling everyone a sellout". Nowhere did I do that. That's your twisted anti Asian American fantasy, trying to make another Asian American seem like a blanket racist the way the media does.
You're the one trying to LOSE the "we've got it worse" contest. You are the one saying that Asian Americans need to be "more sensitive in talking about ourselves as victims". Thus you pooh pooh the legitimate gripes of Asian Americans who indeed have been victims of racism, including Jeremy Lin and the other members of this board that you have zero respect for because of your blind identification with the haterade spewed by the mass media.
I am Asian American, but I violently disagree with you that all the haterade hurled toward Lin has been "all reversed". That's typical SELF HATING Asian American behavior, pretending like people are now allowed to hate on Lin more than they hate other less honorable and less capable players.
Similarly, Jeremy Lin should definitely not listen to your Asian hating advice that he has to be more "sensitive to other races" when he does his "griping. Even though you have absorbed the racist haterade that dictates that Asian American men who speak out against racism should be ridiculed and labeled as crazy, Jeremy Lin is a true Asian American who is proud of his roots and answers to nobody.
Keep in mind that as you bash Jeremy Lin and other Asians here for standing up for themselves in the face of racism, your skin ain't getting any less yellow.
KHuang chill out.
Deletei do believe anybody of any race, particularly those that can claim discrimination, shouldn't ever gripe about it.
barack obama wouldn't be president if he was always griping about his challenges of being black.
you also don't hear every black nba player talking about whatever discrimination challenges they've had to face in their lives even though they most likely faced some.
last year we had the first asian-american coach to win an NBA title. there was little fanfare over spoelstra's being asian, nor did you hear him talk about the challenges he faced getting to where he was because he was asian.
i am jeremy fan, of the player and personality, but for his benefit i dont think talking about discrimination he's faced and bringing on the race issue to himself is a wise choice. he has enough to worry about his game than to worry issues he's bringing onto himself.
by the way i'm a brown asian. it gets darker and lighter depending on the sun.
i'll save you the trouble too, [insert calling me an asian sellout]
DeleteThe Heat game is already 2 games ago. NBA has a long season with games every couple days. I am happy with JL as long as he keeps fighting and working hard every game and find ways to make the team win.
ReplyDeleteGodspeed Jeremy!
Yes, his team has stayed competitive in every game it has played in!
DeleteHey everyone,
ReplyDeleteThis is my first post. I been following Jeremy since his breakout game last Feb 4th against Brooklyn. Hes on my fantasy team this year and I been playing him every game. I just wanted to show my support. Lets go Jeremy!
Joey
Hey there, nice to see a fellow JLin supporters. Welcome!
DeleteYeah, but even with the low FG%, he only attempts around 10 shots per game. :)
DeleteThanks wilc! I'm playing him tonight. I think he'll do great. I'm a believer. Pretty excited for the game!
Deletenice logo!
ReplyDeletelet's keep on supporting JLin!
+1!
DeleteSecond shot at Portland. Contain LMA and get some inside scoring. Lets see if our big men can get the job done. Lots of long, defensively sound guys on the Blazers. It will be difficult to get out of his shooting slump against such guys, but hoping for the best!
ReplyDeleteAnd great banner! I like it just as much as the old one!
Here's to team chemistry! [new handshake?]
DeleteNice banner, JLinfan#1 & Co. :)
Very possibly; we need a video of that! The NBLP doesn't show much of the pre-game court side activity.
DeleteWhat would happen is jlin came out like gangbusters and taking all kinds of shots like monta ellis? He would bust out of this slump right quick!
ReplyDeleteMy only beef with that is that then Lin would shoot poorly and lose games the way Monta Ellis does!
DeleteNice Logo! Wish Jeremy Lin all the best
ReplyDeleteRevenge is a dish best served cold.
ReplyDeleteGo out there with clear mind and play YOUR GAME fearlessly!
Just do it, Jeremy!
Read this touching and insightful article:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/2012/11/jeremy-lin-livin-his-dream/
Let's not make the same mistake of doubting Jeremy and not giving him the proper respect again and again!!
Part of that is Lin's fault. Blaming racism is the default rationale and valid, but it's also true that Lin hasn't been a consistently high level performer over his career.
DeleteGood observed that he wasn't impressed with Lin at times only to be surprised by high-level performances from Lin later on. My experience watching Lin has been similar. I learned of him in college and watched him in person when Harvard came to Columbia. While he was the best player on the court and Harvard would win, he didn't look like an NBA-caliber player. Then he would pull out a UConn performance and look like a completely different player. So it's hard for me to blame the bias of scouts for doubting him.
It was like that with the Knicks. Before the Feb 4 Nets game, Lin got chances, but while he showed flashes of NBA talent, he didn't look like a keeper. That's not saying Lin didn't play hard. His effort was there, just as it was there when I watched him in person in college. But for some reason, the quality level of Lin's play fluctuates.
This article reminds me of this:
Delete- What's it like to play on the same basketball team as Jeremy Lin?
- What's it like to play basketball against Jeremy Lin?
Lin only looks "inconsistent" if he's measured strictly by box score output like points and assists.
DeleteIn truth, Lin is VERY CONSISTENT in doing whatever it takes for his team to be winning.
This year, the inexperienced Rockets would be the worst defensive team in the NBA were it not for Lin quarterbarcking the defense. On offense, guys like Asik are being hand delivered easy shots so that they can score easily because of Lin.
Lin is Lin. A WINNER. He'll have to attack more, just as Kelvin Sampson said he wants Lin to.
From the quora piece:
Delete"The best player on the other team was pretty good (close to D-1 walk-on level), and started trash talking with Jeremy. That's when he got mad and switched to a gear I hadn't seen from him at that point, and started dunking. I think he scored nearly every basket for our team that game - we won, clearly."
Hint: Get him mad. :)
I agree with Eric. Lin has been very inconsistent this year, even on defense. He gets picked off his man very easily and ends up chasing his man alot from behind. Vasquez did this several times and made open shots or passed to Lopez who was open because Asik had to help out Lin. While the Rockets will be patient for the time being because they have spent a lot of money on marketing Lin (bobble head day), he needs to play better consistently or his minutes will go down. Douglas has been looking good as of late. I'm driving to Portland to support him tonight. I hope he has a break out game!
DeleteLin has NOT been inconsistent on defense.
DeleteHis defensive numbers are superb and Houston's team defense has been excellent. Lin is the BEST defensive PG in the entire NBA!
ztrta has correctly pointed out that Lin is getting double teamed on defense. Since nobody can get by Lin 1-on-1, it takes a TEAM EFFORT to score on Lin.
This is the NBA where the best defenders can get scored on by even scrubs. Lin's playing incredible defense and Houston's coaches have finally recognized that.
I posted this yesterday in anothre thread. I agree, it is quite a nice story.
ReplyDeleteJeremy seriously needs to develop (or re-discover if more appropriately) a floater in the lane and a pull up mid range jumper as I am sure his driving layups and crappy 3 point shooting are all over the opponent scouting reports and have become too predictable now.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, he also needs to attack more & be more agressive. I hope he gets his formback.
DeleteFrom game to game, I'm looking more at the evolution of Lin's role and usage, viz Harden, than his stats. Right now, Lin is defending and rebounding well, and is taking care of the ball and passing well when he has the ball. In other words, right now, Lin is a quality role player.
ReplyDeleteWhat would Lin's role look like if no Harden trade? It would look like Harden's role, because Lin's role was taken from him and given whole to Harden. And Harden's role looks a lot like Lin's role under D'Antoni last season. Harden's role is the role we looked forward to watching Lin in when Lin joined the Rockets. The Rockets haven't yet figured out Lin's new role after the Harden trade, but it seems to be moving in an Eric Snow (Lin) to Allen Iverson (Harden) direction.
The better the Rockets look as a team and the more they win while Lin is a role player supporting Harden, the more that Lin's role with the Rockets will be defined as a role player. If it ain't broke, then don't fix it, right?
Those Knicks teams were before my time, but the change in Lin's game since the Harden trade reminds me of the stories of how Earl 'The Pearl' Monroe changed his game when he joined the Knicks to fit a subordinate role with Walt 'Clyde' Frazier's team-leader PG role. The Monroe/Frazier G/G combo turned out to be a championship formula for the Knicks. Lin subordinating his game to Harden's rising star may turn out to be a winning G/G formula for the Rockets, too. After all, Snow/Iverson was good enough for the 76ers to reach the Finals. When Monroe is interviewed now, however, you can tell his Knicks experience is bittersweet. Monroe's adjustment was good for the team, but he also lost part of his basketball soul and shrank his legacy.
The Blazers defended Harden well in their 1st meeting. It will be interesting to see whether the Rockets will adjust their gameplan in the 2nd meeting to emphasize Lin in the offense to press the advantage of Lin versus the rookie as opposed to Harden versus the Blazers' veteran wings. Or whether the Rockets, coming off Harden's 30 points in a win, will keep featuring Harden with Lin in a support role.
Thanks for the analysis. So far, the team has envisaged a supporting role for Jeremy.
DeleteOne observation is that from the beginning Jeremy has always been a supporting role player on the Rockets. KMart was in the Harden role before the trade. I watched every pre-season game and it was obvious even then that Lin was not being featured on offense.
Again, there is a possibility that the team is transitioning and Jeremy's role may increase as the season goes on.
For now, I will support Jeremy in doing the best he can in the role that he has been given.
I disagreed with both of you. A leading role has to be fought for, not to be given. You might argue it's given to certain high draft pick players like Harden or Irving or Lillard. But the truth is that if they don't continue to perform in that leading role, it would be taken away from them too. Lin was given less opportunities and margin of errors than those players due to whatever reasons, but that's life. Bottom line is that Lin still needs to hit his shots and perform in the gaps. If he performs exceptionally well in his current "role player" role, the coaches would have no choice but to try to expand his role. But now he doesn't even do well as a "role player", how would you expect someone to just give him the keys right away especially considering his relative lack of resume? I think he can and will turn it around though. Let's go.
DeleteAlso, Eric's insistence of mentioning his Knicks in his every post here on a Lin fan site is too damn annoying. Please just let it go.
DeleteLin would never be a Eric Snow because he's a better player. If he's as good as I think he's, he will grab the control of the team sooner rather than later no matter who he plays with or who the coaches are.
Yes, no doubt Jeremy just like any player will have to fight to get a different role. But that doesn't mean that the team does not already have role for Jeremy in mind, and in this sense has given him the supporting role. From the team's perspective, it is one of giving a certain role and not giving another. The team has given Jeremy the supporting role, 'solid PG' role, or whatever they want to call it. The team has also given Kmart/Harden the offensive centerpiece role.
DeleteI think you want more emphasis on a people having to fight for what they think they deserve, and I am all for that. Most players cannot expect the leading role handed to them on a platter. Even if they are handed such a role, they must work hard to keep it or in more fighting words, protect it from other players. To change the team's mind to give Jeremy a different role, yes, it is up to Jeremy.
My use of 'given' is to emphasise the fact that you can be given a role that plays to your strengths and a role that doesn't. Jeremy's strength is maximised when he is given a leading role.
DeleteThe point is that it can always seem 'unfair' that you are 'given' certain roles which don't cater to your strengths.
The interesting thing is how Jeremy responds, how he should respond, or how this should play out. Should he accept this role? Should he play his way in to a leadership role by being 'more aggressive'? Or should he hope for a trade?
Quite frankly I think Jeremy is happy with his current role. Just a few basketball months ago, he was fighting for a role as a rotation player. This is what he envisioned for his own development.
Of course as fans, our expectations have changed. For Jeremy, he likely feels this role is right in line with the stage of his development as a basketball player.
I don't think Jeremy is "satisfied" with his current "solid PG" role playing role if this is what you wanted to mean. He might come off like that in front of the media but taking control of the team is not done through media but in the games. Let's not forget this is a guy who was a leader and a star in every step of his career, he's competitive as hell. Even the team has given Harden the centerpiece role as of right now and Lin the supporting role, but I really believe that Lin will seize every opportunity coming his way to change it up, especially once the losses/injuries inevitably pile up, just like he did in NY last year. This is a guy who could wrest control away from Melo, there is no reason to think he couldn't do the same from a lesser player in Harden!
DeleteAs for your questions,
1. No, I don't think Lin would accept his current role forever.
2. Yes, I think Lin would play himself into a leadership role, especially when once Harden's proved to be incapable.
3. No, he wouldn't hope for a trade because he's a fighter, not a quitter.
I agree with your answers as well. The question is the time frame for the change and this will depend on expectations.
DeleteWhat I mean regarding expectations is that where expectations are to merely to make the playoffs, Harden may not prove to be sufficiently "incapable" for change to occur anytime soon. The team may not feel the need for a change in Jeremy's role. Perhaps next year the expectation is to make it deeper in the playoffs and there will be more urgency for Jeremy to play a bigger role. But even then, at least from the perspective of the team, it seems like the team will rather rely on acquiring a second all-star player (as if Jeremy isn't capable of filling that role!) to get them there.
Jeremy himself may not feel the need to change his own play in light of his own expectations for the team. This is consistent with NY. I don't believe Jeremy intended to 'wrest control' as an ends in itself, but as a means to get the team to perform at a level that a loaded team like that is expected to perform. In Houston, the expectation for a 'young' and 'inexperienced' team is simply to gel. They team seems to be satisfied to merely make the playoffs. If this is also Jeremy's expectations, then he won't feel so much pressure to wrest control because even without doing so, the team will probably achieve that objective with Jeremy's limited role (on offense that is, since defense an aspect where the player himself defines his own role).
I have posted before that my personal expectations is that Rockets should make somewhere middle of the pack out of the playoff teams. If that is also the expectations of the team or Jeremy, either the team will give Jeremy a greater role (assuming they recognise that he is capable of getting them there and not some acquired all-star) or Jeremy himself will wrest control from the team to get them there himself.
Bottom line is, I don't believe Jeremy (in light of my assumptions about the team and Jeremy's expectations for the team this season and perhaps expectations about himself at this stage of his career) has much urgency to be wrest control in order to be that player which will elevate the Rockets to an even higher level.
Jeremy needs to be in control. The Rockets aren't going far in this offense.
DeleteThey barely beat a WEAK team in New Orleans.
If they don't change their offense, they are not making the playoffs.
If they want to make the playoffs, make Lin the PG and Harden the SG.
wilc,
DeleteYou believe Lin is happy with a smaller role than he had earned with the Knicks last season, was actually playing for the Knicks when he was hurt, and would have played for the Knicks this season? If Lin does feel a step back in his career is best, and his current role is in line with the stage of his development as a player, then that means Lin also feels Dolan was right not to bring him back as the PG for the contending Knicks. This is pretty much the sly putdown of Lin in the Adrian Wojnaraski? article - that Lin isn't ready to lead a contender, which he would have done as a Knick and doesn't have to do as a Rocket.
Cara,
Structure matters. There's only so much Lin can do to change his role if his means of proving himself are preemptively given to Harden. It's not like when Lin was a Knick and he controlled the ball.
It makes sense to talk about the Knicks when talking about Lin. The Knicks are the best reference point for Lin because his Knicks history represents the best of Lin so far in his pro career. Not only his best days, Lin's Knicks history is his only NBA point of comparison, unless you want to skip back to his Warriors days.
Lin's role with the Rockets, as a matter of structure, can be judged against his roles last season with the Knicks or Felton's role this season with the Knicks, which is tailor-made for Lin and would have been Lin's role.
Lin as a Knick continues to be the best reference point to judge Lin as a Rocket. We believe Lin can do more as a Rocket only because we saw him do more with the Knicks. Had Lin stayed a Knick in Felton's role, he would be doing more now. Lin earned cachet as the Knicks PG that the Rockets apparently didn't accept as transfer credit.
Lin himself invites the comparison because he has confirmed, repeatedly, that he wanted to return to the Knicks, looked forward to his role on the Knicks, and believed all along he would be a Knick, until he wasn't.
Lin is intentionally deferring to Harden to make him realize that Hero ball will not win a lot of games. As the losses pile up, Harden will be more frustrated and also the coaching staff. They will be forced to change the offense and thus expand his role. Once he received the role he SHOULD get, then we'll see the fearless Lin.
DeleteWilc, I understand your point but what you forgot most is that Lin is A WINNER. He might not have the expectation of this team being a championship contender, but he will do whatever to make this team win as much as possible and won't settle for anything else other than winning. I think right now he, just like everyone else, is waiting to see if Harden is capable of fulfilling that leadership role. Once he (not the team) realizes Harden is incapable (and Harden IS incapable), he will slowly wrest control from Harden. Last year it took 23 games and when the Knicks were 8-15 before Lin took control, believe me, it won't take this long in Houston because the players here are even less capable than the Knicks!!
DeleteEric,
DeleteI believe Jeremy is happy with playing whatever role is needed to help his team to reach whatever expectations are for that team.
Jeremy would have been happy with the role he would have had had he been retained by the Knicks, so no I don't believe Jeremy is glad that Dolan did not sign him.
He would have been happy because he would have also had the room to grow last season. He was not asked to 'lead' the Knicks and would not have been asked to do so even this season.
Don't think Lin intentionally defer to Harden.
DeleteYou see, after the 1st 2 games, Harden either has his head getting bigger or he has somebody whispered to him to start his own Beardsanity instead of building "The Best BackCourt", so he went to the coaching staff and maybe directly to Morey to have the gameplans designed to sustain his Beardsanity.
Cara, very true, I overlooked that although Jeremy says that the team's expectation is to merely make the playoffs, it is likely his competitiveness "to win as much as possible" will drive him to gradually (even if subconsciously) take control!
Deletejanelin17
DeleteJeremy, Harden, and the team have contributory roles in Jeremy deferring to harden.
Jeremy is contributing the deference by not being aggressive enough.
The team is contributing by giving Jeremy his supporting role.
Harden is contributing by playing iso too much. I've got theories as to why he's playing iso so much, but I'm still not convinced that the reasons is because he's preoccupied with stoking his own fame.
Eric, sorry your Knicks are not a better situation than the Rockets for Lin although Lin would be fine either way.
DeleteAs indicated by the yahoo article, I think Lin has slowly realized that Houston are a better situation for him. Here, as of this moment, he only has an unproven James Harden to beat out for the leadership role. In NY, he would have Carmelo, a player with a better resume than Harden (although Lin has already beat him once), a HOFer in Jason Kidd (the true leader in the current Knicks now) and a couple of pretenders like JR Smith to compete for the lead role. And most importantly here in Houston he has a head coach who is also a true leader who he can relate to!
Wilc, I think you totally missed the point. Yes, Lin is a team player who will do whatever to help the team win. But he's also a big time competitor and winner who won't settle for losing. Yes, he was not "asked" to lead the Knicks or Rockets or any team but he WILL lead once the team needs him to. Neither the Knicks nor Rockets have Tim Duncan, Lebron James or this type of leader that the team can succeed with Lin playing a supporting role!
I agree with Eric
DeleteMike Woodson >>>>>>>........> McHale + Sampson + Morey
Frontcourt Players of the Knicks >>>>>>> Frontcourt players of the Rockets
Lin will probably be the second option to Anthony. Felton looks good right now because of Woodson and Melo. Lin also have chandler who can actually finish layups and dunks. Lin might average 9-10 assists if he is still with the undefeated Knicks.
Janelin7, what Harden or Morey think doesn't really matter, the fact remains his "Breadsanity" only lasted a grand total of 2 games and not sustainable! Harden can ask the game plan to totally be designed for him, but the bottom line is that he still needs to produce to keep the control of the team. If he's able to sustain it, good for him, he's the next Lebron James. Then, let him be the leader and Lin would be happy to play his role player role!
Deletewilc and Cara,
DeleteOn one hand I wish I could just take things at the face value but on the other, I really couldn't help feel sick to my stomach when Jeremy playmaking skills are not utilised fully. IDK for sure whether Jeremy is happy with his current role though. If he isn't happy leading to him losing his confidence and performing poorly in the coming games, then my imagination may run even wilder...
Nep,
DeleteWhat a load of rubbish you were taking about!
As a Lin boss, Les Alexander > James Dolan, one is happy to pay Lin 8 millions a year, one is happy to pay 1 million.
As a Lin coach, Kevin McHale > Mike Woodson, one is a true leader who Lin can relate to, one is a just follower and company man.
As a Lin teammate, James Harden > Carmelo Anthony, one has already shown he's willing to accept a supporting role once someone else steps up as a leader as shown in OKC where he conceded to the more capable Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, another one is an unwilling teammate who wouldn't take a back seat when clearly he is not a leader and Lin is.
I am not sure if Houston is the best place for Lin the whole career wise, but it's clearly better than the NY Knicks!
Cara, but whether Jeremy needs to lead is dependent on how much the team wins. If they continue winning at a rate in line with the team expectations, the events of the team not succeeding or jeremy settling for losing which triggers Jeremy to lead on your scenario may not occur. I prefer to see that Jeremy will be the de facto leader on any team not because of scenarios predicated on standards of expectations, but Jeremy's raw drive to win as much as he can.
DeleteThat is his drive to win as much as he can will trigger him to take over.
DeleteSo even if rockets make the playoff or whatever other expectations they may have, Jeremy's drive to win every single game will trigger that innate leadership skills. I think to Jeremy every game is a winnable game and that will be why he will be dissatisfied with poor team play that leads to losses. Then, he will take control from any player which is preventing the team from succeeding or being in a position to win any given game.
Janelin7, lol, you said it yourself, it's just your imagination! I am sure you are also a girl who would cry watching a movie when it's totally not for real!
DeleteBelieve me, Lin would not be happy with his current role once the losses pile up and then he would change up the situation. Also his won't let anything affect his confidence. This is a guy who beat all the odds to make the nba with great perservance. He wouldn't make this far if he lost confidence that easily. Have more faith in a guy and remember why you like this guy. If he's a quitter who loses confidence in every obstacle, we all wouldn't be on this site!!
You are absolutely right, Cara ;)
DeleteWilc, whether we like it or not, as an Asian, Lin will never be handed the keys to a basketball team ever. But as his history has shown us (in Harvard and in NY), whenever the opportunity arises, he will seize that opportunity and never look back. And no need to worry about that expectation stuff and not having the opportunity, because the Rockets will not go 82-0 and because he's not playing with Tim Duncan or Lebron James, the opportunity will surely arise. What he now needs to do and he is doing now is to sharpen his other skills (D, shooting) and get ready when that opportunity to take over arises. It might be sooner rather than later!
DeleteIf neph and Eric are naive enough to believe that Lin earning $1 million on a one year contract playing for the Knicks is "better" than $25 million guaranteed for the Rockets, then they indeed think Lin is a TOTAL SCRUB.
DeleteJust an observation:
DeleteA look back at Harvard -
When Jeremy Lin takes over your team
JLin is all about the team. [He plays bball The Right Way.]
Like someone said, he could have been more selfish at Harvard, pad his stats, etc. Instead, he did what was needed from him at the moment, to help the team to W.
On both Harvard and the Nyk, a vacuum opened:
- Housman's injury-plagued jr year
- Melo/ Amare out
and on both occasions, he organically stepped in, to lead.
The vicissitudes of life.
DeleteYou never know how things will develop. Opportunity could be just around the corner, and when it opens up, JLin will be up to the task [as always.]
[Oh, and not implying anything dark here, with all the talk of injuries and such...]
Remember what Morey says in every interview regarding Lin.
Delete"...Lin doesn't have to play in Linsanity All-Star level...he doesn't have to...and that's not what we need him to do..."
Houston Rockets vs. Portland Trail Blazers prediction and preview
ReplyDelete"This is a young team who needed a leader when they traded for the former Oklahoma City Thunder."
DeleteOuch.
Harden is being appointed for a leadership role right now, but so what. If he's that good and is a real leader and can sustain and keep his role, good for him. But guess what, the Houston Rockets once thought they traded for a leader in Tracy McGrady or the NY Knicks still think they have got a leader in Carmelo Anthony. Duh!
DeleteCarmelo has become more of a leader this season as indicated by their 6-0 start.
DeleteMcGrady is not and I also don't see Harden as one.
Carmelo Anthony is not a leader and will never be a leader. You can't just improve on your leadership skills, you either have it or you don't.
Deleteto all lof, please gather together and vote for lin everyday for the allstars game, because firstly the nba is a business, if he gets voted in as a starter, the rockets owner will feel that he could make more money out of jeremy lin, so hopfully, he will command his coaches to let jeremy lin play to his strength, which is having the ball in his hands to make plays, with lots of screen and rolls provided, instead of passing the ball after crossing half court to harden and go the corner of the 3 point lin and forcing lin to take 3s which is not his strength, because i prefer that the owner put jeremy lin in a position to create exciting linsanity basketball 2.0 instead of boring iso-harden 1.0. secondly i feel that jeremy lin importance to asian americans in basketball, is equally important to Chuck Cooper the first african american who played in nba, who pathed way for future african americans. so that future asian americans children can at least hope and dream that they can one make it the nba too.
ReplyDeleteI have voted everyday since the ballot opened. All the rockets players got my votes.
Deleteplease enter link for vote.
DeleteVoted!
DeleteI'll vote for JLin if he start to play like an allstar. Untill then, I'll just wait on that vote. Believe me, JLin himself would want that too. If you ask him whether he plays up to allstar level recently, he would say "No". I don't want JLin to play in the allstar game and be ridicule by the whole league and JLin haters out there.
DeleteI'm a Jeremy Lin supporter from Holland. Wish him all the best for tonights game. I like the rhythm of his movements and his mentality as a sportsmen. I would say he left his mark already in this world. According to his own words God let him do things above his own imagination and capabilities. I hope to see more of Jeremy excactly because of this confession.
ReplyDeleteThe Knicks beat the spurs yesterday.now they are 6-0, I saw Raymond Felton played very good. He is proving that he is better than lin .
ReplyDeleteI also watched that game being a SPURS fan. The Spurs were about to win that game with a 12-point lead in the 4th quarter. But the Knicks came back and beat my SPURS in SAN Antonio. Unbelievable.
DeleteFelton was surprisingly impressive. Melo was very unselfish; Probably ten times more unselfish than harden.
That was a good game for both teams. Great passing teams. Very unselfish basketball. Very Limited isolations unlike the recent James Harden Rockets' games.
Best team in the West vs Best team in the East
Their problem is AMARE.
There is NO WAY that Raymond Felton is "better" than Jeremy Lin.
DeleteRaymond Felton is more racially accepted by the Knicks than Jeremy Lin is, plus the Knicks have a bigger payroll this year than last year.
Put Lin on the Knicks and Felton on the Rockets. Then it would be just like last season where Lin PUMMELED Felton in a head to head matchup.
Hello this is my first time posting. here are my thoughts on Felton: he SHOULD BE AND IS EXPECTED TO BE BETTER than Jeremy Lin because he has lots of seasons playing in the NBA.He played for about 4 teams and is currently being mentored by Jason Kidd. The Knicks should give thanks to LeBron, because if he hadn’t won his ring Melo won’t learn and accept the concept of team ball.now, he tends to pass the ball around, so he can get that ring.really, when LeBron won that ring, everyone is like, so when will yours be, Melo?Felton better get his ring/s NOW because when CP3 enters free agency,I am sure as the sun rising in the East that Dolan will go after him, and if he says yes, who will be getting the boot? Felton is the number 1 candidate and Priogni the second.heck, Dolan wouldn’t be chasing Jason Kidd out of NY, wouldn’t he? btw, the Knicks offense is structurally like D'Antoni's offense.
DeleteI smell BULL SHIT
DeleteDude, no doubt that the Knicks are balling this year, but there's no way Felton is better than JLin. Yeah he had a good game, and I give the Knicks credit for playing tough D down the stretch. They made the Spurs look lost during that stretch. But over all a good game deserves a good praise. That's it.
DeleteFelton is better for the Knicks, but not better than Jeremy.
Deleteif there's one simple reason they're all getting it done is because as JR Smith said, there are no locker room issues because everyone is happy what everyone else is getting paid. Had NY matched Jeremy's contract, JR is right, there would have been serious jealousy issues that kill chemistry.
there was one moment last year you could hear the jealousy. a bit after Linsanity, the Knicks had a special PR event for premium ticket holders where they did a Q & A. When asked about Linsanity, Tyson said " i couldn't believe my career has come to this " and it was clear he meant that he couldn't believe after winning a title he'd be diminished by some kid coming from the D League. IMO Jeremy wasn't resigned because of locker room jealousy.
it's also funny how easily everyone forgets Felton's pathetic perfomance in NY before he got traded to Denver.
Felton isn't better, but he is PLAYING better than Lin right now. Watching the Spurs game it was obvious: The guy attacks relentlessly. He passes well, handles well, and shoots well. Hey, sounds like someone we knew who had nothing to lose back in February.
DeleteIf you walk, talk, think, and act like a winner, you are a winner. That's Felton right now. He might not be as good, but he sure knows his place in the universe, and knowing, really, is half the battle.
Jeremy is no where near that state. He gets withdrawn whenever he screws up and takes a few games to snap out of it. Look at the Heat game last year when he got shut down...Fast forward few days ago, the Hornets game was terrible, just because of a very embarrassing air ball vs Heat.
It would be interesting tonight, IF he somehow produces, it means he's gained from since last year, and that's a good thing.
Which brings up another point...Lin is not a natural leader. He may inspire, and lead by talent alone, but he's not a leader by character. He defers to someone first chance he gets.
Read his interviews, he goes on and on about "finding his role" instead of any clear insight about what the team needs. That's just it, a natural leader have a tendency to DEFINE his role, not wait for someone to do it for him. I'm sure the coach told him what to do, and he's just following instructions, this is what got him in trouble in the first place with Melo, because he was D'Antoni's floor general and wasn't passing to Melo.
Whereas Harden has been around, took him no time to become alpha.
Rockets need a vet really bad, they need to get another big that's been around the block to lead for now. Jeremy as a player still have a lot of maturing to do, I'd be pleasantly surprised if he manages to make a lot of progress in that department this year.
Great teams make mistake. How can Spurs blow up a 12 points lead? When Lin leaves the Knicks, I am rooting against them. Felton did shut the months of the doubters. I wish Lin could do well, no matter what roles he is having now in Houston.
ReplyDeleteTim Duncan this year is finally starting to show his age.
DeleteHis footspeed has deteriorated significantly compared to last year. Duncan can no longer get to spots fast enough to run his offense and cover for his teammates defensively.
As Duncan goes, so do the Spurs. This year, the Spurs are nowhere near as good as last year. I LOVE Duncan more than I do even Jeremy Lin, but even I can see the signs of physical slippage. Duncan is still GREAT, though.
The Spurs are simply not that talented outside of Duncan. He's been a true one man team, carrying all of those guys that would likely struggle or be out of the NBA were they playing with other teams.
I'm still rooting for one more ring for Duncan-such a class act! I hope Jeremy will be like him...
DeleteA great team mate, talented and humble. :)
Deletejeremy needs a 20/10 game tonight.
ReplyDeleteNot gonna happen as long as the offense is changed
Deletedoesn't matter, he still needs a break out game tonight.
DeleteThe last few games of the Rockets have been unbearable. They are beating Bad teams such as Detroit and New Orleans. They beat Atlanta by a small margin with Harden shooting 70% or more while scoring 45 points. Basically, this offense will not be enough to beat the next three road games. The next teams will have a better frontcourt. Unless they are changing their PREDICTABLE offense, say hello to 3 more losses.
ReplyDeleteThere have been knee concerns on Lin. However, I don't buy it. Defensively, Lin is moving very quickly and staying in front of his man. In rebounds, he's able to jump high for those boards.
Is his explosiveness 100%? No, but he is still capable of moving quickly.
It is either:
1. He lost his confidence
2. He is allowing Harden to play his style. Once the losses pile up, the lead role will be TAKEN by Lin. When that happens, Lin will suddenly EXPLODE and produce the way he usually does.
I think Morey wants Jeremy to play defense and Harden run the offense. This strategy won't beat good teams. The bigger Harden's head grows, the more iso balls will be played, and, Harden will demand for the ball too even if the game plans not dictated that way.
DeleteJeremy lost his confidence as he might still in shock as things unfold...
Like I said, if Harden plays SELFISHLY in the next three ROAD games then expect three losses. Portland, Lakers, Utah are quite a challenge.
DeleteWhen the Rockets keep on losing, either the coaches will change the offense or someone is gonna get FIRED.
Jeremy is letting Harden play HERO ball. Soon enough, Harden will realize that he is incapable of playing hero ball without the team suffering. Then, we'll see a more aggressive Lin.
If Jeremy Lin starts doing his midrange thing and stops living at the 3 pt line, then the Rockets will happily shift the offense to him.
DeleteThere is no player in NBA history that can sustain a long term career shooting strictly from 3 point range. Even Lin''s ex gunner Novak was a total NBA scrub before Lin fed him assists.
Basketball is a fluid sport where the ball goes where it needs to. If Jeremy Lin can start taking higher percentage shots, the ball will go to him.
KHuang, Lin will figure it out. He wouldn't get this far by being stupid.
DeleteOF COURSE Lin will figure it out, Cara!
DeleteWe're talking the GREATEST young point guard of the modern generation!
Lin's got the defense and even passing COMPLETELY SOLVED. He's at an All NBA 1st team level in terms of making scrubs around him better and in terms of stopping people. Nobody in the NBA does those things better (Ok, maybe Duncan on offense for SAS).
Lin's sole weakness is that errant jump shot. I want him to get that fixed. I do not see Lin becoming the next Ason Kidd - Lin's proven himself as a scorer too much for that.
Once Jeremy Lin figures out how to attack off the ball in the NBA, it's OVER for opponents. With even just an average jump shot, Lin would easily be THE BEST point guard in the entire NBA!!!
it's very unlikely that jeremy will start shooting mid range jumpers and forgo the 3, at least any time soon.
Deletehe has said it himself - they (jlin, coaches) believe that a "good" shot is either a 3, layup, or free throw. and knowing how stubborn he is, he will NOT take what he considers to be a bad shot. if he has an open mid range jumper, he will either look for another teammate that has a better shot, such as a 3, or a layup. this is why we haven't seen him shoot the 15ft jumper or floater in the lane. if you're gonna take it to the lane, get a layout of draw a foul, instead of settling for a floater.
i personally don't agree with this at all but that's their mindset.
Fighton, I firmly believe it's Morey's advanced stats influence, especially considering Lin never talked about this "3/layup/free throw" approach before he got into Houston and considering almost all Houston guards (past or present) like Lowry, Dragic, Martin, Harden also used this same approach and have non-existent mid range game. Lin should never let such a non-basketball person influence him so much, unfortunately he's such a coachable person that probably take his manager/coach's words to heart.
DeleteI still believe Lin's own smart and his other basketball people like his dad will help him figure it out though.
Yes fighton1999, that is the prevailing mindset in the NBA.
DeleteWell, it's shoot those midrange jumpers or WITHER AND DIE!
True, Jason Friedman was extolling the 3/layup/FT on twitter, attributing his belief that "mid-range shots are FAR less efficient for majority of league unless your name is Dirk" to Morey's magic numbers.
Deleteoops, the above reply was -> in agreement with Cara on "Morey's advanced stats influence."
DeleteThat's the bad side of a non-basketball person who knows nothing about basketball but its stats taking over your basketball game plan. Morey's messing up Lin's game damn. I hate Morey so much and hope Les Alexander come to the sense and fire him soon!
DeleteThe Nuggets are also a team who is managed by a young GM who is into this advanced stats stuff. Their team as a whole also live by this "3/layup/FT" midset.
DeleteIn my opinion, this "3/layup/FT" approach works great for 12-16 point scorers like Harden when he's scoring his 16 ppg off the bench in OKC. And this approach is also imo one of the reasons the Nuggets got a bunch of 12-16 scorers but none better than that as this approach makes a player's game too inconsistent. To be a more consistent prolific scorer like 20 ppg, a mid range game is absolutely neccesary. And the "unless your name is Dirk" comment is just plain wrong and hilarious. Kobe, Wade, Westbrook, Durant, Carmelo, Parker or in the past Jordan, Bird and many more all have a great mid range jumper. To totally abandon and ignore it is ignorance at best.
DeleteI don't expect the Rockets to change their offense for this game. I'll be counting the turnovers of Harden in this game. He didn't have a lot against the Hornets. I'll be expecting Batum and Matthews to provide more challenge for Harden.
ReplyDeleteNot expecting Lin to produce a lot in a ISO-HEAVY system.
Portland by 12
LMA wasn't even shooting well in the previous meeting. Expect a better game from LMA
Delete:)
Great new logo! Go Rockets!
ReplyDeleteRe-watching the Hornets game on League Pass. I confirmed that the announcers dumping on Lin were Clyde Drexler and Bill something, it's the comcast rockets home team. On away games Matt Bullard is the analyst not Drexler.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't matter what announcers say.
DeleteBesides, Lin did NOT have a good game against the Hornets. Being that passive is unacceptable and uncharacteristic of the Jeremy Lin that historically has attacked teams from all over the court.
When Lin plays badly, he deserves to be called out. When Lin plays well, he deserves to be called out.
I dont like the BLACK ANNOUNCER. hes always trash talking Jeremy . The old white guy is cool, he always give positive comments for every player.
DeleteHe's the first to take ownership of his misses.
DeleteThat type of humility is the trademark of someone bent on constant improvement.
oops, the above reply was to
DeleteKH: "When Lin plays badly, he deserves to be called out. When Lin plays well, he deserves to be called out."
Absolutely Lin is HELLBENT on constant improvement, and absolutely Lin takes full ownership.
DeleteThat's why Lin's so impeccable in defense and passing. He's the best defensive point guard I've ever seen in my decades of watching the NBA, and he along with Bob Cousy are the two best point guards I've ever seen at making scrubby players better.
Lin's also completely solved the turnover "problem". I didn't see it as a "problem", but his coaches have and thus Lin's fixed that.
Lin only has to repair his shooting. My Lin watch is on because I KNOW he's going to start hitting shots even with that unnatural jump shot form that he learned from Doc Scheppler. Once Lin starts hitting his jumpers, he'll have reached his full potential as a player.
look yall, Clyde Drexler can say whatever he wants, he's F'in Clyde Drexler. he was an amazing player who's earned his stripes to critique anyone in the league.
Deleteevery player who's ever had a big contract is under the microscope and open game for criticism if they don't live up to it. big contracts for young/unproven players can be a curse and Jeremy now has extra pressure to prove himself, but you can't hate on people who bring it up. there have been other players with big contracts who underperformed and have gotten reemed by sports analysts and rightfully so.
Absolutely correct, pz.
DeleteClyde Drexler has both complimented AND criticized Lin. And even if it was, Clyde Drexler is a Hall of Famer who's earned the right to criticize 99.99999% of NBA players!
Even we here on this board have NO IMPACT on Lin's game. Talk, including our own, means NOTHING.
different game, same results.
ReplyDeleteRealistically, Rockets could very well go winless on this road trip. I just hope they stay competitive and no blow outs. Marking my calendar for next Friday when Knicks come to Houston. It would be poetic justice if the Knicks come into Houston undefeated 10-0 (which is looking likely if they can beat Memphis today) and suffer there 1st loss to the Rockets! :)
ReplyDeletealmost everybody from Knicks threw Jeremy under the bus, from Dolan to Carmelo to Tyson to Felton to JR. now who's next? Novak? some Knicks fans are practically saying Jeremy didn't do anything for the Knicks last season.
DeleteNo need to care about it. The good thing about nba is that it's a 82 game season and a nba career is 10-15 year long. We will know who gets the last laugh later, not after 6 games.
DeleteThey forgot the "small sample size" knock already?
What fans think means nothing to Lin and the majority of Lin's fans on this site.
DeleteAs long as Lin is playing well and improving, we Lin diehards are pleased.
I watched the Knicks vs Spurs last night and I must say the Knicks looked good. Rockets need to step it up to beat them next Friday, especially Jeremy. I would rather that Jeremy would charge the lane and get bloody noses than him standing in the corner jacking up 3's. He had zero free throw attempts in the last game which shows he is no longer attacking the paint. Last year he got to the line regularly. He needs to snap out of being so passive otherwise he will begin losing the confidence of his teammates and coaches. He's making the Knicks look like genius' right now. Wake up Jeremy!
DeleteThe Knicks BETTER look good, considering they're paying big time luxury tax.
DeleteThe Rockets, on the other hand, are overachieving at 4-4 so far. Every loss they had was actually a winnable game, and that's despite having one of the youngest rosters in the league.
Jeremy Lin's Rockets are doing JUST FINE. We'd like to see more scoring out of Lin, but otherwise there's nothing to dislike about his game.
Lin's success isn't the Knicks' downfall, and the Knicks doing well isn't validation that dumping Lin was the right thing to do. I'm just happy both teams are doing well.
@Cara:
ReplyDeleteLin "wrested control away from Melo"? I am sorry, but when did that happen? Linsanity happened when Melo was injured. Also, Melo and D'Antoni were feuding BEFORE Linsanity because Melo didn't want to accept the (diminished) role that D'Antoni wants his small forwards to play. Despite the soap opera tabloid drama, Melo getting D'Antoni fired had nothing to do with Lin and would have happened anyway. As a matter of fact, had it not been for Linsanity, D'Antoni's firing would have come a lot sooner and been much less controversial.
And incidentally, I don't get all the cracks against Woodson. In case you forget, Lin was putting up much better numbers under Woodson than he has in Houston AND had a much bigger role in the offense. Woodson also insisted for months that he wanted Lin as his starting PG, right up until the Knicks front office told him to be quiet because they weren't going to match Houston's offer. And Woodson frequently put the ball in Lin's hands and had him lead the team and run the offense, especially in the 4th quarter, something that he rarely had his PGs do when he was in Atlanta. Had Lin stayed in New York, he would be the one averaging 16 ppg for a 6-0 team instead of Felton, and Lin would be the one getting most of the credit for their success.
I am sorry, Cara, but I watched Woodson lead a Hawks team whose starters would be backups on Woodson's current Knicks team to 50+ wins, and also consistently take them to the playoffs. I am embracing Lin being with the Rockets - because I don't exactly have a choice if I am going to keep rooting for Lin am I? - but Woodson is a very good coach who highly respected Lin's ability, and Lin would have thrived under Woodson.
I keep going back to that Philadelphia game as proof. The Knicks needed that win badly to make the playoffs, and Lin was struggling with his shot. Woodson could have played it safe and let Melo continue to jack up and miss shots. Had they done that and lost, no one would have blamed him for staying with his All Pro scorer. Instead, he went to Lin and put it all on him to win the game for the Knicks in the 4th quarter, and did so even though Lin was struggling with his jumpshot. And by doing so he took a huge risk. Had that not worked and the Knicks lost, everyone would have demanded to know why Woodson chose to risk the Knicks' playoff chances on Lin and not Melo. And no, it wasn't because Woodson had no choice. Iman Shumpert is a talented combo guard who can do a lot of things with the ball in his hands. The Knicks also had Mike Bibby, Baron Davis and Toney Douglas. Woodson gave Lin that role in the offense because he wanted to, and because he knew that Lin could play.
I am sorry, but that is night and day, 180 degrees different from how Lin is being used in Houston right now. Right now, we are HOPING that the Rockets go back to using Lin the way that Woodson did, because while that is not Linsanity under D'Antoni, it is better than what is going on right now. Taking all these shots at Woodson because he got the job when D'Antoni got fired (good grief, someone had to take over the team ... if Woodson hadn't gotten the job someone else would have) is really just rejecting what actually happened in New York last year.
Woodson: Lin will be NY's starting PG
DeleteFact: Lin is not NY's starting PG
Woodson lied, plain and simple.
This comment has been removed by the author.
Deletetotally agree on Unknown. Woodson is the man. But why not Knick just try to offer a bit lower offer to Lin? Maybe Lin would accepts it base on the big market that Knick have.
Deleterules are that Knicks must match Rocket's offer
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
Delete@Cara:
DeleteYou are the one lying because you have a personal vendetta against Woodson. And your vendetta is totally irrational, merely because Woodson got the job when D'Antoni was fired. You know perfectly well that Woodson is not the Knicks owner or GM, and he also doesn't have as much clout with the organization over personnel matters as a Phil Jackson or another big name coach would. Whether to retain Lin or not wasn't Woodson's call, and it was obvious based on his behavior before and after the decision that he didn't agree with letting Lin walk. The things that you are saying that are flat out not true are indefensible.
"Lin wrested control away from Melo"
DeleteMelo lost his leadership role.
"On one side is Anthony. On the other is everyone else.
It is evident in Anthony’s body language, in his teammates’ postgame remarks and in the minor wrinkles of the box score.
The causes are varied, and Anthony is not solely to blame. But multiple people with ties to the team cite a growing divide between Anthony and his teammates that is threatening to derail the season."
---
"Although Anthony and D’Antoni never found common ground, the coach had the strong backing of Amar’e Stoudemire, Tyson Chandler, Jeremy Lin, Jared Jeffries, Landry Fields and Steve Novak, the core of the team."
@via:
DeleteSure. Ignore the part about how D’Antoni at that time was desperately trying to trade Melo for Deron Williams in order to save his own job.
Sorry guys. Linsanity happened when Melo (and Stoudemire) were injured. When Melo came back, things fell apart and D'Antoni got fired, which would have happened even earlier had D'Antoni kept starting Toney Douglas.
Incidentally, the New York media despises Melo. They wanted the Knicks to dump Melo for players, picks or whatever and go forward with D'Antoni and Lin. Didn't happen. D'Antoni got fired, was replaced with Woodson and the rest is history. No reason to try to go back and rewrite it because you don't like the outcome.
Unknown, perhaps the friction between D'Antoni vs Melo did caused Melo to act out. [Although, tanking? C'mon, you can't defend that..?]
DeleteWhatever his reasons were, Melo did in fact lose the confidence of his team mates -> who were all for letting JLin lead. It was what it was.
Lin DID wrest control away from Melo.
DeleteNo matter what people say, the truth is that Jeremy Lin had it set up so that both he and Melo could succeed together. They DID, after a brief power struggle in which Woodson handed the ball back to Lin.
Melo vs. Lin is ANCIENT HISTORY. Both players are doing well with their respective teams (Lin at 4-4 is VERY respectable, no matter how lame his scoring is). Respect both guys and MOVE ON.
By the way unknown, I totally disagree with your notion that the starters on Woodson's Hawks team would be backups on the Knicks.
DeletePG: Young All Star Mike Bibby vs. Raymond Felton. Bibby, by far.
SG: Max Contract Joe Johnson vs. Ronnie Brewer. Johnson, by far.
SF: Marvin Williams vs. Carmelo Anthony. This is the only matchup where the Knicks are clearly better. Anthony over Williams by a lot.
PF: Josh Smith vs. Amare Stoudemire. The hobbled Stoudemire has not been more effective than a pogo stick healthy young Josh Smith. Smith over Stoudemire for me.
C: Al Horford vs. Tyson Chandler. Horford can score in a way Chandler cannot, plus Horford defends well too. Advantage, Horford.
My count is 4-1 Woodson Hawks starters over Woodson Knicks starters.
@Unknown,
DeleteWhat is your infatuation with Woodson? What has he proven?..nothing. You talk like he's the second coming of Phil Jackson, Rudy T, or even Jerry Sloan. He can't be considered even close to Dantoni who's at least made it to the conference finals..
It seems like you are quite new to the NBA.
I'm not understanding this infatuation with Woodson and the Knicks. Woodson played Jlin out of necessity- he was their only real playmaker and ball-handler at the time. Had Jlin stayed, he would have played behind Felton and Kidd. The Knicks would have used him as trade bait, and how would that have benefited him?
ReplyDeleteWoodson is mediocre coach and the Knicks are fools gold. They are peaking now, but Woodson's Knicks will lose in the 2nd round this year, and all the screaming about Melo will begin again. This team is built to win now, and they will win a lot of regular season games, and that's it. They'll be competitive with Miami, but no way they can beat them.
Woodson is a good defensive coach, but his offensive schemes ar e mediocre. What adjustments did he make in the first round playoff series against the Heat last year?...feed the ball to Melo and watch him struggle? Great coaching job.
More nonsense.
Delete1. The Knicks traded for Felton only after they didn't match Lin's offer sheet. And they only initiated trade talks for Felton after Houston and Lin withdrew their original offer sheet and submitted the second. The Knicks had to take a major luxury tax hit to pay Felton $10 million a year. There is no way they would have paid Lin, Felton and Kidd.
2. " Woodson played Jlin out of necessity- he was their only real playmaker and ball-handler at the time."
Untrue. See what I wrote above. Toney Douglas - who beloved D'Antoni started for much of the season before Linsanity - was still on the team. So was Baron Davis. And Iman Shumpert, who D'Antoni also tried to play at PG for a time while Lin was on the bench, was on the team also. It is hilarious to see you claim that Woodson played Lin out of necessity when in fact that was true of D'Antoni. D'Antoni went to Lin as a last resort in order to keep from getting fired, and did so when Melo and Stoudemire were injured. Woodson kept playing Lin when Melo and Stoudemire was healthy. And in case you didn't notice, when Lin got injured, the Knicks kept winning without him. Remember? What you are saying is exactly the opposite of what actually happened.
3. "What adjustments did he make in the first round playoff series against the Heat last year?...feed the ball to Melo and watch him struggle? Great coaching job."
OK, and what would YOU have done? Jeremy Lin, Iman Shumpert, Baron Davis and Amare Stoudemire WERE ALL INJURED. So what would you have done? Let Tyson Chandler carry the offense? Or Jared Jeffries? (Actually Jeffries was hurt too.) Or maybe see how far Steve Novak can carry them? Or let J.R. Smith take over? (Actually, J.R. Smith took plenty of shots during that series. He just missed them all.)
Why are you guys so bent on reinventing history just because Woodson was the guy who got the job when D'Antoni got fired?
No one is reinventing history.But I think you drank too much of the Melo juice. Plus your statements are false or not 100% true. So I suggest you troll on outta here.
Delete@ Unknown
Delete1. "The Knicks traded for Felton only after they didn't match Lin's offer sheet. And they only initiated trade talks for Felton after Houston and Lin withdrew their original offer sheet and submitted the second."
- JLin's first visit with the Rockets was July 4:
Chris BroussardVerified @Chris_Broussard
Jeremy Lin will visit the Houston Rockets tomorrow, sources say.
11:44 AM - 3 Jul 12
- That very same day, Nyk promised Felton the starting position:
Zxxxxxx Hxxxx @zxxxx
I'm at Dolans fourth of July party. Felton was there, he said he's on the Knicks. Take it FWIW #Knicks
8:02 PM - 4 Jul 12
Zxxxxxx Hxxxx @zxxxx
Center Island, NY, Dolan's 4th of July party. Felton is here. He's a Knick
8:04 PM - 4 Jul 12
A source close to Felton said that he wouldn't have come to New York to play behind Lin.
"He loves New York, but he wouldn't have agreed to come back to sit on the bench," the source said.
2. "Woodson played Jlin out of necessity- he was their only real playmaker and ball-handler at the time."
Untrue. See what I wrote above. Toney Douglas - who beloved D'Antoni started for much of the season before Linsanity - was still on the team. So was Baron Davis. And Iman Shumpert, who D'Antoni also tried to play at PG for a time while Lin was on the bench, was on the team also."
- TD, who was playing atrociously.
BDiddy, who was always 50/50 with his injury.
Iman Shumpert, why? When he can simply use JLin?
"It is hilarious to see you claim that Woodson played Lin out of necessity when in fact that was true of D'Antoni. D'Antoni went to Lin as a last resort in order to keep from getting fired..."
- True, D'Antoni did play JLin out of necessity. This does not preclude Woody doing the same thing. The only difference, D'Antoni gave JLin affirmation, Woody withheld it.
"Woodson kept playing Lin when Melo and Stoudemire was healthy."
- So did D'Antoni, no?
The fact is, Woody was never hot on JLin [and Landry too, for that matter.] Until Dolan orderd him to scare away the bidders in FA with "one million dollars," Woody would never commit on record to assuring JLin the starting position. C'mon, you know this...
Anyhow ~
DeleteJLin is a Rox now, @Unknown. :)
woody never like Lin , he admitted that Lin was not that good . At the time when player jealous at Lin . He did not protect Lin at all . He try to cut down Lin 's role on the court as much as he can and gave credit that to Melo instead.
DeleteYou mention the heat series with the knicks and how Woodson didnt adjust. Question is how was he supposed to adjust. His starting PG, SG, and backup PG all were not playing by game 2. HIs starting PF was lost for a game. The refs were giving the heat tons of ticky tack calls on one end and no calls on the other end (how many games have you seen where one team shoots 33 FTs in a QUARTER).
DeleteKnicks are not fools gold if you watch any of the games this season since they are winning the games with defense and offensive discipline. They run in essence a ball control offense where they do not turn the ball over and usually get up a good shot which keeps opponents from running on them and forces them to play against the knicks half court defense.
Lin would be doing very well in woodson offense and his defense would be useful as well. Its a shame he isnt a knick, but things happen for a reason. Lin was offered more money than the knicks were willing to pay for an unknown commodity and no one can blame them for that. Lin got paid and now has a chance to grow with a team without the pressure of playing in NY. WIN WIN.
@Unknown,
DeleteYou are a funny person. You should try to follow the NBA more closely rather than spout of about stuff you don't know or understand. I need some humor for the day though..here's to edumucating you:
(1) The Knicks hadn't confirmed what to do with Jlin even after the Felton trade. It took a few days after the trade before they declined to match Houston.
(2) Toney Douglas was HORRIBLE last year as the PG. That's the whole reason why they played Jlin...totally out of desperation.
(3) Cmon man...you have to make some adjustments rather than dump the ball to Melo on the low block. That's too predictable.
You funny Unknown.
(4) Also if you think Iman or BD (who could barely walk at that point were the answer), I have some large bridge in Brooklyn I can send you. I'll give you my bank account #.
DeleteMy addiction was to watch the daily Korean or Taiwanese mini series in TV which runs into hundreds of episodes. The story lines always have the underdogs, the baddies, the jealousies, hatreds,the slanders, plots, failures,sadness, persistence, determination,and finally the good always triumph. And now my addiction is the story of JLin's NBA journey and my daily routine is to surf the nets for news, comments, and watch his games highlights. It beats all reality shows and mini series!
ReplyDeletethat's a hilarious comparison. instead of running into the hundreds of episodes, let's hope the jeremy lin story runs into hundreds of games!
DeleteIt will as JLin has his faith, is focus, has hope, is determined, and is a good guy.
DeleteHave to sign off now as it is 12.19am in my country. zzzzzz
your are not alone ZZZZZ
DeleteNew banner on the website, maybe well see a new Lin. instead of taking those 3pt shots i want to see him take a drible step or two inside and shoot a midrange that I know he can knock down easily.
ReplyDeleteThe Rockets coaches should tell Jeremy Lin to attack the basket and just see what happens. See if he can get to the basket, and if not to start aiming for mid-range and pull-up jumpers. What the Rockets are doing is not sustainable. Harden is not going to average 26 points per game for the entire season. If he averages 18-19 the Rockets should be thrilled. Also, Harden cannot average 40+ minutes a game. Even if he physically could, you do not want him to. Also, his scoring percentage is very low ... 44.1%. Against good defenses, it is even lower. Also, no one else on the team is averaging 12.5 ppg. Marcus Morris and Patrick Patterson are the only ones averaging over 45% shooting. It is bad offensive design, a bad offensive gameplan.
ReplyDeleteYes, the Rockets are 4-4, but with victories over the Pistons, Hawks and Hornets that are 1-8, 3-4 and 3-3. (Two wins over the 1-8 Pistons.) It is the responsibility of the coaches to come up with a better gameplan than this, which is to give Lin more opportunities and to allow him to create more opportunities for others. Harden is scoring low percentage and also isn't passing the ball. He is averaging 4.5 assists per game but that is misleading. 1/3 of his assists came in the first game of the year. Take that away, and he has only 24 assists in 7 games, not nearly enough. And even a lot of those are in garbage time.
The Rockets can't just let one guy dominate everything on offense. Even if Harden were good enough to, it isn't necessary. Lin is also a very good offensive player, and with the ball in Lin's hands, Lin can create for everybody, including Harden, where Harden only seems to want to create for himself. And yes, it is the coaches' duty to help get Lin involved. It is not all on Harden to pass the ball, though he should. They are responsible for making sure all the players reach their potential.
Yes, there was a time to explore, feel things out and learn about the team. But now it is 8 games in. The coaches know what guys can and can't do by now. It is time for Harden ball to stop and to get back to real basketball.
For instance, Harden is the shooting guard, not Lin. It is Harden who is supposed to be the one standing out on the wing waiting for the ball to be kicked out to him by either a big man who gets double-teamed or a PG on penetration, not Lin. Not just that, but the SG is supposed to move without the basketball to find an open space off the ball so he can catch and shoot like Reggie Miller and Jeff Hornacek used to do. But they have Lin doing that stuff when that is not his game and that is not what a PG is supposed to do. It makes no sense.
If I was coaching Lin right now, I'm not sure exactly what I'd do.
DeleteHere's a player who's lost confidence in his broken jump shot, yet he's so good in everything else that he HAS to play.
Does a coach ram the ball into him anyway, letting him fire brick after brick which damages his confidence even further? Or does a coach run him off the ball which still doesn't help because then he's still required to shoot that girly jump shot of his?
This is why I'm not entirely against Lin being played off the ball for now. If I'm Lin's coach, I'd give him a chance to find his game on his own terms. Then once he found his jumpshot, I'd start giving him the ball more and more until he's back to being "Jeremy Lin"!
KHuang, I really don't think Lin's jump shot is that "broken" as you made it out to be. Even last year, he's always shooting better off the dribble than catch and shoot spot up shooting. Then, this year, he needs to shoot all of his jumpers off this spot up shooting due to the system and none off his dribble, hence the general impression he's getting so much worse. He's shooting worse than last year, but not that much worse.
DeleteAnd also the bigger reason his scoring is down so much is that he gets much less free throws. I read from somewhere that the refs called less fouls in the lane this year compared to previous years except the superstar calls, for example the Nuggets are a driving team whose game plan depends on getting to the line but for some reasons suddenly they could not get the same calls this year and as a result shot much less free throws this year than last despite having almost the same personnel. I suspect this influenced Lin too somewhat.
Cool, Cara.
DeleteI'm totally uncomfortable watching Lin's funky looking jumper. Even though I am all for guys NOT being picture shooters, I would like to see better body mechanics from Lin.
When Lin defaults to the NBA style shot that his dad taught him, he's a GREAT shooter in the NBA.
I should also point out that there's actually no such thing as a "great jump shooter" in the NBA. Even the great shotmakers like Ray Allen or Michael Jordan or Larry Bird will have 0-6 three point shooting nights with 9-25 two point shooting. Defenses are too good in the NBA to let any shooter fire at the rim with impunity.
He's getting less calls because he's attacking MUCH MUCH less this year.
DeleteI don't think that the Rockets have the frontcourt players or the depth to make a deep playoff run, but they can make the playoffs if they use Lin properly. And yes, using Lin properly means that everyone else - including Harden - gets used properly too. But letting this current style of play continue means no one, including Harden, maximizes their talents. Harden would actually score about as much if Lin handled the ball. He wouldn't turn the ball over nearly as much, and his shooting percentage would be higher. It is better to average 20 ppg on 50% shooting with 2 turnovers a game than average 20 ppg on 40% shooting with 5 turnovers a game, and it really looks like the latter is where Harden is headed, especially when they start playing better teams and defenses.
ReplyDeleteThe new team, new players, new system, new season thing was good for the first 8-10 games. But now we are 10% into the season. The coaches need to put in a real offense now, and that means with Lin running the offense as the PG. And it also means not wasting Lin's offensive game. Lin can average 18-19 ppg. So right now the Rockets are just throwing away 7-8 ppg on Lin alone, and that doesn't including how Lin will help find shots for everybody else. So you can really say that the Rockets are costing themselves 15-16 ppg by playing this way, if not more. It is bad coaching and needs to change. Even if Lin's shot isn't falling, he can still get to the free throw line. That is putting points on the board, and getting the other team in foul trouble. So much potential that is being wasted for no good reason.
Well, it's not quite THAT simple.
DeleteEven if Lin were given the ball on every play, his inability to hit jump shots would result in a Rondo like collapsing of defenses on other players. Unlike Rondo who has two Hall of Fame shotmakers and an entire team of shotmaking veterans, Lin has only one guy that can sort of make shots and that's Harden (great game by Harden against the Hornets, btw!)
I think that the Rockets are playing to their full capacity right now despite Lin being pretty much nonexistent on offense. When a players loses confidence in his jump shot, no offensive scheme can make that player hit shots.
I have a different take on Lin's role than most people. LET HIM find his shot as the secondary option. Over time, Lin can pick his spots and make shots. As Lin demonstrates more and more shotmaking proficiency, he'll get more and more responsibility.
It's only a matter of time before Lin rediscovers his jump shot and becomes the Lin that everybody knows he can be. When that happens, he'll be a COMPLETE player capable of playing on or off the ball. That'll make him a deadly weapon, likely an All-NBA caliber player!
My take is that Lin does not yet have AT THIS POINT an offensive game to average 19 points per game, so it might take an offseason and many games to develop one, in addition to having the mental fortitude to do so. Even if Lin gets more touches, I do not see him efficiently reaching 19 points per game level. Even if he hits 2 out of 5 3 pointers per game (40%), this leaves 13 points which he needs to get through other means. It will be a long process and not a sure one.
DeleteThe bottom line: Lin might need the entire season and off-season to improve his offensive game and shooting percentage to develop into 18+ points, 8-10 assists per game type of PG. Hopefully, there will be gradual improvement in all aspects, but I do hope Lin will get play-off experience with Rockets even if they lose in first round.
ReplyDeleteIf Lin develops into an 18 points 10 assist PG, he'd be a 1st team All NBA player over Chris Paul!
DeleteC Paul's career average is 18.8 points and 9.8 assists per game. Maybe 16 points and 7 assists -- Tony Parker -- type then. One good thing is Lin is playing this season better than his career average.
Deletehttp://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/4299/jeremy-lin
If he can improve his shooting percentage, Lin might actually get to 14 points and 7 assists level with steals, etc.
Actually, per 36 minutes, Lin is not playing better than his career average. My mistake.
DeleteQuestion for yall, if Kevin McHale goes on permanent leave , prayers for his daughter btw, who do yall think should be the next coach? Sampson or bring in someone else? Who would be the best coach for Jeremy?
ReplyDeleteI didn't know he went on a permanent leave; that's too bad. I wonder what disease his daughter is suffering from? Too bad D'Antoni got hired by Lakers. I was surprised how low salary D'antoni was willing to get paid to get Lakers job. Phil would have gotten 3 or 4 times more.
Deletehe's not on permanent leave, but who knows if its this long already. there were already a lot of rumors this would be McHales last year coaching anyway so maybe he might leave earlier now.
Deleteya and seriously 4 million / year??? and everyone knows Dantonis contract is really 1 year anyway, win or get fired. Phil would have demanded at least $14 million / year.
DeleteI think D'antoni is dreaming of beating Knicks in Finals or something.
DeleteChris Finch is next in line after Sampson.
Delete@eb5attorney,
DeleteIf only the Knicks would make it past the 2nd round. They have a small chance to advance to the finals, but they will NOT beat the Heat. Melo, Woodson, and that cesspool of nepotism will be exposed..mark my words. Enjoy your short lived success Knicks fans. Next year will be the blow up.
what do you guys think about Nate McMillan?
Deletei doubt houston woud rehire, but i think Jeff Van Gundy would be great for Jeremy.
Of course I don't want this AS coach because he didn't treat Lin very well. I hope they can bring Sloan as he likes P&R which was Jeremy's best. Really hope this will happen soon.
DeleteSloan would be awesome, but he's really old now and unless its a for sure title contending team i doubt he'd come back. he wasn't even seriously in the run for the Lakers job which probably meant he's not available.
Delete@JLinfan#1
ReplyDeleteLOVE the new banner.
ESPN is touting the Knicks as the best team in the Eastern Conference and are even kinda touting the upcoming Memphis-NYK game as a possible preview of the NBA finals. OMG!
ReplyDeleteThe Knicks remain the ONLY undefeated team in the NBA, with Ray Felton leading them in a stirring comeback win over the Spurs in San Antonio yesterday.
It's only a matter of time before ESPN launches RaymondFeltonSanity! ROFLOL.
I haven't seen the Knicks play this year yet.
DeleteBut I'll say this: From what I've seen of their games, their isolation heavy offense is eventually going to be exploited.
Teams are constantly shifting their defenses in the NBA. The Knicks, particularly with Mike Woodson as coach, have not yet demonstrated the ability to adapt to those shifting defenses. Until they demonstrate that, I will hesitate on calling them contenders.
To go far in the playoffs, one has to be able to adapt to any kind of defense. That's why I am so encouraged by Jeremy Lin efforts to adapt to his current situation. If Lin can adapt to playing his current role, he'll become a COMPLETE player who can succeed no matter what's thrown at him.
When healthy they have the talent to adapt. This will be even more so when Shumpert and Stoudemire come back. When that happens, they can be pretty effective with Kidd, Shumpert, Novak, Stoudemire and Wallace/Camby on the floor (with Melo on the bench) for spurts. They can also do different lineups. They have a number of guys that can play different position. I am not claiming that they will win the NBA title or anything, but I would be surprised if they don't at least go to the Eastern Conference finals.
DeleteLooking forward to tonight's game! Another opportunity for JLin to excel. I am thoroughly enjoying his progression with the Rockets. Yes, there are some ups and downs, but if you look at the past 12 months and take all that into consideration, we fans have so much to be happy about. Lin is a starter, is paid big bucks, and has the opportunity to play improve his game.
ReplyDeleteI remember a year ago just waiting for Lin to get into the game and play some garbage time minutes. :) So let's put everything into perspective and keep supporting. He and the Rockets are going to figure out how to win by playing team ball.
Once Harden and JLin plays like we know they can, they will be a good, good team. Tough to defend two guys who can both attack, create, and shoot! Double up on one frees the other, triple up on the two frees up the rest of the Rockets for dunks or uncontested jump shots. So enjoy the process folks. We are witnessing history in the making!
POR VS HOU 10 PM EST
Exactly. Great post! Thanksgiving is coming up and we need to be thankful for all that Jeremy has accomplished. He has motivated me to become a better person and live life to the fullest. Positive energy and an optimistic attitude FTW!
DeletePeople really need to adjustment their expectation of Lin performance for this year. First, 2011-2012 Knick is still a better team than the current Houston team. (even many may disagree with me.) Second, Harden is currently playing Lin role during Linsantiy and Lin is playing Shump role. Third, since Harden become PG of Houston, there will be more ISO play because Harden don't have the same court vision as Lin. Houston do passes the ball but they don't really set picks. For some reason I think Houston is in love with the 3balls. Unless Houston start to really disturb the balls and P&R, we won't witness the same type of play from Lin.
ReplyDeleteMost importantly, I believe it is more important that the Houston win more game as a team instead of having Lin filing up the stats sheet and still looses games. If you are a true Lin fan, you will know Lin excel in Team environment. This is the true reason we love Lin. This is also why the Knick is winning. Knick is currently Kidds and Felton's team. Not Melo. Sometime the attitude how you play the game is more important than individal skills. I am sure most can agree with me if Lin play more aggressive just like last year, he probably will have better stats. But than, it will be about Lin and not about the team. I don't believe Lin want to be the same as the old Melo........
I agree with you that Lin will not play like he did in Knicks as right now he just passed the ball to Harden then waiting in the 3 points line for ball to come. I don't quite get it since when he became Novak?! He has less ball than he did under Woodson so how can he have good number? Look at Felton, 20 balls for last night. Rockets' system no need any PG as everyone it's their own PG, no play making, all they do just shooting the ball.
Deletewhen Harden handle the ball there are only three option, either Harden drive to the basket, Harden shoot the ball, or Harden pass to inside the post for layup. Since Lin is not Houston center, there is really no other opportunity for Lin to score unless he is while open. That is why I said Lin is playing Shump role. He is defending more than he is attacking. This may be good for Lin's long term development, but most fans just don't have the patient to wait years before Lin become a all round player. They want to see Lin do what he has been doing during Linsanity. It is call instant gratification. Fans are just human......
DeleteYes, it's good for Lin to improve his D. But for most of the fans they only look at his number... since he didn't have good number so in Houston they all think Asik is doing a lot better than Lin. I don't get it. How come they can't just let Lin play like what they did in their 2nd games. Both Harden & Lin were doing well. But now Lin got less balls with no power to conduct the offense.
DeleteBy the way, if Lin and Harden wants to be good together, they need to watch how Kidds and Felton plays last night in the Knick's game. The ball should not stop at one PG hands.
ReplyDeleteNot gonna happen with the way the Rockets offense is being set up.
DeletePG Usage Rate:
Raymond Felton - 25.8
Tony Parker - 26.8
Jrue Holiday 26.7
TONEY DOUGLAS - 19.7
Jeremy Lin - 18.6....tied with Rodrigue Beaubois and barely above John Lucas III.
Fact is he's not really being used on offense. Toney Douglas is being used more than Jeremy. Mario Chalmers has low usage but that makes sense because Lebron, Bosh and Wade are on his team. Rockets have Harden and who else. Asik? Parsons? Patterson? Lin should have a usage AT LEAST over 20 on that team.
Harden leads the league in usage for shooting guards, surpassing even Kobe, when he's not nearly as good.
Rockets are going all-in on Harden and marginalizing Lin.
It's a two way street.
DeleteLin has no confidence in his own scoring, so he passes the ball. Coaches can't plow offenses through him if he keeps getting rid of the ball, so they plan their offense without Lin. Lin shrinks even more.
I keep saying that it's up to Lin, not the coaches. ATTACK. Lin didn't get here by being passive!
I do not think it's entirely up to Lin. Instead, I am more inclined to believe its all coach's instruction. In the post-game interview, the coach Kelvin has already come out with the excuse that Lin's left-hand is still not good enough, so they will not let him play more until he can improve his left hand. This is totally nonsense - I have not seen anyone complain his left hand this season, even those most anti-Lin columnist.
Delete@KHuang:
ReplyDeleteI get what you are saying to a degree, BUT I believe that Lin can score more, if only at the free throw line, if the ball were put in his hands. Even if the doesn't score more, the Rockets would still benefit because Lin would be running the show and getting people involved instead of Harden seeking his own shot. You have other people on that team that have proven ability as catch and shoot types. Why not let them do that? And let Lin slash and penetrate. The strategy is bad, and it is frustrating.
Who'd have thought that Unknown would believe more in Lin's scoring capability than KHuang does??!!!
DeleteGood points, Unknown. Get Lin to initiate plays and hopefully his jump shooting will improve, is what you and others here are saying. I WANT to believe you.
What I'm hoping for is that Lin gets a "Screw this, I'm just gonna PLAY" attitude. Then instead of trying to playing Twister with his feet and doing that funky T rex no arm Mini Me zero followthrough that he learned all too well this summer, he just lets the ball FLY the way Lin has all his life until this year.
I predicted this summer that Lin might start the season in an extended shooting slump. I want Lin to bust out of his convoluted jump shooting form and just FIRE.
Since Daryl Morey is into basketball analytics, I did another analysis on why Harden and Lin connection didn't work after winning 2-0. Perhaps it will help to convince him to "nudge" the coaching team to return the PG and primary playmaker role to Jeremy.
ReplyDeleteMany of us have been saying that it's a travesty to stuck Jeremy as a spot-up 3PT shooter in the corner and simply give the ball to Harden to create in the offense.
ok, and I managed to find time to draw a sketch of the Dynamic Duo - Lin and Harden :) Not my best work but it will have to do for now. Hope you enjoy it. Please tweet it to @dmorey if you think it will help Jeremy!
toondad.blogspot.com/2012/11/how-to-fix-harden-lin-lost-connection.html
How to Fix Harden-Lin (Lost) Connection
Harden and Lin were the best backcourt duo in the 1st 2 games but gradually lost their connection in the next 6 games (decreasing both of their performance) when Lin deferred the primary playmaker and distributor role to Harden. As a result, both of their performance suffered in the next 6 games.
How do we know it's true? In this short analysis, I will show that these general observations from many fans watching the game are validated by the statistics of lower 3PT%, worse +/- and Lin's lower usage rate (USG%) 3PT% in Game 3-8 which also pointed to the lack of ball movement expressed by Houston coaches. Houston coaches would need to right the ship by insisting Jeremy Lin to be the primary playmaker and let Harden be the best scorer.
...
1. Worsening trend of +/- Stats
2. Plummeting 3PT% for both Harden and Lin
3. The Usage Rate % (USG%) validated that he deferred too soon by giving the ball on offense to let Harden be the primary playmaker in Game 3-8.
In summary, the key message to Houston coaches is loud and clear:
Allow Jeremy Lin to be the primary playmaker and ball distributor to facilitate ball movement. He is the Point Guard after all. He will leverage Harden's strength as top scorer and secondary playmaker as proven in Game 1 and Game 2. And monitor the Lin's Usage Rate % to be at least 22% (similar to Dragic and Lowry in McHale system) to support their desire for more ball movement
Unfortunately in the last interview, Kelvin has already said that Lin's left hand is not good enough for them to let him play more PnR. This is obviously just an excuse in response to all the fans angers... I doubt they will change this style unless the top fire the incompetent coach or trade Lin away.
Deletethe whole left hand thing is such BS.
Deletesorry the link is not right
Deletehere it is toondad.blogspot.com/2012/11/how-to-fix-harden-lin-lost-connection.html
for Kelvin's PnR argument, that's definitely not a justification to let Harden be the PG because Jeremy proved in the first 2 games he made the whole team and Harden better being the PG even without the PnR. I don't know why they walked away from that. And Lin proved he had good chemistry with Asik to do high PnR in the preseason.
Folks, Lin is not slashing and attacking as much for a reason. If you had a knee sugery, been unable to run hard for 3-4 months until recently, you'd be tentative as well. Slow, steady progression is the key, and JLin is slowly getting back to form. It is absolutely true that it is up to JLin to score and fill up the stat sheets. And yes, KHuang, you have said that numerous times, and I totally agree. :)
ReplyDeleteFolks, there are plenty of opportunities for JLin to shine on this Rocket's team. For example, he can learn to be a better spot up shooter, move better without the ball, and develop a better mid-range shot or floater, etc.
As for putting your hands up and blaming the world when things don't go one's way, that should never be in one's dictionary. There are winners in life and there are losers. Winners find opportunities even during the toughest moments of life and turn every setback into step stones for future success. Unfortunately, it is true, most losers just complain.
Change a coach, change a team, change a system, etc. then things will be better they say; my question is, when will folks realize that the most important change is always within ourselves? When a person grasps that concept, it is the most powerful eye-opening experience one can have. You'll realize, like JLin has, nothing can keep you from achieving your dreams!
POR VS HOU - 4 More HRS! :)