sportsdude

by brian
(New York)

Seriously? While the Knicks are embarking on their first promising playoff run in over a decade, lead by the NBA’s scoring leader and best 6th man, did we really need another “feel good” story in Monday’s ’s New York Times(“From Phenom to Player’) about Jeremy Lin?

I liked the Lin story last year and I watched Linsanity with amazement like the rest of the city but I’m over it. Long over it. Since Lin has been around for a year, let me state what should be obvious by now: with work, Lin will be a solid role player at best.

Lin went from an average of 25 ppg during Linsanity to an average of 13.4 ppg and 6.1 assists over the course of this season. His numbers place him squarely in the middle of the second tier of point guards in the league, with household names like Darren Collison and Damian Lillard and back-ups like Nate Robinson (I don’t remember seeing any feel good stories about him after he left New York).

On the plus side, Lin averages a respectable 6.1 assists per game. That figure is of course helped considerably by the fact that most of his passes are to James Hardin, one of the most prolific scorers in the league. On the other hand, Lin also has the 6th highest number of turnovers in the league and his assist to turnover ratio is also in the middle of the second tier.

Remember for all the dark, apocalyptic visions painted by sportswriters and fans alike about the future of New York basketball with the departure of Lin? Of course, none of it has happened.

Keep in mind that only one NBA team offered Lin a contract when he left New York (and tell me the Rockets don’t have buyer’s remorse). Did nearly every basketball executive in the league miss the second coming of Steve Nash or another Chris Paul twin separated at birth? I don’t think so. The new meaning of Linsanity is how insane the Rockets were to overpay for this dude.

What the NYT charitably describes as a player developing his game, most would describe as an average player at best and at worst, a washout.

Lets enjoy the spring in New York and a promising playoff run with the Knicks our current team, which, with the leagues scoring champion and the best 6th man, looks pretty good to me right now.