The Jeremy Lin era in Houston has ended with his trade to the LA Lakers, and to quote T.S. Eliot’s The Hollow Men, “not with a bang, but a whimper.” Lin was dumped as part of a salary cap clearing move, with the Lakers getting him & a future 1st round pick, as well as a 2015 2nd round pick, for the rights to foreign C Sergei Lishchuk.
The way Lin exited town was in stark contrast to two years ago, when he arrived with great fanfare as the face of the Rockets’ franchise after his run of “Linsanity” with the NY Knicks swept the attention of the nation. Most expected him to re-sign with New York after his star-making turn at Madison Square Garden, but Rockets GM Daryl Morey structured a 3 year contract with a 15 million dollar payment in the 3rd year that made it untenable for him to re-sign with the Knicks.
That same contractual lump sum & 8 million dollar third-year cap hit also forced the Rockets hand this offseason, as they had to move contracts to make room for a star player such as Chris Bosh or Carmelo Anthony. In fact, the recruiting of Carmelo Anthony with an image of him on the big board in Jeremy Lin’s jersey number 7 caught the then Rockets’ point guard by surprise. The deeply faithful Lin tweeted in response:
Luke 6:29 – If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them
— Jeremy Lin (@JLin7) July 2, 2014
The Rockets ultimately ended up losing Chandler Parsons, Omer Asik, and Jeremy Lin in order to swing for the fence on a 3rd superstar to go alongside Dwight Howard & James Harden, coming up as empty as a vagrant’s pocketbook. The Lin trade, for essentially nothing but cap space, illustrates how rapidly things can change in the NBA.
As for Lin’s Rockets’ tenure, it was an up-and-down affair, never quite materializing into what was expected of him. In two seasons with the Rockets, Lin averaged 13 points & 5.2 assists, not quite the Linsanity of the Madison Square Garden days. He had been heralded as the starting point guard and the focal point of the offense upon his arrival, but on the eve of the 2012-13 season, things changed with the acquisition of shooting guard James Harden from Oklahoma City.
The Rockets finally had a superstar in the Beard, but his ball dominating talents did not exactly mesh well with Lin’s similar demand for the ball in the backcourt. In Lin’s last season with the Rockets mostly coming off the bench, he did better his FG shooting percentage (44.6%) & 3 point shooting percentage (35.8%). Yet, it was never quite enough to win over the Houston media & Rockets fan base, who saw him as inconsistent & turnover prone, instead of a player improving with each year in the NBA.
With the trade to the Lakers, Jeremy Lin can once again establish a fresh start in a town that relishes offense & pizzazz, always trying to recreate the glory days of Showtime. Just like the Rockets, the Lakers also missed out on the big time free agents like Carmelo Anthony & Lebron James, and All Star Pau Gasol left in free agency to join the Chicago Bulls.
So while Lakers’ legend Kobe Bryant might never want to admit his team does not have a chance to compete, it is obvious this Lakers’ squad is as close to a championship as an Adam Sandler comedy is to winning an Oscar. The Lakers are rebuilding & clearing cap space to set the franchise up for major free agent runs in ’15 & ’16. Lin has a chance to get even more playing time, especially since the Lakers current starting PG under contract, future Hall of Famer Steve Nash, is 40 & has not played much of the last 2 seasons with an assortment of injuries.
Lin’s aggressive brand of basketball on offense will be welcomed in LA. He attacks the basket & creates shots for himself & his teammates. And while he’s never been thought of as an above average defensive player, he competed well in the Portland playoff series & has the tenacity to better that aspect of his game.
Lin will have to continue to improve his shooting & avoid costly turnovers, but he’s a good NBA rotation player still with room to develop.
Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak summed up what he felt the Lakers were getting in a media statement following Lin’s acquisition: “This trade allows us to acquire a solid player who will make us a better team, as well as draft picks to improve our team in the future, while at the same time allowing us to maintain financial flexibility. In addition to what he’ll bring us on the court, we think Jeremy will be warmly embraced by our fans & our community.”
Jeremy Lin is already a global phenomenon with his Taiwanese heritage & an icon among American-Asians for his success in the NBA, and the buzz has grown since his arrival in LA. The Northern Californian is closer to friends & family. It’s a new chapter in his career in the nation’s largest Asian-American TV market in the NBA. It is not the shockwaves he made signing with the Rockets after lighting up the Big Apple, but the Lin saga has taken so many twists & turns, it is surely appropriate his career is now going Hollywood.
⬇️ Follow Us ⬇️