There is a prejudice against Asian in American basketball. I personally know situations in high schools that coaches typically prefer blacks over Asians simply because they automatically ASSUME that blacks are more athletically gifted. If Lin were black, being the best high school player in California would certainly attract recruitment from major college programs. When Yao Ming first came to the NBA, a LOT of media people dismissed him as nothing more than a giant stiff without even giving him a chance to show what he could do. Some boldly predicted that picking Yao over Jay Williams would be worse than the Bowie over Jordan pick.
Lin should try out for the Raptors. He could probably compete aagainst Jose Calderon for a starting job.
He was competing for minutes when Jarrett Jack was there, but they eventually the Raptors traded for Bayless which made Calderon the starter.
I'm sure Lin could at least back up Calderon. BTW, any confirmation on the waiving? Because the next move would finalize our line-up.
Welcome to America? There's prejudice against Asians in everything from college admissions to media. That's part of the deal. You work harder for the same or less than everyone else. You accept it and don't make a stink about it. It's still better than what you'd get in your "real country." At least you're not on a plantation or building a railroad. Stand at the back of the line and don't make a fuss and we'll give you your share (as determined by others). The Houston Rockets are treating Lin fairly. It's pretty hard to feel bad for a guy playing in the NBA. You should probably more concerned that when Lin uses his Harvard degree and gets a job at corporation somewhere he's statistically less likely to break the glass ceiling working the same or harder as a white, black, jewish, latino dude in the next cubicle because of the color of his skin and the slant in his eyes.
Lin would have to compete with Bayless as well. I'm sure Lin could be a backup for any NBA team, if given a chance. Following Twitter is a good way of finding out if Lin gets waived, Marc Stein was my source on the waiving and claiming of Jeremy.
Flynn makes too much for a 3rd PG, the same way Thabeet makes too much for a 3rd C. Lin only played a few minutes and made a lot happen, while Flynn hasn't done much that I remember with a lot more playing time. Question for the capologists: If they traded Flynn or Thabeet for cap space or a TE would that open up space or are the Rockets over the cap yet?
If we are going by this list, and the salary cap is at $58 million and add Dalambert's $7 mill but deduct one of those players...the Rockets would be under the cap but not by much. http://hoopshype.com/salaries/houston.htm If Flynn's contract really is a Team option for next season, that's actually even more attractable as a trade asset since he could free up even more salary cap for next summer.
Yi was supposed to be that man. He is the current MVP of FIBA Asia as well, unfortunately for him Yi he hasn't lived up to his hype. Even though China has 7ft+ players, Yao's work ethic and determination seems to be unmatched. This is the next "young" Chinese prospect. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7BUANG-o9Iw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
I have joined this forum from the West Coast where I followed Lin's career pretty closely. Recommend everyone tone down the Asian heritage angle. It really became detrimental to him in Oakland. The good news is the Warriors waived him as a result and it is an opportunity for the Rockets if they manage him correctly.
Flynn by a mile, this board gets attached to scrubs far too easily. These are the same peeps who preferred Ish Smith to AB. Flynn is finally healthy and has far more upside, he will come around.
I'm wondering why they haven't waived him yet? Do they just want him as a practice for the next couple of days or they're trying to make a trade? The Rockets have players in the 1, 2, and 3 spots who deserve at least 20 mins per game but might be get DNPs instead.
The Flynn supporters often seem to call Lin names or talk about pedigree or appearance instead of citing reasons for their support of Flynn. I believe that Lin should be on the team because of better defense, size, team play, awareness, rebounding, lack of playing time to show what he can do, etc. I just want the Rockets to win. If I have a precious possession on which I have to bet my life, I'd rather put the ball in Lin's hands. This is no disrespect to Flynn, who has upside, just that Lin has already shown me more positive and less negative in what little time he has played when you add up all of parts of what makes a team win. Lin is a keeper at PG (with a further bonus being that he can play SG and even SF given the right matchup, like he did in the final minutes against SA), and I think he would be an asset to any NBA team.
Pressure from the Asian fans simply for BEING an Asian is too much for anyone to bear. And he's not even Yao. Instead of the Chinese, its the Chinese/Taiwanese Americans.
