LOL! Yeah, I try to be as clear as possible to avoid miscommunication, which obviously generates resentment on the part of those who choose obfuscation.
Yes, I watched Lin play. I know what he can do well and what he can't do well. I don't see why are you comparing him to Wade now. I don't know if anybody ever doubted Wade's ability to dribble with his left hand. His turnover percetange was pretty high, but not as nearly as high as Lin's. Yes, I do know the difference. Boston and Miami both had success against Lin by trying to force him left. Lin shot a combined 7-for-37 against the Heat and Celtics; the Knicks lost both games. Same thing against Timberwolves. They forced him left, he shot 8-24.
My main concern with Lin, which you allude to, is that he remain aggressive without inviting undue risk of injury. There is a balance between remaining aggressive and forcing the situation, and we can all agree he is still in the process of learning that balance, as are all players. Having said that, that does not take away from his potential or skillset. More to the point, there is a difference between a hot streak and setting an nba record for points and assists in their first 7 starts in the league. And this was without the benefit of a training camp, or any coaching at all, literally. He was literally thrown into the fire and produced record results.
Alright. This has been repeated by a lot of people multiple times. Am I the only person who thought that Lin's game improved as he went on. In fact, I would argue that his last few games were the best basketball he played during the entire period, better than his first 8 or so games. I didn't have any feelings of significant let down to be honest.
I did not. I felt he was overused without regard for his health in a condensed schedule. You could tell by his body language that he was incredibly fatigued and worn out prior to going on the injured list. He became more cautious yes, but only because he was tired and injured. But playing cautiously because one is tired and injured is not a sign of improvement.
And I don't understand why people doubt Lin's ability to dribble with his left hand. He dribbles with his left in games? Do people say that Jason Terry has no left hand, even though everyone knows that Terry loves to drift to his right before his shot?
Michael Jordan was right hand dominant as well. More often than not, he would go right. Most every player is right hand dominant, it's not unique to Lin.
He was coached, literally. Kenny Atkinson worked with him a lot while Lin sat on the bench (before he got significant minutes).
Carmelo was going to want 15-20 attempts no matter what. He's also disruptive to ball movement since he tends to hold the ball for long periods. I still think the knicks will struggle this season, since Amare and other shooters will be under-utilized.
Disagree. He played a lot better in his last few games was my perception. He was a lot more in control. In his last 7 games he ranked behind CP3 and Parker in terms of points and assists (he had an average of 18 & 8). He hit his last 40 of 42 FT's so his FT shooting improved significantly. He was going to his left with a lot more confidence and turning the ball over less as well. His defense was a lot more improved, more likely because the Knicks overall team defense was a lot better as well, they were communicating on the defensive end (cough Amare and Melo). Most importantly he was acting like a floor general, directing the offense. The Knicks in the last few games Lin played had 6 or 7 guys averaging double digits over that span. Once he was injured I still watched a few games with my boyfriend and there offense was more predicated on Carmelo Anthony scoring 40 points and less on a balanced attack. Point of note in those games they also reduced his minutes, however by that time it was probably too late.
Stop responding to Sigmund please. Just ignore him. He has been doing this for months. He will never stop and giving him the attention he wants will fuel him.
I am shocked that you were let down. Wow. Lin and Melo actually played pretty well together. I guess people did not notice that either. Lin played his best with Novak, Tyson, Landry of course. But he also played pretty well with Melo for someone that was learning on the fly.
He can be coached all he wants by Kenny. The real learning experience comes from playing significant minutes in actual NBA games. He was most definitely learning on the fly.
Stats bear this out actually. Lin and Melo played well together. It's a common misconception that they couldn't play on the floor together.
