Doesn't mean it translates on the court. And those numbers were for straight-line sprinting, he has a significantly lower vertical leaping ability than both.
Actually the rockets measured his speed in on the court scenarios and he's the fastest accelerator they've measured since they started measuring 2 year ago. There are several accounts from different sources e.g. NYK, BAM, Rockets that support the notion that Lin posseses elite speed. The guy accelerates faster than Usain Bolt, of course he's fast! However, I agree with the comment before, he does not posses elite athleticism around the rim...due to his relativley average vertical leap and lateral quickness - by NBA point guard standards (who are some of the best athletes in the world).
It's a fair point that draft measurements are done in a testing environment and not in-game environment. The only in-game measurements we have are the accelerometers that Morey embedded in the players' practice uniforms. And based on those actual in-game measurements, he stated that Lin's acceleration was faster than any Rocket that has ever been measured using that system. Obvious Rose and Westbrook have never allowed Morey to put accelerometers on them, but at least we know Jeremy has faster acceleration than anyone on this year's or probably last year's squad (assuming Dragic and Lowry also wore Morey's accelerometer-embedded practice jerseys last year). And these are actual in-game results and measurements, and not the artificial testing environments used in draft measurements.
How can you not deserve something you aren't getting anyway? The 8m cap hit (the result of a gimmick devised by the rockets' GM in the first place) is relevant only to the organisation, Lin is not benefitting in any additional form from Morey's intelligent use of the new CBA apart from getting the 5m owed to him by the organisation this year. That's like rearranging the payment scheme of an employee from 50k/50k/150k to 80k/80k/80k so as to benefit from loopholes in the taxman books then to tell said employee in his first year: " Damn it! You don't deserve the 80k I'm not giving you!" Why should Lin be held accountable for said 8m cap hit if only 5m of it is actually going into his bank account? LOH logic once again fails.
I would think that horizontal speed is much more important for a PG than vertical leap, though it would certainly be a big bonus if Lin could regularly finish above the rim. And for a guy who supposedly can't jump, Lin gets a lot of rebounds and finishes at the rim well.
I think there are a few reasons why Heat's defense is particularly effective against Lin: 1. Lin sometimes likes to slow down at half court to read the defense and probe around the perimeter (which works very well for most opponents), but Heat's defense is determined to not giving him any room to do that; 2. Heat is very good at trapping ballhandlers and they have a knack of double teaming them at the right moment -- Lin certainly needs more experience to know how to avoid running into such situations; 3. Lin's first time of playing at Heat's home court may still haunt him in his worst nightmares. There are a few things he can do even right now to counter this: He could constantly push up his tempo and make the best use of his speed, not allowing the defense to set or key in on him (which he did succeed on a couple of plays last night); he could pass the ball out more quickly once he sees the double team coming, but that requires his teammates to help. But I think he did a much better job last night than the last time he played there. Good to see him growing and learning!
The fact that Lin was aggressive and gave Harden room to relieve from getting constantly double teamed is already a + and improvement for yesterday's game.
Heat is so athletics, anybody would have a hard time playing well against them. I thought Lin played much better than the first time him played them. He missed 2 or 3 layups. If he made them, it would had been about 20 points for him. He is almost there.
wow. just wow. A gimmick devised by the GM? He didn't make up the rules, he exploited the rules weakness. First off these normal employee hypothetical situations are just stupid. This isn't a normal job. Some random company doesn't have rules as to how much they are allowed to spend on their employees. An owner is free to pay what they want. NBA owners don't have that luxury, there are rules. Second, the man who is cutting the check isn't saying he is overpaid, some fans of the team think so. I'm not even one of them, I just can't stand how people are continually getting this contract stuff wrong. Third it doesn't matter how much money he actually gets. I really don't see why this is such a sticking point with some of the Lin fans. What he counts towards our cap is what we should evaluate his performance against. No it certainly isn't his fault that the rules regarding his contract are so rare and different, but that's just the way it is. It's the same thing for Omer, 8.3 million dollar player. Not 5 mil, 8.3 mil. Honestly you claim that these "LOH" are the ones doing something unfair to make Lin appear as if he isn't worth the 8.3 million, but the way I see it the ones who are clinging to the 5 million dollar number are the ones being disingenuous, trying to represent him as something he is not.
Oh, if you are not among those who think he is overpaid, then fine. I am no LOF, I actually think that Lin is a bad fit and should be traded for a "lesser Harden" such that Harden can play in something approximating the triangle offense or with a dominant big man in a classic inside/outside strategy. But I take issue with the "What he counts towards our cap is what we should evaluate his performance against". By all means you evaluate someone's performance in a certain task against the actual compensation you are giving to that person to do that task. Insisting that Lin should perform as a 8m player while being actually paid 5m to do so and that this is a fair evaluation is just bull. He IS a 5m player because that's what he is being paid (hence LOH logic fails). What Morey's "clever" use of the CBA means is that a 5m player is actually being counted as an 8m player against the cap, which is not that clever finally. But as far as Lin is concerned, he is living up to what he actually is, a guy paid 5m to play PG. You say that he is not an 8m PG? Great, we at least agree on something.
Well continue to live in your fantasy NBA world where the cap hit is irrelevant if you like. All I know is that when Morey is looking at trades and potential free agents he isn't counting Lin as a 5 million dollar player this year or next and he certainly isn't counting Lin as a 15 million dollar player in year 3. He will be counting him as an 8.3 million dollar player all 3 years, because that's the way running a team with a salary cap works.
The rockets played back to back and in Miami on the road and nearly won't he game. The rockets with Lin running the show are dangerous Ad I agree, Lin gets a lot of boards for a guy who can't jump. Linis a damn good player who's improving quickly. Plush is quickness is back. Watched video of Lin early in the season. No comparison to his quickness now.....
<br> Ding ding ding! We have a winner. That's the whole point and the only thing that a Rockets fan should care about.
His upside to me is his trade value. He doesn't fit with this team and I would rather have the cap space or a real power forward.
<br> I believe my entire argument is that there are always points in the game when defenders close out on Lin. You seemed to state that those opportunities are never there. Hence the entire argument...
What does it tell you? To me Lin like brooks, dragic, lowry, scola, landry etc. a replaceable piece. Harden is not. He is the star.
That it was easier to make Lin make mistakes? That they felt they could let Harden go off as long as they held the rest of team in check?
Wow talk about sensitivity. It tells you that they are aware that Lin is a good player and can change the game if they allowed him to play freely. Which means he has a lot of upside. Whether you guys believe it or not that's your problem. But a team don't contain a player if the player has no value/contribution to the overall team's success.
