When Lin first came to the Rockets, fans were optimistic that it would give new freedom to Lin's game. He showed glimpses of stardom in New York. But here in Houston, he could back down to Earth away from the shiny bright lights of the Big Apple. He could work on different aspects of his game, make mistakes, and grow as a young player. Nine games into the season, his fans are frustrated. His exciting, whirlwind, and immensely entertaining play is missing. And the very social issues they hoped Lin was escaping from are now rearing its head front-and-center every single game. From Lin's use as a spot-up shooter to his benching in the overtime loss to Portland, all is not well among Lin's most ardent fans. Fantasies of a youthful, exciting, and lasting Lin-Harden backcourt have now been swept aside in favor of cautious skepticism. "Why is Lin being used as a spot-up shooter?" "Why is Lin on the bench when he is playing well?" Lin's arrival gave Houston a huge influx in their fanbase, sponsorships, and national interest. It too, however, has brought increased scrutiny, polarization, and bickering. Once so optimistic, people are now asking whether a Lin-Harden backcourt will even last. Thoughts?
Asian fans? Lin fans? How about Rockets fans. Lin/Asian fans are not the only ones interested in the backcourt succeeding.
I've been a fan of the Rockets since I was little. This was before Lin and before Yao. Me being Asian affects the way I see the Rockets? Get out of here.
I don't really see what this kind of divisive thread is going to achieve. Just like the other thread about how all these Lin fans were supposedly Chinese. Isn't there enough crap between 'veterans' and 'new guys' already without stirring up the pot unnecessarily with this kind of stuff?
I don't know what is the problem. Perhaps they over estimated Lin to begin with and are crashing back down to reality. Lin is good. I think he's been good in all the games he's played for the Rockets. I like it. I like him. I like him on the Rockets and what he can do for the team. Lin has made some mistakes. The Rockets have made some mistakes. That's what happens when we have a young team that are still finding their rhythm. I see no problem with Lin and what he's done. I'm sad other people have a problem. It seems like good match to me but there's still room for improvement for both the team and Lin. I'm excited to see how it develops.
I think you should be ashamed for trying to trasmute one puny regular season loss into polarizing talk about race, and I don't think you should start threads any longer. Those are "my thoughts."
What social issues are rearing its head? Lin was in a very unique situation last year where he was essentially given free reign to do whatever he wants. His usage rate was at a superstar level. That wasn't going to happen here unless his performance warrants it. Lin is our starting point guard, and he's playing 35 minutes a game on average. He's done some good things, but he's also shooting 36% from the field. We're not going to just hand him to keys and ask him to take over the offense.
I think at this point every single fan of Rockets, Lin, and even perhaps Harden is calling for blood because the Rockets play better when Lin is handling the ball, Harden plays better when Lin is handling the ball. And unless the coaches have some grand plan, which I really hope they do, Morey really needs to take a cold hard look at his stats and then at the floor and make something happen.
My advice to you is spend more time watching basketball. That goes for everyone on the Lin bandwagon.
Hi FranchiseBlade, At first I thought that may have been the case. But after last night (and also after giving it more thought), I'm really starting to be a skeptic now. As we all know, there's is a legion of Lin fans on the board. There's this unseemly mix of confusion, frustration, exasperation. Pages of pages of comments and almost certainly tons of worry. It can certainly be a challenge separating the signal from the noise. But I can't get that lingering feeling of doubt out of my system. Instead of opposing teams gameplanning how they can contain Jeremy Lin, there's a lingering feeling that it's our own coach that may be trying to contain him. Why? I really don't know. Hopefully, there's a greater reason behind it all.
That's their problem, not ours or the team's. They didn't have realistic expectations of Lin moving forward. It's about the team, a team, not one player.
the Rockets organization, coaching staff, players, and universal fanbase just aren't concerned about Houston's Asian fans. sorry. go Rockets.
I'm referencing the culture clash and the persistent complaints of racism (whether true or not). Lin is shooting 36%, but TD is shooting 26%. And Lin really hasn't taken that many shots per game thusfar, so he's not really taking over the offense. He's largely played a distributor role, when he isn't playing the role of a Ray Allen corner jumper 3 man.
NY deja vu all over again? It might take a Harden groin injury for the coaching staff to appreciate what Lin brings to the table again.:grin: The upside is that Lin is not taking heavy minutes which is probably good for his knee in the long run.
When I wrote the title, I put out the lowest common denominator of his fan base. Of course, yes, there are many non-Asian Jeremy Lin fans. It's also just some of the things I've noticed on the board. I think there are a lot of people hoping for a successful Lin-Harden backcourt, but the legions of LOFs (who I imagine are Asian) and the legions of anti-LOFs (who I imagine are non-Asian) are drowning out the less vocal fans.
What makes more sense: (1) Our coach has a personal grudge against a classy, underdog, totally coachable young player that the organization has invested a lot into. (2) Douglas's best defensive game this season came the last time we faced Portland, and Lillard hurt us last time at the end of the game and he was hurting us at the end of the fourth quarter. So, coach decided to try Douglas instead for defensive purposes and rely on Harden to create the offense. If its (1), it pretty much makes no sense on the coach's part. If its (2), its certainly a call that is debatable (ESPECIALLY in retrospect). Still, there's a rationale behind it. I'll go with (2).
other than his shooting %, I don't know why people would think this kid sucks. I enjoy watching Lin play and you're talking to someone that wanted to shed tears when he first heard the gogi song. the problem is that the coaching staff's hard-on for harden has lasted more than four hours. It's time to consult a physician. Both hero and democratic ball can coexist, it's just finding a way to mesh them to perfection. Hopefully, mctalky can do it when he rejoins our efforts. nine games in, we should be 7-2/6-3 instead we're 4-5...i'll take it for now. =)
