At first, I was a little disappointed that Lin's 38-point explosion wasn't making headlines on sports websites, but then I realized that he's already famous enough and the last thing he needs is even more exposure. Someone mentioned this earlier, but it deserves to be repeated: at least the loss means we won't have ridiculous Lin vs. Harden trash written up by the media who need a new pot to stir now that the Miami Heat are no longer the Worst Problem in America™.
those weren't games in Rockets history though. Yes people are comparing his game to other games done by all time greats. just read the thread and stop being so jealous of the 99ers. we're Rockets fans first.. well some of us are. Stop hating on the 99ers cause we are Rocket fans first and we remember a bunch of great performances. This was good, but it was in a loss.
I think harden was trying to do to much because Lin was struggling now if Lin is over his slump I expect harden to let Lin do his thing more
1.The Rockets lost. 2. Monday Night football was the headline because it was more of a significant game in sports. 3. OJ Mayo and James Harden had 40 and 39 in the Mavs/Rockets game, that didn't make headlines. Why exactly would Lin's 38 make headlines over those other 2?
Now team really needs to find a way to get their defense going and find a way to play Lin and Harden at the same time. If coach can figure out how to maximize both's players potential when they play together this year, this term could be lethal in the years to come.
Because there was no such thing as Mayo-sanity. And b/c the league consensus is that Harden is perhaps the best young player in the game today. Meanwhile, people still are extremely skeptical of Lin due to a number of factors.
I agree, they never trust lin, not last season, not this season either, otherwise why they benched lin so many time already this season, doesnt matter he played good or bad.
the reason why espn has been quiet on this game was a couple days b4 this game, they had an article citing anonymous bball scouts saying Lin was a back up player etc. they totally trashed Lin. kinda like the crap that tends to go on here by a select few.
This game shows we need both Harden and Lin on the court to win games like this. Harden said he can't do it by himself, so can't Lin. Coach needs to try to figure out how to utilize their strength when they play together.
this pretty much answered the question. When Lin gets the keys to the car, he can be efficient on offense. When he's forced to play off the ball, he becomes a twill - standing at the 3 pt line waiting to brick a shot. conclusions: For now, start letting Lin initiate more of the offense. That was the plan before the Harden acquisition and it wasn't a bad one. For the future, Lin needs to work on playing off the ball. He's a smart kid, he knows that's a huge hole in his game. it may take a year or two for him to get really proficient at this but we're young and we got time. Harden needs more rest. Yeah he's young and we just made him rich, but we're taking the tread off this guy. Rest Harden more and leave Lin out there to create.
Didn't the Miami Heat lose to the Washington Wizards? There was no James Harden so Lin had 21 shot attempts and showed flashes of what he could do if he dominated the ball. He also got D-ed up when it counted at the end of regulation on an Iso play. We lost. that's the big stat. Lin's game was a positive and hopefully he builds some confidence and consistency from it. The Rockets need to emulate the Thunder where they have 2 scorers in Westbrook and Durant.
Are there any other pg's who make 5-8 this year in the league that have dropped 38 in a game this year?
That should have been their plan from day 1. Instead they were starstruck with Harden and wanted him to be their franchise player immediately and pushed Lin to the side. This is not conjecture. This is a fact. Remember that quote by Sampson saying this isn't "democratic" ball and that the coaches would rather have the ball in their "best" player's (harden's) hands? Not Harden's fault at all. He is not a selfish player. He was simply doing what the coaches asked of him. When you have 2 weapons, you need to use both...not just one. Sad, they are starting just 20 games into this season to realize this.
what about my question about Monday Night Football? Why would sports sites like ESPN or even the Houston Chronicle put Lin's 38 points over the Texans game?
I'm no X's and O's guy, but doesn't it make perfect sense for Lin and Harden to reverse their roles when they're on the court together? Lin is a poor spot up shooter but is usually pretty good creating with the ball. Harden is a really good shooter and ALSO really good with the ball. Since the strategy lately has been to let Harden handle the ball more and try to make plays, while leaving Lin to spot up and try and hit jumpers ... why aren't you playing to both their strengths and letting Lin bring the ball down and run pick and roll with Asik while Harden, the natural shooter, is the one camping out waiting for the kick outs? Doesn't that just sound too easy, or me no brain well?
In other words, let Lin play PG and Harden play SG...which just happens to be their natural positions. The ROX coaching staff doesn't seem to comprehend this blatantly obvious concept.
The reason you can figure this out is because you're smart and you don't have an agenda to promote. Can't say the same for the coaches can we?
