Parsons should be in the poll. Why would you include Pat instead of Parsons? I'd put Parsons as the leader given how he's always trying to build team chemistry, has a natural confidence about him, and will get in the face of the opposition.
Parsons and PPat. I thought both had stated as such in interviews. I think Delfino will step up too, veteran presence and all that stuff.
Hardin- He's the highest paid player, has the most credentials, and is the best player on the roster.
No idea why you find it shocking. The leaders in most organizations are rarely the most technically talented. How many Generals are ex-Seals? Leadership is about how they get along with team mates, whether those team mates respect their thoughts and opinions, whether they actually WANT to be leaders, and most importantly who the team wants to Follow. Could it be James Harden? Sure. Does James Harden WANT to be the leader? Is he that sort of personality? We'll see.. but Lin is as good a bet as anyone in terms of setting the tone of the team on and off the floor.
I don't think Lin is the vocal leader everyone is thinking he is. On the other hand he can definitely lead by example.
The leader usually is not the best player. Derek fisher was the true leader of the lakers, not Kobe. Kobe butted heads with lots of his teammates smush Parker. Carmelo Anthony is the best player on knicks, but his leadership ain't worth squat, Tyson chandler is the leader of that group.
Parsons is the glue guy, not necessarily the leader. Lin can lead by example but he's not that assertive. I'd like to say Harden based solely on his alpha dog status on the team and his abilities on court.
On the court - Harden and Lin. Harden b/c he's the #1 guy and Lin b/c he's the PG. They'll keep players accountable for mistakes. Remember Lin yelling at Melo and Amare for not boxing out on a putback that cost them the game. That was probably the most impressive thing about that stretch run, a 10 game "nobody" telling off the "superstars." Off the court - I think it's Parsons. When the team goes through the inevitable tough patch I can see Parsons bringing the guys together to talk or just go out for some team bonding. Parsons was the first to welcome Lin and also the first to welcome Harden. I don't see Lin or Harden, who are both rather reserved off the court, doing this.
I don't know why people are being snarky about Lin having 70% and assuming it's Asian LOFs. He is the point guard, ie the floor general.
Where did you get this notion that he isn't assertive? In the pre-season games when they were panning to the team huddle Lin was standing in the middle talking to guys. Odd that people say Lin isn't assertive. I get the whole he is humble thing but that doesn't mean he isn't a vocal leader on the court. From the video's I have seen & teammates comments he seems like the leader to me.
^ Yes, I definitely think on the court it will be him (as PG) and Harden (he will be a playmaker as well). Maybe Lin isn't a locker room leader, though. That's a different thing. I think Tyson is the locker room leader of the Knicks, but he's not the floor general on court.
Maybe we're working off different definitions of a leader here. Yea since Lin's the PG he's going to be in the huddle and calling plays/pointing out what's necessary. But in my eyes, the leader is the guy who goes out there and gets it done. The one leading the charge? And as our best offensive weapon/facilitator and most talented player, Harden is the leader. When the offense gets a bit sticky and slow, or the team is down by 10, teammates are going to look at Harden to get something going.
I look at that definition as the "go to guy" or the "star". Harden is definitely the "go to guy" or "star". I doubt anyone would dispute that. Lin will still be directing alot of the offense simply by being the PG with input from Harden as Harden is no slouch as a playmaker.
The rockets get Harden for the core player for building the team, he is a franchise player for this team, and will get the pay for this. If Harden is not the team leader for this team, the trade will fail. Yao was a leader, Tmac was a leader too, but Rafer can be a captain for a while, but not the leader of the team.
A leader is the franchise player who is the best player on the team, get the highest pay, and can determine the future of the team. Can Lin be this player?
Hmm. I see. Well we will see when games start how things develop. I guess we do have different definitions of the word leader. Despite adding Harden he isn't the best player on the team. Neither is Lin. It's Asik. And I define best player as the person who contributes the most to winning. We lose games if Asik is injured cause teams will be running lay up drills against us.
Jeremy lin. 1) he showed his leadership not only in short period time in NBA but also at his high school and Harvard. 2) he might not be as talented as harden, but talents are not necessarily translated to a leadership. Whoever has passions for the team and is willing to work harder with teammates should have better reason to lead the team. Jeremy is definitely this kind of man. For example, last season he worked with Tyson chandler, the DPOY, for tyson's anger management. 3) he showed no fear when the team needed him. He screamed at Amare/ Carmelo for their lack of defensive effort against Milwaukee. Those characters are rare, jeremy has already shown them at his young age. So we should be happy that we got Harden, a big talent , to the team and we also should be happy that we have Jeremy lin, a real leader.
