Jeremy Lin will start tonight.
by Seth on Feb 6, 2012 11:48 AM EST
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PrintMike D'Antoni just spoke to the media and provided a few updates on the Knicks' lineup going forward. First and foremost, it sounds like Jeremy Lin will get the start at point guard tonight. With Baron Davis's debut fading further and further into the future, there's no reason not to give Lin a shot at regular starter's minutes to see if he can replicate even a fraction of the excellence we saw on Saturday against the Nets.
From the sound of things, Lin will replace Iman Shumpert in the lineup for the time being. That makes sense, although I'd expect D'Antoni to mix and match backcourts to find the best pairings (it's like matching a wine with a Dunkaroos flavor, or whatever adults do.)
In the first link, you'll also find the news that Jared Jeffries will start at power forward tonight. His promotion, of course, comes in response to Amar'e Stoudemire heading to Florida to be with his family following the tragic death of his older brother. Jeffries played a superb game on Saturday and had some neat exchanges with Lin, so hopefully he'll keep up the good work in Amar'e's stead, however long that may be.
I'm suuuuuper excited to see what Lin can do tonight/henceforth now that the adrenaline has subsided and teams (better ones with better defense, including on the interior) will actually prepare to play against him. He'll probably regress (though I refuse to rule out Lin's averaging 25 and 7, if not more, the rest of the way) but following Saturday's performance, we have plenty of reason to believe he's the best healthy point guard on the Knicks. Now he's got a chance to prove that.
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Excellent! What a story this is if Lin becomes as awesome as I hope he is
Even so, going from a D-Leaguer, to a benchwarmer, to coming off the bench, and now a STARTER in the NBA- he should be thrilled! But still hungry for success, of course…
With STAT out, look for Tyson Chandler to be Tyson Chandler even more, Lin and the big guy looked fantastic on pick n rolls and oops! Should be a fun night.
not to forget...
coming from Harvard, damn near torching John Wall in summer league, barely playing and waived so much he said “the hell with getting a place i’ll just bring my sleeping bag” before finding Landry Fields couch. Thats one great feel good story!
by blackhova on Feb 6, 2012 12:54 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
nice!
New York Giants 2011 NFL Champions!!
My apologies to Jerry Reese
This is why
D’Antoni has to go. He is setting Lin up to fail. Why not use him as your backup PG to start? See how he is playing and he can still end up playing 30 min/night.
Is there a PG on this roster that has played as well as Lin played last night
There are many other reasons you could pick on D’Antoni but this is not one of them
This is not why
The problem is that its the first unit that is so in need of the PG assistance and the unit that has the most to gain. Do you really think that Lin setting up Melo, Chandler and Amare is being setup to fail when the other option is setting up Jeffries and ?…
This is why
we don’t let inmates run the asylum.
__________________________________________________
"He who gets the best players usually wins" - Bobby Bowden
by Russ on Feb 6, 2012 1:37 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Why not use him as your backup PG to start?
Because it’s imprudent for a coach to concede to coming back from a double digit deficit each night. I think this is the correct move.
2011-2012 season prediction: 22-44
And I'm fine with that. One of the original leaders of the "Dwight Howard, not Nono Hilario" movement.
Relax nate you will get your wish very soon.
But until then, why not Start Lin? He actually tries to at least imitate a point guard, which is more than anyone else has thus far. And if you are looking for him to play 30 mins anyway, why not start him. If he wets the bed you can always go bad to Shumpert or Douglas. But right now D’Antoni has a sense of what they can do, so why not roll the dice and see if he can “ride the hot hand,” for a few games. Really what does D’Antoni have to lose? He is basically coaching day to day as it is, so why leave anything in the tank. It would be a shame for the man to think, “what if I started Lin?” Why not start him and if it fails at least he can say tried that one.
My point is
he played a great game against the Nets, but it was one game. I realize D’Antoni is coaching for his life and has no idea how turn this team around. But, let’s see if he Lin can continue this before thrusting him into the starting lineup. And Big Tom, aside from the Net game, in at least the last 10 games the first quarter of all those games have been relatively close.
We have had exactly one good game out of the pg position all year
Now you want the guy who had it to come in off the bench? Behind who?
I hate losing more than I love winning -- Billy Beane
He needs a point guard to turn it around who can run the offense
He is not looking for Lin to be Steve Nash, but at least try to run a pick and roll and act like he actually knows what one is. And unless D’Antoni has some indication that he at least has enough games to do a gradual thing, then he really can’t take that strategy. Unfortunately Lin has to be thrust in and see if he can swim. Because really for all D’Antoni knows if the Knicks lose tonight he could be fired. I agree with you that it is not ideal to do this and that it looks desparate, but if you listen to D’Antoni he has basically said that is what he is, desparate. Lin played well on Saturday so Let’s start him and see if he plays well on Monday. If not well, if he is still here he will try something else.
I don't think there's any 'something else' to try
Before the Nets game, I think they were starting games OK with Shump. But clearly, the Knicks are better off with 30 minutes of actual point guard play.
In the Nets game, Lin played 36 minutes and it worked for them, but because Lin came off the bench he ended up playing the last 20 minutes of the game without a break.
If someone’s going to play more than 30 minutes, starting is a good idea because it allows the guy to get breaks. It’s as simple as that.
Get The Frickin' Rebound
you gotta realize it's a no win situation for dantoni
you know …unless he actually wins.
If he didn’t start him and we lost then he wouldn’t hear the end of it and you know it. I don’t even know that dantoni is 100% convinced Lin is ready but Saturday he def looked like he was the MOST ready.
sreh ladien e' ta janjia
by Lord Smackington on Feb 6, 2012 7:38 PM EST via Android app up reply actions
i was hoping lin starts
and everybody slides up a spot. carmelo at pf, landry at sf and shump at sg.
/// aighttho.com \\\/// twitter.com/aighttho \\\
Would LOVE to see that.
Melo probably would get beat up in the post a bit, but he’d torch just about any PF in the game on the offensive end. And we’d be all kinds of athletic on defense with Shump, Chandler and Landry. We could really get out and run with that group too. And the Lin-Chandler PnR would be a thing of beauty with the court spread out and a couple guys that can dribble drive on the wings.
great idea but not against the Jazz
he would definitely take a beating against Paul Milsap. but on offense, have Jeffries run an off-ball screen or Melo and bring out Milsap. limits his chance at rebounds and Melo can blow past him in iso
by blackhova on Feb 6, 2012 12:59 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I bet that 5 will see time together at some point
seems to awesome not to. Though, might not occur to MDA
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
D'antoni loves to play small
He’ll do it, or something like it. Melo will spend some time at the 4 I bet.
Get The Frickin' Rebound
Hope so
that lineup would be pretty good, and even better with Baron. Lose some D if you put Amare out there at C, but I think that would be good for him offensively.
Sheesh, just having a decent PG not named Shump opens up the possibilities so much. A healthy Baron will only help, but JR would make our depth respectable imo
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
At first I was skeptical of starting Lin so soon
But I think you’re right, just the idea of letting shump and even TD run around off the ball (TD should only play off-ball, shump can switch), could really do wonders for our offense.
Utah has four bonafide bigs, so going small like that would put Tyson Chandler out on an island.
For example, he might get into foul trouble as a result.
2011-2012 season prediction: 22-44
And I'm fine with that. One of the original leaders of the "Dwight Howard, not Nono Hilario" movement.
Carmelo doesn't want to play PF
though he will probably end up playing some tonight anyway. The other options behind Jeffries are Novak and Balkman.
sweet
Another chance to prove himself. Also — why is Al Izonnenenenanne tweeting that Fields is coming off the bench..?
posi..tive ....thoughts..?
@krishhhayyy
by gymtanlandry on Feb 6, 2012 11:57 AM EST via mobile reply actions
Was trying to figure that out myself
Is it possible that Douglas starts at the 2? That would be weird.
Get The Frickin' Rebound
Starting Douglas at the 2 after this horrible stretch
Would be a death sentence to D’Antoni’s tenure as the Knicks coach. More likely, Shump starts at the 2 and Fields off the bench. I think I’d prefer Fields to start and Shump to prove the instant offense with the 2nd unit, but either one works for me.
"We didn't lose the game; we just ran out of time."-Vince Lombardi
Staff Writer, GangGreenNation.com
There will be no Shump instant offense
If you haven’t noticed over the last 8 games or so, it appears that D’antoni has taken away the kid’s green light until he learns the difference between a good shot and a bad one. Shumpert didn’t learn that in college and it showed his first month and a half in the league. Shump basically appears to have been given a strict set of parameters on when to shoot. and beyond that he is not to look at the basket. As a result his shooting percentage is coming up some and his assists are starting to come up as well.
no way MDA takes the green light away from anyone
Just think he is trying to find his spots to best help the team, while not doing too much. I mean, if Jefferies has a green light, then so does Shump. Coming in with the second unit will only help Shump get back to what he was doing that made us love him – take it to the hoop and draw fouls. He got away from that when he was trying to run the point and take care of the big names, but he won’t have that responsibility too much for now. Only time will tell, but I have faith he can get back to shumping it up
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
Put your D'Antoni stereotypes asisde and take a look
Shumpert is averaging 8 shots a game in his last 8 games even though he has averaged 34 mins a game. Clearly he is shooting less and if you do not this is the result of instructions from the coaches then I can’t help you. As for Jeffries, yes Jeffries gets to take one ill advised 3 a game. Shumpert was launching 20 shots and 15 of them were bad. Secondly, of course he will still have that resposnsibility. Only and handful of coaches with Ultra deep benches actually play a second unit. Most coaches including D’Antoni mix their bench players in with starters. So there will not be a time where Shumpert would be on the floor that he would not be out there with Melo, Amare(when he gets back) or both.
there will be a time like that tonight
I was saying he won’t have that time too much, read it. People have such a hard time reading each others posts. Of course he will need some time there, Lin will not play 48 minutes and he is our next best option, but he will get a lot more time playing the 2 guard as well. Maybe MDA told him to stop running down the court and forcing it, but he wouldn’t take away any players green light, Shump has looked like he is trying to get others involved and defer some. We need him to be more aggressive, just not 20 shots a game aggressive unless he starts knocking them down a lot.
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
Baron's had a setback....
Not playing til after All Star Break at least….
This sucks…
....but we have Lin to fill in....
…and that’s good.
he's gonna have ups and downs, but he has basketball iq
i think he will be able to control tempo
Blue And Orange Over Everything
I was looking at the games in Golden State where Lin got more than 10 minutes...
And there were a couple recurring weaknesses, travelling and fouling. But most significantly his FG% was .389 – missed alot of shots. There was one game in Memphis where he took 4 shots, ALL BLOCKED, before he got benched. He got 21 minutes against Denver and went 0-5 – though next game he went 5-8 and 5 assists against Portland in 24 minutes. Now it was his rookie season and he didn’t get alot of minutes, he had a decent number of assists considering minutes. But it’s not like he was benched out of prejudice or something – he played a full season in the NBA and didn’t show much.
The point is that while the game against the Nets was huge, I think there’s a similarly huge risk of bust by putting him as starting PG right away, when deep down inside he’s got to feel like he hasn’t really earned it yet, considering last season. We’ll see, I am rooting for him though.
I will go to my grave believing that if the Knicks had picked up Earl Barron before the 2011 Playoffs, we would not have been swept by the Celtics.
P.S.
I also have a couple bad memories of him this season – one was his 3 turnover game in Houston when he got embarassingly crossed up by Kyle Lowry, and even in the Nets game at one point Deron just snatched the ball from him at the top of the key in a halfcourt set. All this is not to dump on the guy…but if he isn’t the Golden Child then don’t say you didn’t see the signs.
I will go to my grave believing that if the Knicks had picked up Earl Barron before the 2011 Playoffs, we would not have been swept by the Celtics.
And I don't mean he poked the ball, Deron grabbed it out of his hands on some purse-snatching ish
I will go to my grave believing that if the Knicks had picked up Earl Barron before the 2011 Playoffs, we would not have been swept by the Celtics.
Houston game had a lot of positives too
that’s like getting on Melo for turning it over too much or STAT for not playing D. He isn’t going to perfect every night, just hope he can keep penetrating and dishing
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
Melo and STAT are in a different league. Lin might have potential but you can't ignore his downside off one game
I will go to my grave believing that if the Knicks had picked up Earl Barron before the 2011 Playoffs, we would not have been swept by the Celtics.
The important thing is that he keeps trying
and doesn’t shrink, wimp-like, into tentative awfulness.
In fact, D’antoni mentioned this – he said that he was impressed at how Jeremy missed a bunch of shots and he thought Lin was going to wilt, but he kept on being aggressive and fearlessly taking the shots he needed to take.
Get The Frickin' Rebound
I am not comparing them as players
just saying that everyone makes mistakes. If he hands out 7+ assists again and doesn’t overshoot the ball, a few TO’s is fine – not to mention expected occasionally in this league
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
one thing he has done
is dish out assists. even in garbage time..
he had some passes agasint the nets that are not fluke game passes. they were skilled at being PG passes.
I think it was Bobby V who said: "You are never as good as you are when you are at your best, and you are not as bad as when you are at your worst."
Let the guys have their enthusiasm please.
Is Lin gonna play like an all star every game? Probably not. is it possible that he is gonna get abused tonight? yes it is, but I see what D’antoni’s thinking is. Lin at least tries to execute the offense, and if he can just focus on doing that, his individual stats will be gravy. D’antoni does not have much to work with, so he is rolling with what he has got.
as he should have been doing for awhile now...
You just got Tysoned!!!!!!
Maybe his game has improved some since then.
Just a thought.
I'm happy about this
I’m not expecting him to be amazing tonight, but I hope he is.
He really fired up our team with his play. It was an absolute joy to watch. Even when we were down guys were cheering and happy and not dopey looking.
I hope this kid can continue to bring this out of our guys.
My Wife is a Patriot's fan...
"Giants rely on fumbles and stripping the ball. If the pats secure the ball, then the pats win, but if they fumble or let the ball get striped than the giants win. every game the giants play they always benefit from the other teams bonehead mistakes (fumbled or striped) not from thier skills. The giants are a dirty team, I can’t think of any othe team as dirty as the giants. They try to strip the ball as hard as they can because they know they can’t win a fair game." by EaglesNeedD on Jan 23, 2012 2:01 AM EST
Good.
this really sets up the bench better too. If the starting lineup is Lin-Fields-Smello-Jeffries and Chandler, that leaves Shump as the backup PG, so now TD can play off the ball all game. Its really taht much advantageous to have him as the 2nd guy with the rock instead of bringing up the ball and making decisions. He’s just not that guy.
Last night, a comedian died in New York. Somebody knows why. Somebody knows
A little early to be starting
but, I don’t have a major problem with it…I actually like Shump coming off the bench…hopefully Lin keeps up the great play!!!
I’m so high right now off Giants…if NY gets blown out by 40 I’d still be smiling!!!
You just got Tysoned!!!!!!
im 50/50 about this
im still shell shocked from saturdays game but a lot of players play well in a reserve role. i like him coming off the bench because he can give that spark we’d need mid game. But for tonight, being we’re playing without Amar’e (R.I.P. Hazell), im kind of in favor of starting him. Out of all the PG’s we’ve played with this year, only Lin helped boost Jeffries offensive production. And thats just simply unheard of.
by blackhova on Feb 6, 2012 1:22 PM EST via mobile reply actions
I admittedly
Haven’t watched a lot of Devin Harris. How well do people feel Lin matches up with him?
He (Harris) seems to be a bigger physical guard in the mold of Deron, but he also seems to be very fast.
GO CUSE, BLUE, AND EAGLES!
Harris had been having a pretty hard time running Utah's system since the trade last I checked
so, not too worried bout him
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
The nice thing is
that if Harris or any other point guard is torching us
We can bring in Shump for a more defensive look whle Kenny A talks to Lin about it. When things start to get stagnant, Jeremy comes back in and gets things flowing.
It’s a good rotation.
Get The Frickin' Rebound
Devin Harris has regressed enormously.
The issue for your squad tonight imo will be matching up against their size. Jeremy Lin will not be the story of the game, in my estimation.
2011-2012 season prediction: 22-44
And I'm fine with that. One of the original leaders of the "Dwight Howard, not Nono Hilario" movement.
Jared Jefferies will!
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
this
does not inspire confidence. I’m not a jeffries hater but I don’t like this matchup for him
GO CUSE, BLUE, AND EAGLES!
It's not like he have much of a choice
With STAT out, we’re really going to miss Jorts.
__________________________________________________
"He who gets the best players usually wins" - Bobby Bowden
Tonight....
Is Jerome Jordan breakout night!!! 29pts, 15 Rebs, 6 assists!!!!
by robk on Feb 6, 2012 4:51 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
And what will he do after the 1st quarter?
__________________________________________________
"He who gets the best players usually wins" - Bobby Bowden
I could see him come in and get some boards
maybe a few dunks
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
This reminds me of the beginning of last season
When D’antoni decided to start Landry and Mozgov out of the gate. Worked for Landry, not so much for Moz. We’ll see.
I predict that Jeremy comes down to earth, shooting 3-10 (1-3 from three), 3-4 from the line for 10 points. 10 assists though, and Knicks win.
Also – I think one of Lin’s assists goes to Jerome Jordan.
Get The Frickin' Rebound
he wont get
25 points. But I will take 10 and 10 in a win!! And he should be able to defend Harris quite well
You just got Tysoned!!!!!!
Big Harvard and Big Stanford
backcourt tonight…opposition doesn’t stand a chance!!!!
You just got Tysoned!!!!!!
I like it
But this could go like that Simpsons episode where the smart people take over Springfield and everything gets totally screwed up!
Get The Frickin' Rebound
lol....I missed that one
sounds like a classic tho
You just got Tysoned!!!!!!
Starting with low expectations.
I do think he’s the best healthy pg on our roster (which isn’t saying much), but the Nets really have no interior defender. It does seem that at times he’s overaggressive among the trees inside and against the Nets we saw the results.
I’m all for starting him at this point as our pg play can’t really get much worse and I do think he’ll be serviceable… but I do hope everyone keeps expectations in check. He won’t average a triple-double… just 19-9-9. ;-)
well we get to see a real test tonight
hes goin up against a pretty solid interior defense devin harris is pretty much a downgrade from deron but he is quicker so id like to see how he matches up with him and his D in general… ill be there at the game too!
Yes!!!!
I’m actually not hoping to see Lin score that much and actually helping others produce!!!
I would love to see him continue to crossover fools and drive to the hoop for the And-1
the dishing out assists will come
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
That would create the first truly fappable boxscore
__________________________________________________
"He who gets the best players usually wins" - Bobby Bowden
No reason why Lin can't average a triple-double night-in and night-out
At these times, I don’t particularly want to analyze basketball, I just want to be excited and have fun watching somebody like Lin get his chance.
But I did like the idea of moving Melo to PF, with Landry at SF, and Shump at SG. That would be fun and it would create mismatches abound!
KNICKS NOW
http://nyknicksnow.blogspot.com/ - check it out!
Lin on espn
please tell me someone saw the nba on ESPN Facebook page where there is a picture for the power rankings an the three players in the picture. Paul pierce, tony parker, and JEREMY LIN!! Ha ha overnight superstar!!!
by Aaron Dominic Hollingsworth on Feb 6, 2012 4:42 PM EST via Android app reply actions
What?!
Link/screenshot?
Stainer of mountaintops.
by Chairman Meow on Feb 6, 2012 5:35 PM EST up reply actions
Wow!!!!111!
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150571986288643&set=pu.31881783642&type=1&theater
Stainer of mountaintops.
by Chairman Meow on Feb 6, 2012 5:36 PM EST up reply actions
Famous
Nobody knows who is one day and the next he is on the fron page of espn’s Nba page. He has to be siked right now.
by Aaron Dominic Hollingsworth on Feb 6, 2012 5:59 PM EST up reply actions
oh thats just not fair
they build you up to tear you down at espn.
/// aighttho.com \/// twitter.com/aighttho \
Chris Broussard just tweeted the Knicks and lakers have talked to the rockets about Johnny Flynn
NY offered bibby and balkman
by OFWG1554 on Feb 6, 2012 6:28 PM EST via iPhone app reply actions
Jonny Flynn sucks, so
that sounds about right.
guess it worked
next time, let the kid rest some in the third quarter, will ya?
2012 New York Mets, World Series Champions!
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