Linsanity Over

[ChiefDK]

That was quick..ESPN didn't even mention him while showing last night's highlights. The Knicks are a franchise that's been treading water for 40 years now and will continue to do so. As a Celtics fan, I enjoy it. Spike Lee, have a seat.

[KG_ended_Bias]

It never started in my eyes! Even Acie Earl & Mark Blount had decent stretches of play with the Celtics at a point in tgeir careers. The whole LIN THING was severely overblown & I never bought in. But he can be a decent spot starter & legitimate back up who can stick around for some years.

[Roy H.]

Shocker.  Carmelo came back, Lin got largely pushed aside, and the Knicks starting losing.

[KGs Knee]

Dude is essentially a rookie.  What did people expect?

I remember a few years back when Jennings went off on a hot streak for "X" number of games and people got all excited about that too.  Heck, I think Jennings actually scored 50 pts in one of those games.  Yet, once teams started to figure him out a little, he came back down to earth.

That is exactly what is happening here.  And just like Jennings, Lin stands a decent chance at recovering, improving his game, and becoming a good player in this league.  All-star level, probably not.

The hype he was receiving is just a product of the way the media works today.  Always looking for the "next big thing".

[ACF]

I remember a few years back when Jennings went off on a hot streak for "X" number of games and people got all excited about that too.  Heck, I think Jennings actually scored 50 pts in one of those games.

55.

[the_Bird]

Dude is essentially a rookie.  What did people expect?

I remember a few years back when Jennings went off on a hot streak for "X" number of games and people got all excited about that too.  Heck, I think Jennings actually scored 50 pts in one of those games.  Yet, once teams started to figure him out a little, he came back down to earth.

That is exactly what is happening here.  And just like Jennings, Lin stands a decent chance at recovering, improving his game, and becoming a good player in this league.  All-star level, probably not.

The hype he was receiving is just a product of the way the media works today.  Always looking for the "next big thing".

...  being in New York certainly did not hurt Lin's cause.  I don't think Bloomberg TV ever ran a "Jennings-O-Meter" in the morning!

'Melo has really come out of this kind of looking like a turd, though. 

[KGs Knee]

I remember a few years back when Jennings went off on a hot streak for "X" number of games and people got all excited about that too.  Heck, I think Jennings actually scored 50 pts in one of those games.

55.

TP for the exact amount.

This is exactly my point.  Has Jennings ever had a game like that since?  Players have hot streaks all the time, and eventually come back to earth.

Doesn't mean Lin won't live up to the hype, but there's really no need to put those type of expectations on a player after to so few games.  It's rather absurd actually.

[KGs Knee]

'Melo has really come out of this kind of looking like a turd, though. 

I'm not really sure it's Melo's fault though.

Melo is a scorer, he needs the ball in his hands.  Everybody knows this, and so did Ny when they traded for him.

Melo is capable of working with a PG, but it has to be a specific type of PG.  I'm not sure Lin fits the description.  Lin is at his best with the ball in his hands.  His strength is the PnR and drive and dish.  This is not Melo's game.

Really, the only PG Melo has worked well with was Billups.  This is because Billups is more of a play-making PG, who also is a good spot up shooter.

Funny aside.  You know what PG Melo would probably work really well with?  Our very own Rondo!

[ChiefDK]

It never started in my eyes! Even Acie Earl & Mark Blount had decent stretches of play with the Celtics at a point in tgeir careers. The whole LIN THING was severely overblown & I never bought in. But he can be a decent spot starter & legitimate back up who can stick around for some years.

The Knicks are better off trying to trade Melo (perhaps for Deron Williams, who may not want to stay in NJ/Brooklyn) and using Lin as a 6th man. He would be a great 2nd unit player.

[greenpride32]

Keep in mind that when Linsanity started it was without both Stat and Melo.  Now they have both returned and are getting the shots.  Add to that the recent return of Baron Davis who is getting a good 15-20min a game.  So Lin's minutes and shots are down quite a bit.  He is still productive and effective in his minutes. 

It all boils down to an ego issue.  No way the NKY are going to make Lin the primary offensive weapon when they have $60-80m men in Stat and Melo.

[indeedproceed]

'Melo has really come out of this kind of looking like a turd, though.  

I'm not really sure it's Melo's fault though.

Melo is a scorer, he needs the ball in his hands.  Everybody knows this, and so did Ny when they traded for him.

Melo is capable of working with a PG, but it has to be a specific type of PG.  I'm not sure Lin fits the description.  Lin is at his best with the ball in his hands.  His strength is the PnR and drive and dish.  This is not Melo's game.

Really, the only PG Melo has worked well with was Billups.  This is because Billups is more of a play-making PG, who also is a good spot up shooter.

Funny aside.  You know what PG Melo would probably work really well with?  Our very own Rondo!

Disagree. Well, I agree that Melo needs a certain type of supporting cast. But, I disagree that Lin doesn't fit that description, and disagree that Billups was the only guy who maximized Carmelo. AI and Andre Miller both had good seasons with Melo, but ran into the buzzsaw that was the Spurs and the Lakers.

I don't know what Melo's situation is in NY, but I have to think the coach's role has something to do with it.

[PosImpos]

Shocker.  Carmelo came back, Lin got largely pushed aside, and the Knicks starting losing.

Let's not forget to blame Amare, too.  The guy has been a shadow of himself this entire season.

[huzy]

'Melo has really come out of this kind of looking like a turd, though.  

I'm not really sure it's Melo's fault though.

Melo is a scorer, he needs the ball in his hands.  Everybody knows this, and so did Ny when they traded for him.

Melo is capable of working with a PG, but it has to be a specific type of PG.  I'm not sure Lin fits the description.  Lin is at his best with the ball in his hands.  His strength is the PnR and drive and dish.  This is not Melo's game.

Really, the only PG Melo has worked well with was Billups.  This is because Billups is more of a play-making PG, who also is a good spot up shooter.

Funny aside.  You know what PG Melo would probably work really well with?  Our very own Rondo!

Disagree. Well, I agree that Melo needs a certain type of supporting cast. But, I disagree that Lin doesn't fit that description, and disagree that Billups was the only guy who maximized Carmelo. AI and Andre Miller both had good seasons with Melo, but ran into the buzzsaw that was the Spurs and the Lakers.

I don't know what Melo's situation is in NY, but I have to think the coach's role has something to do with it.

Melo doesn't fit D'Antoni's system, simple as that. This was the biggest flaw in the Denver/NYK trade last year. And this is the problem with New York losing sight of the big picture.

Trading for Melo was about stealing headlines and selling tickets. It was about landing a "superstar" after missing out on LBJ. They failed to realize that he contridicted the incumbent coaching philosophy and didn't fit the team at all. He didn't. After committing to Melo, they should have dumped D'Antoni and found a coach who executes half court sets that rely on ball dominance.

The added problem was that Lin re-introduced the  "7-seconds or less" transition / drive and dish / share the ball system that Raymond Felton had renewed before that trade last year. But it was a mirage because the team success was coming from distribution (See: Steve Novak suddenly becoming a vital piece of that team)

This isn't Melo's fault as much as it's a problem that existed before Lin.

Knicks management made a mistake keeping D'Antoni after signing Melo. That team needs to have one or the other. Melo's game and D'Antoni's sytem cannot co-exist.

[Bankshot]

Is Lin a free agent after this year?  I'd like to pick him up as backup to Rondo.

[CelticG1]

Let's also not forget that stretch was against some pretty crappy teams except for the lakers who played them them in a back to back after our OT game against them.

Its still a great story though and was a good story when he first got picked up by the warriors. I don't ever see him being a good starter but a good role player /spark plug off the bench. Hope he doesn't disappear in a couple years