For all of 5 minutes you saw what a small glimpse of what the Warriors had hoped would be a staple of their season: a line up featuring Curry, Thompson, Wiggins, Poole and Green. It swung the game in the Warrior favor. It also started with defense. While it also has great spacing provided by their shooters, to a man that line up has solid to great defenders starting with Green. Green hasn’t shot well from three in years, in fact he has more seasons shooting under 30% from three than over it. Now he does share the floor with some elite shooters but his true contributions are his defense, smarts and passing. I would even say in that order. My point here is, while Green can certainly make a three it is certainly not the aspect of his game that makes Golden State so lethal. They maximize his better talents by putting him in perfect places to use his passing and IQ to break a defense down. The coach didn’t show up with a predetermined role for Draymond, he created an environment for the natural skill set to evolve and eventually thrive. The point I’m driving at here is, with limited resources by which we can improve our team it’s important to remember that the thing that makes Golden State work is a smart, effective defense, an offense with a foot in both modern and old school basketball, and high IQ players. If they can hit a three, wonderful, that’s another useful weapon. Does it need to be requirement #1,2, or 3? In my opinion, no it does not. We should target the best defenders we can acquire who hopefully have a diverse skillset/high IQ and trust in LeBron and hopefully some smart guy coach to work that out over time.

If you think about it, and want to go down a bummer of a rabbit hole, we had guys that checked a lot of those boxes: KCP, Kuzma, Caruso, Green, Dwight 2.0 and JaVale McGee all understood what they were supposed to do on both ends and we blew that squad up. Having Rondo was enough to take the pressure off LeBron to make a play every possession, and the defenders on the perimeter along with our centers allowed AD to play the free roamer role he’s elite at. Whatever reasons as to why we strayed from that path are the wrong ones when building an actual team that can play on the floor. Teams on paper always look good, just about anything can look amazing before it’s counted on to perform. Finding players who can both excel in a role and co-exist with the greatness of LeBron and AD in a supporting and positive manner is difficult. Hope we can find some more that can…

#highhopes #lowexpectations #betternotblowitRob

Jeremy Lin: The NBA’s Great Tragedy by Spencer Young
How an inspiring figure for Asian-Americans around the world went from “Linsanity” to “Rock Bottom”https://t.co/hLQawuOqHg

— LakerTom (@LakerTom) October 29, 2021

STANDING IN FRONT a large audience in Taiwan, Jeremy Lin began to break down. While in tears, despite the cheers from his many fans in the audience, Lin admitted “Man it’s hard. Life is hard.”

“In English, there’s a saying, and it says, ‘Once you’ve hit rock bottom, the only way is up,’”he continued. “But, rock bottom just seems to keep getting more and more rock bottom for me. So free agency has been tough, because I feel like in some ways the NBA’s kind of given up on me.”

Lin, who won a championship after joining the Toronto Raptors midseason, admitted that the championship brought little if any satisfaction to him.

In his speech, titled, “The Waiting Game,” Lin explained, “After the season I had to get ready for this Asia trip and it was the last thing I wanted to do. Because I knew for six weeks I would have to just put on a smile. I would have to talk about a championship that I don’t feel like I really earned. I would have to talk about a future I don’t know if I want to have. And honestly, it’s just embarrassing. It’s tough.”

He further elaborated on his thoughts, saying, “If I have a son, I don’t want him to make the NBA. You don’t have to deal with fame, you don’t have to deal with living your life and having all of your failures on display to the entire world.”

His comments sparked a debate in the sports world. Why was it that Lin, with career earnings of over $50 million and a degree in economics from Harvard, complaining about the life he leads?

The answer lies in the tragedy of his basketball career.

…

NOBODY KNEW WHAT to expect when Jeremy Lin checked in with 3:35 left in the first quarter in a game featuring the Knicks and the New Jersey Nets. But, starting with his first basket on an aggressive drive to the basket to begin the second quarter, Lin took over the game.

Repeatedly, he ran screen and rolls, probing around the defense to find openings in the New Jersey defense. This aggressiveness led to many lob passes being thrown by Lin, who connected with teammates Tyson Chandler and Jared Jeffries for many baskets. Defensively, Lin was decisive, earning his first steal of the game just minutes after checking in; later, he stripped the ball from All-Star guard Deron Williams.

Heading into halftime, legendary commentator Mike Breen remarked that the game was “The Jeremy Lin Show.”

During their halftime intermission, Carmelo Anthony reportedly asked D’Antoni to give more minutes to Lin in the second half. And, after checking into the game midway through the third quarter, it was Lin who once again provided a spark, scoring seven points on an array of forays to the basket. Despite Breen noting that Lin looked “absolutely spent,” Lin received no rest for the rest of the game, playing out the remainder of the fourth quarter.

The results? 25 points, five rebounds, and seven assists, all new career-highs for Lin, and a 99–92 New York victory. With Anthony and his co-star, Amar’e Stoudamire, missing for an extended time, Lin was the new star for the Knicks, and D’Antoni intended to ride Lin’s success “like freakin’ Secretariat,” referencing an infamous racehorse.

And, while riding Lin’s success, the Knicks improbably embarked on a seven-game winning streak.

Among this unprecedented breakout for Lin, which infamously became known as “Linsanity,” included 23 points and 10 assists against John Wall, a former #1 overall pick, 20 points, 8 assists, and a game-winning free throw against Minnesota, and the Eastern Conference Player of the Week being awarded to Lin, who averaged 27.3 points, 8.3 assists and 2.0 steals.

Despite Lin’s name dominating both basketball media and the sports world, Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant claimed he “didn’t even know what he [Lin] had done.” But, a career-high 38 points, 7 assists, and a triumphant 92–85 victory over Bryant’s Lakers quickly brought the hype around “Linsanity” to an all-time high, while proving the validity of Lin’s abilities. After the game, Bryant called Lin a “phenomenal” player who played “extremely well.”

In the coming days, Lin tore apart the defense of the reigning NBA champions, the Dallas Mavericks. Though the Mavericks assigned Shawn Marion, who is revered for his defensive abilities, to defend Lin, the Knicks’ ascending guard finished with 28 points, 14 assists, and five steals.

Five days earlier, the most iconic moment of Linsanity occurred. With the score knotted at 87-all against the Toronto Raptors, Lin, who had 27 points and 11 assists, dribbled down the clock. With the smaller Jose Calderon guarding him, Lin calmly pulled an off-the-dribble three — and he nailed it, bringing Toronto’s Air Canada Center to its feet and winning the game, going away.

After his heroic performance, including averaging 22.5 points and 8.7 assists per game before the All-Star break, Lin was named to the Rising Stars roster during All-Star Weekend — with his unprecedented success remaining as a first in NBA history.

Years later, in a section of The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis, Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey admitted his bias clouded his vision when it came to Lin.

“He [Lin] lit up our model,” Morey said. “Our model said take him with, like, the 15th pick in the draft.” However, the consensus among scouts was in stark contrast to Morey’s analytical, objective data, as Lin was supposedly a smart but un-athletic player, a label based on the stereotypes of Asian-American athletes in the sports industry.

In the following years, Morey and his analytics team measured the speed of the first two steps of NBA players. This ability to quickly speed up or change directions is a defining quality of a strong athlete — and, from Morey’s findings, Lin had the fastest first two steps in the NBA.

“He’s incredibly athletic,” Morey later said. “But the reality is that every f***ing person, including me, thought he was un-athletic. And I can’t think of any reason for it other than he was Asian.”

…

And in the offseason, Lin was left with no offers, with the NBA seemingly giving up on him.

This is why Lin cried on stage in Taiwan. He didn’t cry because he sought another large contract, or he wanted to gain more fanfare than he already had, as some suggested.

No, Lin cried because he, as a little kid with big dreams from Palo Alto, watched as players spited his success, referees “swallowed their whistles” for him (a phrase meaning referees refusing to call fouls), and injuries ended any chance of him regaining the chance to fulfill the potential that made him an international superstar in the first place.

It is telling that Lin, who likely inspired more Asians and Asian-Americans in during his NBA career than any other player, save for Yao Ming, hopes that any child of his avoids the sport altogether. In other words, the potential to become a global icon doesn’t outweigh the pain caused by the bigotry and prejudice in the sports world.

Mark Twain, the famous American author, coined the infamous phrase, “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.” But at age-30, Lin has no more fight left to give. His athleticism is hampered by his hamstring and knee injuries, and his spirit is drained by having to put on a brave face for the millions of people he inspires.

This is Jeremy Lin’s story, and this is how a superstar athlete goes from dominating the sports world to being at “rock bottom.”

Ranking the Top 22 point guards for the 2021-22 season:https://t.co/bH03VKqey8 pic.twitter.com/yWYarS8aHK

— HoopsHype (@hoopshype) August 25, 2021

#10 – Russell Westbrook (LA Lakers)

2020-21 stats: 22.2 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 11.7 apg, 1.4 spg, 43.9 FG%

A slow, injury-related start to last season had some thinking that we might finally be seeing the decline of Russell Westbrook – until a brilliant second half of the campaign changed the narrative on that idea entirely.

Westbrook, who led the league in nightly assists last campaign with 11.7, was monstrous from March through the end of 2020-21, averaging 23.7 points, 13.3 rebounds, 13.3 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting 44.3 percent from the floor over a 36-game stretch to close the league year, helping lead the Wizards into the playoffs alongside Beal.

Now heading into his first season with the Los Angeles Lakers, Westbrook will be tasked with helping take some of the playmaking load off of LeBron James while wreaking pick-and-roll havoc alongside Anthony Davis, something that should be quite fun to behold for fans of the sport in general.

The almost-33-year-old Westbrook may be slowing a bit athletically and still lacks a reliable outside jumper, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a more tenacious point guard in the Association who plays as hard on a nightly basis as the former league MVP.

Magic #5
Thunder #6
Warriors #7
Magic #8
Kings #9
Pelicans #10

5 Positives which the LA Lakers can take from disappointing 2020-21 NBA campaign https://t.co/wKlkM2AxlB

— LakerTom (@LakerTom) June 17, 2021

#5 Dominance against the Phoeninx Suns before AD’s injury
#4 Winning culture
#3 Rest for the LA Lakers’ stars
#2 Frank Vogel’s defensive system
#1 LeBron James’ pre-injury form

None of the Lakers role players are capable of being out of their role to produce more.

The Lakers don’t have a Rose 🌹 or a Lemon 🍋 Pepper Lou or a Norm Powell…

A guy who can stop a12-2 run or a guy who goes on a 12-4 run by himself.

The Lakers require AD and LeBron to be at 100% and then most not all role players play their role.

That ain’t happening this playoff so in the offseason the #1 priority is finding either a really good individual scorer or a 3rd Star.

What we have in the pot ain’t gonna sustain this club. It ain’t in the cards.

New season coming up, LeBron just re-signed, there’s a lot going on the site. I’m a little confused though. I have the darndest times logging onto the site. As a blog editor, kind of important to be able to log in when duty calls.

Yes, we’ve all been displaced one way or the other. Work, home, family, etc.

Hoping we see more active participation this season. We’re going for #18 gang. That’s kind of a big deal because for 99.9999% of Lakers fans, the math wasn’t really on our side. Except for the last 40 years we’ve caught up.

We’re 16 wins away from being the eminent franchise, not just in the NBA, in all 4 major sports.

The Montreal Canadiens had their time. The Yankees had their time. So did the Greenies. Manchester United and Juventus and FC Barcelona all had their days in the sun.

The Lakers keep on moving. Winning championships in 5 soon to be 6 decades.

Welcome to the party!

Title #17

From the HOUSE OF Lakers and house of slytherin.

#17 tonight!! Let’s go Lakeshow!!

There’s a contest going on and it’s between the Hawks and the Lakers. Hawks keep raising the ante. At some point, a few million more isn’t going to matter. Lakers still have a shot at him. You should be rooting for us to get him.