Point guard Jeremy Lin has essentially
become a restricted free agent now that the New York Knicks’ season is officially over
but the Knicks may not have the money to sign him to a long term contract. The
only good news for the Knicks is that under league rules, Lin can only sign for
a maximum of $5 million per season over the next two seasons.
That doesn’t prevent teams from offering Lin a longer
contract paying him more after those first two seasons though. If the Knicks
can’t compete with a team willing to sign him to a longer contract then that
could be the end of the “Lin-sanity craze” in New York.
Besides, Lin and Carmelo Anthony never seemed to mesh on the
floor together so Lin may be looking for an offense more tailored to his
skills. With that in mind let’s take a look at a few teams that will be looking
to add a little Lin-sanity to their offense:
Charlotte Bobcats
Michael Jordan’s club definitely has the roster space and
the salary cap room to sign Lin to the maximum amount allowed. Plus Lin doesn’t
have to worry about any player overshadowing him in Charlotte the way he does
in New York. It’s doubtful that Jordan would sign Lin but he needs to. The
Bobcats need to sell tickets and Lin can help fill some of those empty seats at
the Time Warner Cable Arena.
New Orleans Hornets
The loss of Chris Paul was felt this season as the Hornets
struggled to get consistent play out of their point guard position. Although
Lin is not on the same level as Paul, he does work well in the pick-and-roll
and he loves to drive to the basket. The Hornets could use a point guard like
Lin who will push the ball and this is also another team that could use a boost
in ticket sales.
Orlando Magic
The Magic have been trying forever to pair up center Dwight
Howard with a solid point guard and Lin would fit the bill. Lin has proven he
can score in bunches and he knows how to find outside shooters which Orlando
has in abundance. It also helps that Stan Van Gundy will be leaving. Van Gundy’s
coaching style seems to stifle the creativity of ball-hogging point guards like
Lin so it will help if the Magic bring in a coach who will loosen the reins
more.
Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks are growing older by the minute. Jason Kidd is
39 and Jason Terry will turn 35 before the start of the 2012-2013 season. The
Mavericks were hoping that they could reload this season by signing one or more
of the big free agents that were expected to be available this offseason but
Chris Paul signed his player option in order to play for the Los Angeles
Clippers and Dwight Howard signed one also. They may also be out of the running
for Deron Williams so Lin may be a nice also-ran pickup for the Mavericks who
will have plenty of money to spend.
Phoenix Suns
Steve Nash may be on his way out so what better replacement
than Lin? Lin thrived in Mike D’Antoni’s system and would have similar success
with the Suns who still run D’Antoni’s fast-break offense. Lin would also give
the Suns a solid young point guard to build with considering he is 15 years
younger than Nash.
Where do you think Jeremy Lin will play next season?
Roosevelt Hall is an NFL Blogger for The Sport Mentalist and an NBA Blogger for The Sport Mentalist 2. He is also a Sports Reporter for Pro Sports Lives. He can be contacted at RHall_TPFB@Yahoo.com and be sure to follow him on Twitter @sportmentalist.
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Orlando seems like the best pick for Lin, I mean Howard needs someone he can effectively work with on the court.He has been saying that for how long now? So, if the Magic plan on keeping Dwight then they better make a decision that will benefit him before his contract is up and he leaves to go to another team.
ReplyDeleteMike D'Antoni has said he is interested in the Magic's head coaching position so that is starting to look like an ideal landing spot for Lin
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