Jeremy Lin Has Clear Path Back to Stardom with Los Angeles Lakers
By Zach Buckley, National NBA Featured Columnist
Hopefully, Jeremy Lin brought his appetite to Hollywood.
With playing time and production both available in abundance, the table is set for the former phenom to feast during his first season with the Los Angeles Lakers.
In some ways, that opportunity exists for nearly every player on this roster. Consider that chance the perk of suiting up for a team fresh off one of the worst seasons in franchise history.
But Lin's shot at a breakout campaign—or a bounce-back one, depending on whether his magical Linsanity run was long enough to qualify as such—is stronger than the rest. That is a reflection of a number of different factors, not the least of which are the Lakers' depleted point guard ranks.
L.A. had hoped to have a two-headed beast at the position.
Veteran Steve Nash was earmarked for the starting gig by head coach Byron Scott in September, per Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. Lin, acquired in an offseason trade from the Houston Rockets, figured to be staring at major minutes as both the first guard off the bench and the backup to the oldest active player in the NBA.
The Lakers had other options beyond those two, but none of them looked very promising. Veteran Ronnie Price, a hard-nosed defender with a career 37.8 field-goal percentage, arrived last month on a non-guaranteed contract. They picked up Jordan Clarkson on draft night, but the 22-year-old is a combo guard with a still-developing jump shot.
From every angle, this was going to be a two-man rotation. But the nerve issue in Nash's back, which limited him to only 15 games last season, ended his 2014-15 campaign before it even started.
Just like that, Lin's rotation spot went from significant to substantial. And, somehow, it seems to be growing by the second, just like the team's injury report:
Needless to say (though Scott said it anyway), Lin will start for the Lakers on opening night, per Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. What remains to be seen is how often, if at all, Lin will actually leave the floor.
Even before Nash was removed from the picture, Lin was preparing to a play a pivotal role in this offense. As a constant threat to find scoring chances for himself and his teammates, he was one of the few players on this roster capable of relieving some of the defensive heat felt byKobe Bryant.
"Jeremy makes a huge difference creating shots for others," Bryant said, per Bill Oram of the Orange County Register. "We've got somebody else who can penetrate, make plays for others and put pressure on the defense."
Lin's game is all about pressuring a defense. He can get a little ball-dominant at times, but he needs to play that way to be most effective.
Playing off James Harden and Dwight Howard with the Houston Rockets, Lin was too often miscast as a complementary spot-up shooter. While Lin deserves some credit for bumping his three-point percentage to a career-high 35.8 last season, he was simply making the best of a less-than-perfect situation.
"Playing off the ball isn't where Lin is most comfortable," wrote Bleacher Report's Dan Favale. "He's better off as a dual threat at the very least—someone who vacillates between dominating and sliding off the rock."
During his one-season stay with the New York Knicks, fewer than 19 percent of his two-point field goals came off assists. That number climbed above 27 in his first year with the Rockets, then spiked to 32.4 last season.
Houston never saw the player responsible for that global craze in 2012, but he was never in position to leave that type of imprint. His field-goal attempts dropped during each season with the Rockets (12.2 per 36 minutes his first year there, 11.6 the next), and his player efficiency rating was dragged down with them (19.9 in New York, 14.6 over his two years in Houston).
Limit Lin's involvement, and you limit his effectiveness.
That's what makes his move to L.A. so intriguing. He won't have the same problems he did in Houston, leaving open the possibility for him to recapture what looked like such a bright future not long ago.
Even in a reduced role, he impressed during his time in Houston.
Last season, he had the sixth-highest field-goal percentage on drives among players with at least 500 such shot attempts, per NBA.com'sSportVU player tracking data. Over the past two years, he's been one of only 14 players to average at least 15 points on 44 percent shooting and six assists per 36 minutes.
Granted, those aren't quite mind-numbing statistics, but they look pretty good for someone who was playing well outside of his comfort zone. The Rockets tried to fit his square-peg talents into their round-hole offense for a while before eventually just letting him decide the shape of their second team.
The Lakers are absent a go-to scorer outside of the 36-year-old Kobe Bryant, who sandwiched six regular-season appearances in between Achilles and knee injuries last year. Microwave scorer Nick Young has the talent to fill that role some nights but could be out two months after undergoing surgery on his right thumb.
With a defense that appears overly generous on paper, this offense will need reliability. That could be hard to find on a frontcourt featuring a past-his prime Carlos Boozer, an unproven Julius Randle and the to-be-determined tandem of Jordan Hill and Ed Davis.
The Lakers need both safety and excitement. Lin should be able to supply both if he's allowed to play his game.
"In the NBA, you have to be great at something," Lin said, per Medina. "For me it's attacking the basket."
An aggressive Lin has been a productive Lin.
He took at least 12 shots in 17 different games last season. In those contests, he averaged 19.2 points on 46.5 percent shooting. In his 25 starts with the Knicks two years back, he put up 18.2 points on 44.5 percent shooting.
He has the ability to orchestrate nightly assaults on the stat sheet. With these Lakers, he could also have the situation and system needed to carry out those attacks with regularity, especially once he learns what his coach wants and his teammates need out of him.
"I just want to figure out how I can bring my strengths and apply it best to this system," Lin said, per Medina. "It’s kind of like a chess match in learning and figuring it out."
This should be the chance at stardom Lin never received in Houston nor looked like he deserved before that wild year in The Big Apple. Everything seems to be in place for him to make his move back up the NBA's pecking order, with both the Hollywood backdrop and L.A.'s need for a long-term answer at point guard hinting at a longer shelf life than his previous meteoric rise.
Of course, none of this comes with any guarantees. He still needs to walk the tightrope between scorer and playmaker while ensuring that the biggest serving is always left for Bryant to devour. The Lakers have prospects to develop and veterans to appease, all mouths that Lin will be expected to feed.
The degree of difficulty is high, but so too is the potential prize.
All signs point to Lin being cleared to send his star back into basketball's orbit, but only if he is ready to launch.
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