The way Lin has sparked the crowd, the same effect that Melo did when he was traded to the Knicks.
He revived our home court, our energy, and most importantly, in a business POV, he has gained fame and popularity without a 20million dollar deal and giving up assets.
Dolan was at the game, without the boos that we have been getting recently, and you can be sure that Lin, being an Asian American will continue to generate sales from all over the world and continue to develop that fan base. Dolan is a business man first and a fan of basketball 2nd. Lin just makes sense to be resigned whether it will be for the MLE
or if he would sign the Bi Annual Exemption that would give us his bird rights. If he continues to play at this level, its a great plus from a fan's POV.
We have a lot of holes to fill but Lin has a nice ceilings and fills one of our needs. Lin has been "struggling" in the NBA in terms of salary, I don't expect much of a discount because he has to do what is best for his career. The best case scenario is Lin giving taking the Bi Annual Exemption or splitting the MLE in which he would be able to opt out in 2 years. While Nash and Miller are probably the best veterans in the positions, they do not possess that speed/quickness that Lin has with the penetration.
Dragic and Sessions are players that have that speed/quickness but they do not bring that same fan base that Lin would bring. So in the end, Dolan will make the call on this one, he will not let Lin go and will be willing to give him the full MLE vs any realistic FA in the summer when it comes down to it.
It isn't about how much better our team would be if we targeted other FA's and spent the money elsewhere, its about the $ that Lin can generate as an Asian American.
He isn't a bum or D league material that some thought he was here, he has game. Whether he will be starting caliber PG or a 2nd string PG will be determined in the future but
his potential and skills are there.
As for Fields, you can tell he wants to be here and the Knicks will pay him his market value. Because of our limited abilities to acquire talent outside of our exemptions, limited draft picks, and inability to acquire talent with the salary cap, it is no brainer to retain Fields. I was confused that we wouldn't be able to match his salary outside of our MLE, but if we can retain Fields without using it, you can be sure we would be willing to open the bank for him. Lin's continued development, style of play, ability to penetrate, push the tempo, and play the style that fits Fields which would surely help his decision. I am unsure of Walker/Novaks future with the Knicks, while Lin's continued play could help their games vs ISO play of Melo. They show they can be useful in the rotation but need ball movement and the penetration that a player line Lin can provide.
In the end, its a business, at their careers, they will have to take the best route for their future. Its possible we will only be able to retain one of these players and they would cost more than the veterans minimum, especially more than 1 year. It is possible we will lose both while we will look to target veterans in possibly any positions that are willing to come at a slighter discount.
Lin and Iman both play good defense, with the combination of speed and capable of staying in front of their man. Iman now can be the 2nd penetration player, with teams focusing on stopping Lin. I expect Iman to come back a lot better next year, with a taste of the NBA, and with his worth ethic. TD is struggling now, while his skills doesn't include playing PG.
He could be a great asset with many other teams, including Miami and even Clippers. His value is quite low right now but I think its mainly due to that lost of confidence and struggles at PG early. He has to find back his role he once thrived under and I would hold on to him for the sake of him getting that motivation with a trade to haunt us under another team like the Heat. With Lebron, Wade, Chalmers, Cole, and Bosh, his role will be a lot easier and they have the luxury of playing him limited minutes.
He fits with teams that have players that can take the facilitating/decision making, able to penetrate and with 4 shooters to spread the floor.
He is a gym rat as the effort is there, he lacks BB IQ. He just needs slight improvements defensively, mentally, as he actually does have the heart + physical abilities to be a good defender. Unless we can get good value for him and trade him to the West, keeping him on our roster would be the best option, even if we do not play him because he can haunt us if on the right team...
