New York Knicks: Will “Linsanity” Continue?

New York Knicks
New York Knicks
Jeremy Lin has taken the NBA by storm this season. | Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons user Gary King

As All-Star Weekend comes to an end, and the NBA enters the second half of this shortened season, one major question is whether or not the New York Knicks can continue their Jeremy Lin-fueled hot-streak.

During that streak, the world was introduced to Jeremy Lin, an un-drafted Harvard graduate who had been cut from team after team before landing a starting job with the Knicks. After Lin entered the starting line-up on February 4 against the New Jersey Nets, the New York Knicks saw a seven-game streak that brought them to .500 on the season and into the picture for playoffs. Since joining the starting five, Lin has averaged 14.4 points/game and 5.8 assists/game; not that he would care about any of those stats. The very humble point guard only cares about winning, something at which he has excelled thus far. The Knicks are 9-3 and now considered seventh in the Eastern Conference standings.

This Knicks’ magic, or “Linsanity” as some call it, seemed to simmer down just before the break, after Carmelo Anthony returned to the line-up following an injury. The Knicks are 1-2 since Anthony’s return, and many people are wondering if Lin and Anthony are not able to co-exist on the same offense–a theory that the two stars have vehemently rejected.

If the Knicks want to succeed in the second half of the season, they need Jeremy Lin to stay productive. The second half has not always been kind to young stars in the limelight; one such example is Blake Griffin. During the first half of last year’s season, Griffin put up monster numbers until the All-Star Break. Griffin was undoubtedly the star of the weekend, taking the crown of the Slam Dunk Contest and scoring a Kia spokesperson deal in the process. All that attention, however, seemed to take a toll on Griffin as his stats decreased significantly in the latter half of the year. Although Jeremy Lin didn’t jump over any cars during this year’s All-Star festivities, but he was still a part of the Rising Stars Game and garnered massive amounts of media attention. It stands to reason that Lin must be careful to stay focused on the Knicks and not on which shoe company to sign with.

As instrumental as Jeremy Lin is to the Knicks’ success, they will also need a great deal of help from their defense, particularly from small forward Carmelo Anthony. While Anthony was out of the line-up, the Knicks allowed 90.4 points/game. In the three games since his return, however, they have allowed 94.6 points/game, bringing their season average to 94.1 points/game – good enough for 12th place in the NBA. Scoring is definitely not a problem for the Knicks, but they need to find a way to stop their opponents from finding the basket if they want to make a real run in the playoffs.

With the line-up they have now and with the recent addition of J.R. Smith, the New York Knicks absolutely have the talent needed to succeed in the second half of the season. They need to make sure, however, that they stay focused on what needs to be done. Jeremy Lin needs to maintain the productivity he has had for the 12 previous games, and Carmelo Anthony needs to integrate himself into the offense. If the Knicks can do these things and above all, stay healthy, then they will certainly be a force to be reckoned with come the end of April.

For their next game, the Knicks will travel to the TD Garden on Sunday, March 4, to face off against the Boston Celtics. The game will air on ABC and will begin at 1 pm.

2 Comments on “New York Knicks: Will “Linsanity” Continue?”

  1. Gotta get your stats right… the ppg and apg you gave are overall for the season, which includes many games where he only played between 2-7 min. His avgs since being in the starting lineup are much higher, close to 23 and 9.

    Second, the Knicks are 2-2 with Anthony back. If your article is dated with today’s date and you mention the next game w/ the Celtics this weekend, then you have to include last night’s results/stats.

    You have to do better research or there needs to be better proofreading.

  2. Just one small correction:

    “After Lin entered the starting line-up on February 4 against the New Jersey Nets…”

    Lin entered that game with 3:34 left in the first quarter and the Nets up 21-16 (Finished with 25 and 7). He was inserted into the starting lineup 2 days later against Utah.

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