Jeremy Lin’s most recent offer sheet from the Houston Rockets has been called ridiculoushas been called ridiculous, yet what’s truly ridiculous is the New York Knicks not matching it.
Forget that Lin is projected to boost the Knicks’ revenue stream by $50 million alone next season. Forget that he’s a publicist’s dream. Forget that he showed superstar potential before blowing out is knee. And forget that his soon-to-be present contract is, in fact, ridiculous.
Forget it all, because New York must retain Lin.
Why? After all, the Knicks have a cheaper, more proven option in Raymond Felton now, don’t they?
That they do, but there’s an unspoken practice in the NBA that dictates the Knicks protect—and if applicable, capitalize off—their assets. And that’s simply not what they’re doing here.
By New York refusing to match Houston’s offer sheet, it’s allowing Lin to walk away for nothing. Absolutely nothing. No sign-and-trade is allowed, so the Rockets would take on Lin without relinquishing anything, aside from cash, in return.
The Knicks cannot allow that to happen.
If New York truly wanted to let Lin walk, it would have made it known before he signed an offer sheet, no matter the price. That way, the team could have worked out a sign-and-trade with the Rockets or another organization, capitalizing off the hot property that has become Jeremy Lin. And that’s why none of the recent developments make sense.
Yes, the Knicks have an abundance of point guards, but they’ve also allowed Landry Fields to walk, won’t have Iman Shumpert back until January and are expected to start J.R. Smith, who’s best served coming off the bench. Case and point, the Knicks still need a starting 2 guard.
So, why not Felton? Sure, it forces him to play out of position, but within Mike Woodson’s system of isolations, all he would have to do is create his own shots and hit the occasion jumper. This allows Lin to start at point guard, with Jason Kidd backing him up, and also allows Smith to come off the bench, where he’s most effective.
And hey no one’s denying that $15 million—which is set to become over $30 million thanks to CBA’s luxury tax policies—salary in 2014-15 isn’t steep. But as previously noted, Lin is still hot property. If the Knicks aren’t satisfied, they can trade him next January or anytime before he enters the third year of his contract. By doing that, they ensure that they capitalize off his potential departure.
There’s simply no reason to let Lin walk away for nothing. And by not matching the Rockets’ latest offer, that’s exactly what the Knicks would be doing.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com. Follow @danfavale on Twitter for his latest posts and all things NBA.
