Linsanity may be over. At least in New York. When Jeremy Lin received a deal last week from the Houston Rockets that included $25 million for three years, it was widely expected that the Knicks would match it — something that they would have every right to do. When it first came out that the contract was on the table, everyone sang Lin’s praises, including those in New York. But now, a new deal has changed all that; and the deal is not Jeremy Lin’s.
That deal was Raymond Felton’s, who has now received a three-year $10 million deal, and that’s the one that’s going to be the real kicker for Lin. Add to that the fact that the New York Knicks also have two other point guards currently on their roster — Jason Kidd, who’s also just signed a three-year deal for $9 million; and Pablo Prigioni. Add to that the fact that the Knicks are also still in debt to Carmelo Anthony for $24 million; they’re going to be paying Amer’e Stoudemire $23 million; and Tyson Chandler will be taking $14.5 million out of the Knicks’ collective pocket. If they were going to add Jeremy Lin to that, they’d be paying out an additional $15 million due to the huge luxury tax they’d have to pay.
The story between Lin and the Houston Rockets is an interesting one. They were the team that cut Lin just a day before the 2011-2012 season began, only to later regret when Jeremy and Linsanity exploded in New York after filling in for many of the injured major players. Now, they want him back, and they want him bad. But will they get him?
He has spent the last two weeks training hard with the Knicks’ assistant coach, Kenny Atkinson; and according to Peter Diepenbrock, Jeremy Lin’s high school coach, Lin doesn’t want to leave. “He loves the New York fans. To have the experience that he had for the two months and for that to be over with, that’s quite a shock to the system. I think he really believed the Knicks would match whatever offer he got.”
The Rockets are also trying to sign Dwight Howard, who just can’t decide where he wants to call home. In order to sign him though, they’ll need to do some other major shuffling, trying to find space to fit him in under the cap. Lin might have been part of the deal, had he been able to be traded before January 15, which he couldn’t. But, should Lin join the Rockets, it would give the team a boost they haven’t had since Yao Ming left last year.
Lin and other sources have said that they have no idea how the deal will go, or if the New York Knicks are going to match the offer. They have until 11:59 pm tomorrow night to do so.