Another thing I’ve been pondering: We know how much Lin’s emergence has changed the complexion of this team, but what about going forward beyond this year? Someone in another thread argued that there are/aren’t 15 PGs in the league now who are better. You may say there probably are 15 better PGs right now, but the huge asterisk to that is the NBA is filled with talented PGs right now. Think about it: we have a lottery pick-level point guard with good size, good first step, a jump shot, passing skills and a high IQ. We now have seen his deficiencies, but if we know it, he definitely knows it (seems he has high self-awareness). Can’t you get a little giddy thinking about how he can improve in a couple years, let alone one year?

Let’s say Lin is the real deal, and he, within 12-24 months, unquestionably places himself within the top 15 or 12 PGs in the league. We can agree that legit PGs and Cs are the hardest to find (right?) – do we continue to look at this team through the prism and Amar’e/Melo, or dare we say “you know, we have a (potential) top-10 or 12 PG and one of the best centers in the league – maybe we need to look at the construction of this team differently”?

Is it completely crazy to give credence to that line of thinking?

Lightning:
I do think that you seeing Lin’s defense of being bad is a bit of confirmation bias. He made a couple bad plays, but most of the time he forced Jennings to take tough jump shots with a hand in his face. Also, a couple of times he shaded him towards help only for the help defense to simply stand still looking dumb. Lin’s been burned a couple of games, but this one wasn’t one of them.

cosigned.

limpidgimp: +1. That’s what I saw as well. Jennings hit some tough jumpers, but most of the time Lin had a hand in his face. On penetrations, he forced Jennings to the left, and Jennings would take that, but no help from Amar’e and company after that. In that last play, Jennings went right and Lin was right up on him, forcing Jennings to throw up a prayer.

There are a ridiculous number of incredibly talented PGs in the league right now. Any starter going up against them gets burned now and then. But when Lin gets burned, there’s that confirmationbias that he’s a poor defender. Lin has played poor angles and has gotten lost in screens a lot, but the dude is trying and has certainly been getting better at it and will figure it out. (Unlike Amar’e, who sometimes does not even put his hands up when a slasher goes into the lane. Sigh.) If you were a good PG in the NBA, you’d be annoyed too — “why are there endless Lin highlight videos on youtube but not videos of me even though I’m better than this rookie? I’m going to torch him.”

cosigned again and +1

We all need to remember that Lin is – for all intents and purposes – a rookie learning on the fly. Not so say criticisms aren’t…

Gamecockerbocker:
There’s no way around it… Lin is definitely a poor defender. Still, other than Shump Shump, how much better are any of the guys who could replace him in the starting lineup.

I thought the conversation was not about Lin’s general or past performance as a defender, but specifically whether he was, as Cavan said, ‘manhandled’ in the game against the Bucks.

hoolahoop: You got me mixed up with someone else – I never made those statements (and I’ve beena knicks fan forever). I don’t hate Lin. He’s a good kid, bur we’re discussing pro sports, not nicey nice with your little sister in the backyard. Lin’s defense still sucks.

Lightning:
I do think that you seeing Lin’s defense of being bad is a bit of confirmation bias. He made a couple bad plays, but most of the time he forced Jennings to take tough jump shots with a hand in his face. Also, a couple of times he shaded him towards help only for the help defense to simply stand still looking dumb. Lin’s been burned a couple of games, but this one wasn’t one of them.

+1. That’s what I saw as well. Jennings hit some tough jumpers, but most of the time Lin had a hand in his face. On penetrations, he forced Jennings to the left, and Jennings would take that, but no help from Amar’e and company after that. In that last play, Jennings went right and Lin was right up on him, forcing Jennings to throw up a prayer.

There are a ridiculous number of incredibly talented PGs in the league right now. Any starter going up against them gets burned now and then. But when Lin gets burned, there’s that confirmation bias that he’s a poor defender. Lin has played poor angles and has gotten lost in screens a lot, but the dude is trying and has certainly been getting better at it and will figure it out. (Unlike Amar’e, who sometimes does not even put his hands up when a slasher goes into the lane. Sigh.) If you were a good PG in the NBA, you’d be annoyed too — “why are there endless Lin highlight videos on youtube but not videos of me even though I’m better than this rookie? I’m going to torch him.”