It’s preseason ... So it’s oh-so-early and oh-so-small-a-sample. But Alex Raskin in the Wall Street Journal thinks he sees a phenomenon rising, a second Linsanity, this one across the river from the Garden. What he calls “Again-Sanity.”
There are few numbers to crunch, but Raskin thinks the Nets’ version of Jeremy Lin could be a much better version than the one that enthralled Knicks’ fans.
Per 36 minutes, he’s actually posting better numbers than he did between Feb. 4, 2012, when the days of “Linsanity” began with a 25-point performance in a win over the New Jersey Nets, through March 21 of that year, after which his numbers suffered along with his left knee.
He even has a graphic, using per 36 minutes from the 11 games of Linsanity vs. the three preseason games the Nets have played so far.
It’s more than these preliminary numbers, Raskin writes.
Lin has a diversified game and he has looked comfortable in the Nets’ motion offense, both as a ballhandler and a spot-up shooter, making 7 of 14 three-point attempts.
He may not be an international phenomenon anymore, but Lin looks like a valuable new piece for a Nets team coming off a 21-61 season.
(Oh, he’s still an “international phenomenon.” He ranks second in the MVPIndex rankings of NBA players, the one based on social media presence, and he has 4.5 million followers on Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter plus 2.2 million on Twitter itself.)
Of course, it’s preseason and Lin would like the media to abandon all references to Linsanity. But if he and the Nets take off, he can forget that.
- Is New York on the Verge of a Second “Linsanity”? - Alex Raskin - Wall Street Journal