Toronto Raptors point guard target No. 2: Jeremy Lin
Now that the Linsanity craze has died down and his status as a star in the NBA has eroded, it wasn’t unreasonable to assume that Lin’s NBA career was over after he won a ring with the Raptors and left the NBA for China. However, because Lin doesn’t want his final moments in the NBA to be images of him riding the bench, he’s trying to make one final go of it in the league.
After spending a year in China, where he was a dominant scorer with the Beijing Ducks, Lin signed with the G League Santa Cruz Warriors in an attempt to make one last run at the NBA. While Lin was by no means a star in Toronto, as he was on the bench for most of the Raptors’ championship run, his skillet could help a Raptors team that has been decimated by injuries.
Lin, who averaged 7.0 points and 2.2 assists per game with the Raptors, is most valued for what he brings on the offensive end, as he is a 43 percent career shooter that connects on 34 percent of his 3-point attempts. When he’s in a groove, Lin remains a quality distributor, averaging 4.3 assists per contest over the course of his career.
Lin has the hunger to make it back to the pros, the willingness to accept a reserve role, and knowledge of Nurse’s offensive and defensive concepts that can help make the learning curve less steep. If the Raptors can pry him away from the Warriors, look for Lin to end up back in Toronto and make a run at his second championship as a backup behind Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet.