According to Marc Stein warriors are about to sign him. http://twitter.com/STEIN_LINE_HQ He looked good in summer league very unselfish and crafty.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=5396732 Dude looks like a decent player. I like that we got a backup PG AND a guy who has some potential and room to grow. Dunno if hes NBA ready. Also I'm skeptical that we signed him because hes local and hes Asian. Apparently he looked good in SL and looks good in highlights but hes gotta prove hes got game to me. There really weren't many options for PGs so that helps him because it appears we got one of the better ones available. None the less dude was an undrafted rookie out of Harvard. Despite the multi year deal I'm only assuming hes training camp and marketing fodder until proven otherwise.
What impresses me most is the ability of SportsTwo Warriors fans to be so in tune with management like this. Most of us saw the highlights of Lin doing well against Wall, and many of us mentioned how he would be a great fit and GS should go after him. But usually with most of that talk I leave it as fun speculation. But those of you who touted Lin were right on the money -- apparently GS feels the same way. I love that we outbid the other suitors (if this goes through), because we outbid on pennies. Whatever the deal is, it's less than $1 mils per... What a fun way to outbid... you put a few extra dollars on the table to get a prospect who could be special. Low risk, high reward. Way better than overpaying $3 mils a year to have Jason Williams going and-1 mix tape and starting fights with beat reporters...
He measured at 6'3 w/o shoes, 201 lbs, 6'5 wingspan according to DX (no other measurements available). We worked him out and here's an interview from him after the GS work out: [video=youtube;2TJ593oyxFI]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TJ593oyxFI[/video]
According to MTII when the CJ Watson trade broke yesterday he said a fan emailed Lacob and told him to get Lin, MTII was saying perhaps CJ leaving was a sign of that. I'm hoping we don't have management who panders to the fans though. That's not good. I'm guessing that isn't what this is. I am, however, glad that we actually had a fuggin replacement in line when we moved CJ. Doubt Lin can step in and produce like CJ would have but if given some time Lin could be just as good. We opened up playing time for him, gave him a multi year deal and more than minimum, we won the bid like you said. That's nice. Just watching highlights of this guy he reminds me a little of Steph Curry. Hes probably a little bit better of an athlete and I assume he weighs more than Steph but similar size, clever ball handling, pretty crafty. Just glad we got someone to back up the 1 but I'm not going to assume this guy is a rotation player for this coming season.
here's a college campus interview where (0:20) he tells his friend if his dreams come true, he will play for the Golden State Warriors!!! [video=youtube;ZmwrLSxCVbU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmwrLSxCVbU[/video] Here's some nice highlights: [video=youtube;tVVzGm8SbOM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVVzGm8SbOM[/video] He had a good game against UConn, this was the best quality I could find: [video=youtube;QQ2mng5e95w]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQ2mng5e95w[/video] Biggest thing is he is a young, exciting prospect, with lots of energy, and I think he'll instantly become a fan favorite. I think he'll get big ovations even when he gets 2 minutes of garbage time. That's just how GS fans are. They cheered for and chanted for young guys like Steph Curry and even Dunlevy back in the day, too. I think his style of play -- he's smart, crafty, and loves to attack the rim and draw contact -- will immediately connect with a lot of fans. I'm really excited about this, actually. When I saw him go against John Wall, I was thinking to myself that he would be one of those few breakout stories of the summer league. I just figured he'd sign with Dallas. But he is a lifelong Warriors fan, and this is his dream come true! Once the fans learn that about him, they'll love him even more...
Don't be skeptical. This is a big reason why they signed him. It's a huge win for the Warriors PR Machine. IMO, Watson was a better fit due to his experience, familiarity, and scoring ability. But, Watson just signed a pretty lucrative deal with the Bulls and we just got Lin for really cheap. This is a low risk signing as far as the cap is concerned. Charlie Bell can probably play a little PG too, so that softens the blow if Lin has a hard time transitioning to the NBA game. We've got a decent guard depth now: Curry/Ellis/Williams/Bell/Lin A little undersized, but they should work well together. I really would like to see the Warriors go after Matt Barnes. Since his S&T fell through with Toronto, they should try. He's commanding a 2 year/10M contract, which they can afford. It may be overpaying but it's something the Warriors should consider to shore up the SF rotation.
If we got Dorrell Wright for 3 years $11 mils, then that would be overpay for Barnes. Their numbers were about the same. And Barnes has pretty much plateaued, where Wright could really elevate his game. I'm all for getting the young, promising players at this point, rather than the serviceable vets. I would take Barnes for $3 mils per, but not $5 mils. Instead, I'd go try out Kasim Powell from the GS Summer League Team for $500 K...
I wouldn't give Barnes that much. Especially not for two years. Hes a good player and I like him but thats a lot for what looks like a backup and it would ruin our cap flexibility. I'm also not that into waiting to dump cap for the potential to sign a big FA but in this case we've got Dorell Wright and Reggie Williams for very cheap who are just as good as Barnes. No reason to spend more than those two combined on a guy who may not be better than either of them. Like Kajita said, we've got some decent depth on the perimeter just add one more guy for minimum as insurance. What we should be throwing extra money at is depth in the frontcourt. Backup PG has been adequately resolved as Lin seemed to be one of the better available players and should give us enough to get by and potential grow into a really nice backup. We really need another good player at PF/C though, I'd really like to add someone who is a great rebounder like an Amundson so that the great rebounding of Beans/Lee can be maintained when one of them needs a blow. Really though I'd take any good front court player whether they add good size, height, shotblocking, rebounding. Just another body who can play should Wright get injured, Udoh continue to be injured, Gadz give us nothing, etc.
I disagree. The Warriors should balance out their young roster with vets. We know what Barnes brings to the table. I don't see that in Wright. I also don't believe Wright should be the full-time SF. In other words, he shouldn't get starter minutes. Wright's and Barnes' numbers might be similar, but Barnes is a better defender who spreads the floor just as well. He's also got a decent inside game.
http://twitter.com/AlexKennedyNBA/status/19040089594 More contract details. Sounds like hes not a lock to make the club.
I thought Wright was known for his defense? He was supposed to have locked up a few stars, at times, guarding LeBron and Kobe and such... although he doesn't get many blocks... But Barnes doesn't spread it as well as Wright... Barnes shot 32% from three last year, Wright 39%... But I like Barnes, I just think $5 mils per year is too much, given that we could try out someone else there for a lot cheaper, and it's not like he'll make this team a sudden contender...
Wright is a good defender, but based on what I saw and read (I don't claim to be an NBA scout of any sorts), I believe Barnes makes a bigger impact on defense. But, Wright has a lot more room to grow and he's got the superior body. Yeah, I love the potential there. One of my concerns with the SF rotation is that the only one behind Wright is Reggie Williams and he isn't a true SF. I guess it won't be the worst thing in the world, but the more proven pieces we have at the forward positions the better. If they can get Tillie or another PF/C type for dirt cheap, we can still overpay Barnes and not get killed with the cap. BTW, Barnes is in SF right now attending some event at Kezar. http://twitter.com/Matt_Barnes22/status/19041223694
What impressed me about Lin was the sense of determination he had - every play he seemed ready to attack. Watching some of his games, especially the summer league ones, it seemed he would make a good play purely on effort, rather than any particular skill. And he did it without being selfish, mostly. I hope he does well, because it's rare that you see a player with that much heart out on the floor every time, plus, he is a hometown hero. He does have a few glaring weaknesses - he doesn't have the best range or shooting form (maybe 18 feet in seems to be really high percentage, but past that it drops dramatically), and his turnovers seem a bit high, but he should be a solid 10th man/hustle guy. Can't ask for much more for about 500k, he'll probably bring in more tickets than that over the season just for being on the team.
Guy can play. He got attention during the college year in 09-10 and he played up to it. I believe he was a finalist for the Wooden award as well. Sure SummerLeague is not the NBA but its there for a reason to see how the players do on a stage bigger than the NCAA. Its not because he's Asian, if it was no one else would want him. Its because he can play. He's not some dinky 5'10" Asian from USF, he's a legit 6'3" 201 who chose an academic scholarship to Harvard over an athletic scholarship and still played D-1 and I believe had some good games against Duke(?).
FWIW in SL for the Mavs he averaged 9.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.0 apg, 3.5 TOpg, 1.2 spg on 52% shooting, 67% from 3 (only attempted three 3 pointers), and 70% FTs in 18.5 mpg. He looks good in the highlights but you don't get to see all those TOs. Also had a 1.4 ast/TO ratio in college which isn't stellar. Hes very aggressive and reckless attacking the rim so I'm guessing the highlights don't show him getting shut down, charging, throwing bad passes, etc. in there. He did score at a good clip though and obviously has some talent. Kind of reminds me of a more energetic Beno Udrih.
Impressive stretch of that 4th quarter vs. Wall in SL (not just the highlight package): [video=youtube;pN0mRa-7kYo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pN0mRa-7kYo[/video]
First time I've seen him in. He did well in SL action against Wall and I liked the way he finishes. He seems very quick and can change his shot at the basket. I was hoping for a 3-pt shooter, and Lin's shot doesn't look very pretty, but it went in a few times from deep. I was looking at his stats and he's got an incredible 51.9% from the floor. It said he shoots 60% from inside the arc and 37% outside and gets to the line a lot. One summary had "excellent feel for the game, unselfishness and court vision, particularly in transition finding teammates creatively." He does remind me of an Asian Beno Udrih. Okay, first Lacob decision -- Lin over Watson? Just today the view from Sacramento guys were saying they did not get not trading CJ Watson to Orlando last year for a first round pick, a young player and cash when the Warriors had backup point guards galore. However, this year the Warriors needed a backup point guard and they trade him. It didn't make sense and they panned Riley.
