Outside the locker room, Lakers coach Byron Scott talked with authority surrounding one of the team’s greatest riddles.
What is going on with Jeremy Lin?
“It’s been so up and down with the consistency,” Scott said, shaking his head. “Every single night, you’re getting something different.”
Inside the locker room, hours after another debilitating loss, Lin stood with his shoulders slumped. His voice sounded quiet, but he spoke articulately about the weight of a failed Lakers season.
“My initial expectations were very different than what happened,” the 26-year-old Lin said. “I was hoping to compete for a playoff spot and we would have guys healthy. But it looks very different than it is right now.”
As the Lakers (13-40) are destined to miss the postseason for the second consecutive year amid a season flush of injuries, Lin has experienced his own tailspin.
Lin arrived here last summer after the Lakers acquired him from Houston to back up veteran guard Steve Nash. But after Nash suffered a season-ending back injury before the year even started, Lin jumped into the starting lineup as an off-ball guard to complement Kobe Bryant. Lin then lost his starting spot in favor of veteran guard Ronnie Price 20 games later. Lin has since stayed as a reserve, and even sat for one game because of a coach’s decision, as the Lakers began developing rookie guard Jordan Clarkson. Through those trying times, Lin has averaged 10.2 points on 42.6 percent shooting, 4.6 assists and 2.7 turnovers in 25.5 minutes per game.
PHOTOS: Jeremy Lin arrives on the Lakers scene
Lin never has never scored less or played less since “Linsanity” took off in New York three years ago. He has never shot so poorly since his rookie season in Golden State five years ago. Lin has never committed so many turnovers in his NBA career as he has this season, overshadowing his career-high in assists and three-point shooting (37.4 percent).
“It’s tough. He’s expected to live up to ‘Linsanity,’” Lakers forward Nick Young said. “It’s a lot of pressure. But he can’t let everything get to him. Everything he does, he’s singled out more than anybody.”
Hence, Lin faces uncertainty heading into Thursday’s trade deadline. But two problems emerge. His play with the Lakers has diminished his trade value. NBA teams also could consider Lin’s expiring contract, worth $14.9 million, too burdensome.
“I’ve been in cut rumors and trade rumors for a long time. So I’m not worried about it.” Lin told the Los Angeles Newspaper Group. “It’s just my [Christian] faith. God uses everything for good. That gives me the comfort I need.”
Yet, Lin does not seem comfortable wearing purple and gold, offering a neutral perspective on how he hopes the trade deadline unfolds.
“I want to be able to have fun and play wherever I am,” Lin said. “I can’t control what they do. If I’m here, I’ll definitely give it my all. If they trade me, I’ll definitely give it my all wherever I am.”
Lin and Scott also offered different viewpoints on what contributed to what Lin called “a bumpy year.”
Lin has often provided self-criticism. But he suggested the Lakers could have helped him adapt better to circumstances that included sharing ball handling duties with Bryant, running Scott’s Princeton-based offense and morphing from a starter to reserve.
“There are adjustments that could’ve been made everywhere from everybody’s standpoint,” Lin said. “I don’t know what they are right now. But if I sat down and thought about it for a long time, I could come up with some stuff.”
Scott acknowledged the difficulty Lin faced playing with Bryant and organizing an offense that differed from the traditional and fast-paced systems he enjoyed in New York and Houston.
And yet…
“I don’t know if you can make it easier,” Scott said. “We go over it pretty much every single day with the way we’re going to play and the style we’re going to play. That adjustment is basically up to the player to take it, buy into it and run with it.”
Lin may have described playing with Bryant as “a cool experience” for both his constant feedback and seeing how the Lakers’ star prepared with film study and workout routines. Yet, Lin pinpointed one specific area why he struggled playing with Bryant, perhaps even more than when he teamed with New York’s Carmelo Anthony and Houston’s James Harden.
“If his body allowed him to practice more, that would’ve helped,” Lin said of Bryant before playing only 35 games because of season-ending right shoulder injury. “It’s tough to figure it all out, especially when you’re not practicing. Even in the preseason, I didn’t get a chance to practice with him.”
Lin’s teammates offered sympathy. But they provided no consensus on why “Linsanity” did not take off in Los Angeles.
“He’s got so much talent, so much speed and so much quickness,” Lakers veteran reserve forward Carlos Boozer said of Lin. “But he plays the point guard position so he got me in his ear. He’s got Kobe in his ear. He’s got ‘Swaggy’ in his ear. He’s got Byron in his ear. He’s got a lot to handle. But he’s up to the challenge.”
Young believed Scott, Bryant and Lin all could have worked harder to make a more fruitful partnership. Yet, Young also offered a dose of irony, the high-volume shooter suggesting Lin could have become more effective had he adjusted to the team’s needs instead of his own.
“I know it’s his contract year, but he could’ve focused on passing a little bit more,” Young said of Lin. “Especially when Kobe was out there, [Jeremy] needed to drop dimes.”
Instead, the Lakers mostly believed Lin has tripped over his feet due to analysis paralysis.
“Just play basketball,” Scott said. “If you have a shot, take it. If you have a drive, take it. If you don’t, pass it. We make it harder than it should be. It’s not that hard.”
Why is it hard?
“There are times I will think too much and I lose a little bit of the aggressiveness. But I don’t think it’s a consistent thing,” Lin said. “This is a new system and the least amount of space I’ve played with on the floor. So I’m trying to adjust.”
Nearly four months have passed with minimal progress. But Lin called it “too early” to analyze his pending free agency. Instead, Lin held out hope his circumstances will feature a happy ending.
“There’s always a silver lining,” Lin said. “That’s what helped me get to the NBA. There’s always a purpose and reason for what you’re going through.”
Lin and Scott have different perspectives on that reason, perspectives as different as their demeanor when it comes to answering the Jeremy Lin riddle.
