I’m not a Knicks fan. I watch the Knicks, but I’m far from a fan.
So, the Knicks didn’t match the Houston Rockets contract for Jeremy Lin, ending Linsanity in New York. But, just for some reality, let’s draw a bit of a parallel between Lin and… let’s say… Jordany Valdespin.
Lin started all of 25 games for the Knicks. He’s played in 64 total games, a mere 1,225 minutes. Valdespin has 40 games under his belt, just 81 plate appearances.
Knicks fans, and sports writers everywhere, are foaming at the mouth as they write about how awful of a move this was, tearing into James Dolan, etc. But, at this point, would you give Valdespin a contract like Lin just signed? $25 million over three years.
Imagine if Sandy Alderson turned around and announced at the end of the season, “Oh, by the way, we just signed Valdespin to a three-year deal, worth north of $20 million. And we’ll probably get fined for going over the (non-existant) MLB salary cap in a few years.”
Sure, Jordany might have more to prove, but the point still stands. Signing a guy who hasn’t even played a full season to a $25 million deal is beyond bonkers, marketing, ticket sales and all.
There would be riots! Mets fans would storm Citi Field and loot anything that wasn’t bolted down. But Knicks fans were clamoring for the Knicks to match the contract and bring Lin back.
Maybe I’m missing something. Maybe I don’t get the full picture. Yeah, I know Jason Kidd and Raymond Felton aren’t the answer. But how can you say Lin was? 25 starts! Twenty-five!
Maybe a Knicks fan can set me straight in the comments. Please, shed some light on this!