Jeremy Lin promises improvement

Be it in 140-character increments or in post after post on page after page of website after website, there was no lack of opinion in the wake of the Rockets’ playoff departure that Jeremy Lin is a poseur, a disappointment, a weakling, an incomplete product, a failure, a flop.

In some ways, Lin would concur. The difference between Lin and his detractors, though, is that Lin has firsthand knowledge of what he has to do to improve his game and his contributions to the Rockets’ success and has, he believes, the time, determination and support to get it done.

“I have a long way to go. I have a really long way to go,” Lin said in the wake of his three-point, 13-minute stint off the bench in the Rockets’ 103-94 loss Friday night.

“I’m really excited for the offseason, just because I can get better, not that I wanted it to start. There are so many things I wish I was better at after playing my first whole season and realizing this is what separates good players from great players.”

Given the harsh formula of hype, expectations and potential with which he began the season, Lin could hardly help but fall short. He arrived in July, fresh off his “Linsanity” debut in New York last season, as the new face of the franchise, only to be supplanted in that role with the October acquisition of James Harden.

Still, along with center Omer Asik, he was the only player on the roster to start in and play in all 82 games, ranking third on the Rockets behind Harden and Chandler Parsons in minutes played. He improved after the All-Star break in scoring, shooting percentage and 3-point percentage and remained steady in most other metrics.

But then he ran into Russell Westbrook, figuratively, in the opening game of the Thunder series and into Thabo Sefolosha, literally, in Game 2, suffering a bruised chest muscle that sidelined him in Games 4 and 5, both of which the Rockets won, and limited him in Game 6.

And in this most devoted of football towns, Lin also faces a phenomenon with which fans are all too eager to subscribe: the backup quarterback syndrome – represented, in this case, by midseason acquisition Patrick Beverley, whose defensive intensity was valuable down the stretch, and Aaron Brooks, the former Rockets fan favorite who returned to Houston for the stretch drive.

Both had their moments in the playoffs in Lin’s absence, and the presence of each raises questions among Lin’s detractors about his value to the team

Lin, however, has coach Kevin McHale in his corner, and he knows where he has to improve to become a fully rounded point guard.

“I’m not even close,” he said. “I can talk about anything, and it would be something that I would want to be better, whether it’s defense, jump shots, making decisions, being quicker, being more explosive, being more consistent. I think I’m as motivated now as I’ve been my whole life.”

Lin was a rarity in that so much was expected from him, based on his brief flash of brilliance last year with the Knicks, while so little was expected collectively of the 2012-13 Rockets.

He said a friend told him the Rockets were a solid pick for mediocrity among the Las Vegas oddsmakers, “and for us to be here in Game 6 of the Western (Conference) playoffs against the No. 1 seed, when I look at it as a whole I’m thankful.”

“There are a lot of players who got a lot better and a lot of players who opened a lot of eyes, and the future is bright.”

That season of doubters may play a role in Lin’s outlook for next season amid conversation that the Rockets still need to make acquisitions, up to and including Dwight Howard, to be realistic contenders.

“I know a lot of people say we might need another this or another that, but we’re pretty darned good, and we’re young as heck,” he said.

When it comes to roster moves, he added, “We will do whatever we need to do to get better, but I fully believe in the guys that we have in this locker room, on this team.”

via Rockets’ oft-criticized Lin promises improvement | Ultimate Rockets.