From www.linsanity.com
Once upon a time, Air Canada Center was all about Vinsanity, which captured the hearts of the Toronto fans until he broke those hearts by leaving.
On this Va-Lin-Tine’s Day, the season-high sellout crowd of 20,092 Canadians experienced another type of insanity.
Linsanity.
Doubt was in the air. Turnovers were aplenty. Once again, a defense seemed to have figured out how to contain him — force him left and back off him at the 3-point line. The world was ready to say the Linderella run was finally over because it had to end sometime.
Wrong.
“Jeremy Lin for the win” was not just a fun rhyme this time. It’s what the announcers called out in the final seconds of the game as Lin dropped a jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring and game-winning 3-pointer over a backpedaling Jose Calderon with half a second left to defeat the Raptors 90-87 as one of the most improbable stories in the history of sports continued with another incredible chapter.
Lin continued an unprecedented streak of dominant games that everyone is talking about with 27 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, along with two rebounds, 11 assists, and 8 turnovers.
His teammates and opponents alike were at a loss for words and mesmerized by Lin’s heroics as the non-scripted fairy tale continued.
From Frank Isola of New York Daily News: “Somehow,” Iman Shumpert said, “we were going to win with Linsanity.”…“It’s the greatest story in sports right now,” Jared Jeffries said… “I can’t really explain it,” Stoudemire said. “It’s pretty amazing what he’s doing.” “I’ve never seen anything like it,” added Tyson Chandler, whose offensive rebound with 20.8 left allowed the Knicks to hold for one final shot. When Lin held the ball near midcourt, he stole a quick glance at D’Antoni to see if the coach wanted to call timeout. He really wanted something else. “I wanted to see — I looked back to ask him if I could get an iso(lation),” Lin said. Chandler waited to see when Lin wanted him to set a screen but instead the guard waved him away, which in itself tells you something about his poise and moxie. “He waved me off,” Chandler said smiling. “I thought he let too much time run off the clock. I kept saying, “Shoot it, shoot it.” Toronto coach Dwane Casey was in charge of the Mavs defense last June when they defeated LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals. His strategy on Lin was similar to what Minnesota did on Saturday: force him left. “I thought he was going to drive,” Calderon said. “So that’s why I tried to give him his left hand but he made a great shot. What are you going to do?” Calderon indeed gave him too much space, and although Lin had taken and made one desperation 3-pointer in the first half, he looked confident as he let it fly from the top of the circle.
The early going was far from perfect, however, as the lowly Raptors controlled much of the game with tough physical defense that caused Lin to commit five turnovers in the first half. Calderon dominated Lin with 25 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, wanting no part of playing victim to Linsanity.
Defense prevailed once again for the Knicks however, as Coach D’Antoni made the adjustment of putting Iman Shumpert instead of Lin on Calderon. It changed the flow of the game as Calderon was held scoreless in the fourth quarter and could no longer effectively create offense for his team. The Raptors were in a clear state of disarray as they managed only 12 fourth-quarter points.
From Mike Vaccaro of New York Post: “Iman Shumpert played possum most of the fourth quarter, thinking he could pick Jose Calderon’s pocket a few times, but never sensing the time was right. As it was, he had given the Knicks a fighting chance in this game by smothering Calderon, who spent the first three quarters scoffing at “Linsanity,” torching the Knicks — and mostly Jeremy Lin — for 25 points, making 11 of his first 15 shots. “And then,” Jared Jeffries said, “Shump came in and said, ‘Enough of that.’ ”… Without Shumpert, Lin never has a stage to dance on, never has a curtain call to make. Guarding Calderon for 10 minutes in the fourth quarter, he only allowed the Toronto guard to get off two shots, both of which missed badly. Then, with the Knicks down five, with Amar’e Stoudemire having been rebuffed in his attempt to cut that lead to three by having a layup blocked, Shumpert seized the moment. He flicked the ball away from Calderon, he caught up to it, and he delivered a rim-rattling dunk that stunned the 20,092 inside Air Canada Center and energized the Knicks completely. “Without Iman,” coach Mike D’Antoni said, “Jeremy never has the chance to win the game because we never put him in a position to do it. That steal did it for us. That steal allowed us to win this game.”
Despite all the turnovers and missed shots, Lin persevered and never looked discouraged as the Knicks kept chipping away. With a minute remaining and down by three, he drove past Linas Kleiza to his left before bumping into Amir Johnson to convert a three-point play to tie the game and set up what would become an epic game-winning shot.
Amare Stoudemire returned for the first time since the death of his brother. He was still shaken and clearly rusty from the time off, shooting only 2-of-9 in the first half, but was instrumental in the fourth quarter as he finished with 21 points and nine rebounds despite getting seven of his shots blocked.
From Howard Beck of the New York Times: “Stoudemire was just happy to be part of the fun after a week spent mourning his older brother, Hazell, who was killed in a car accident. Stoudemire returned with a new tattoo, a single teardrop on his right cheekbone. “Forever crying inside,” Stoudemire explained, choking up. “It’s just hard to explain how close me and my brother was. He was more like a father figure, more like a mentor and a brother. He’s the reason I play basketball now. He’s the reason why I made it to where I am now. A big part of my success.” After Lin’s final shot ripped through the net, Stoudemire and Chandler just stared at each other in happy disbelief. “Then we started hugging each other and just dancing at halfcourt, as if we won a championship,” Stoudemire said. “I was simply amazed by, and still somewhat amazed, by the way he’s playing.”
Lin’s 136 points in his first five starts are more than anyone since the NBA-ABA merger, topping Shaquille O’Neal. His current streak of six straight games of at least 20 points and seven assists is the longest such streak this season, and he is only one of 22 players since the 1985-86 season to have such a streak.
Most importantly, he has led the Knicks, now 14-15, to six straight wins. No one can adequately explain or understand how any of this is happening. He has captivated sports fans all over the world with his unlikely play and refreshing attitude, setting up what could be the most historical run by any sports figure ever. We have been a witness to something truly special, and it’s not over yet.
In other news, LeBron James and the Heat accomplished something that hasn’t been done in 33 years: Winning three road games in three nights.
From Manny Navarro of The Miami Herald: “This was supposed to be the most daunting test of the regular season — three road games in three nights against quality Eastern Conference teams in the playoff hunt. The Heat passed its final exam Tuesday night with flying colors. Playing inspired and without much hint of exhaustion, the Heat capped its back-to-back-to-back trips through Atlanta, Milwaukee and Naptown by blowing past the Indiana Pacers 105-90. The Heat, which beat the Hawks by 20 on Sunday and the Bucks by 18 on Monday, became the first team to win three road games on three consecutive nights by double digits since 1970-71 NBA champion Milwaukee. You remember those Bucks? Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson led them to a 66-16 record and 12-2 record in the playoffs.”
Playing their fifth straight road game, the Heat dismantled the Pacers 105-90. The Pacers, who lost Danny Granger to a sprained ankle, didn’t put up much of a fight for much of the night as the Heat took a 68-39 lead at the half and sat its starters for much of the fourth quarter.
James continued his historic season with 23 points, nine rebounds and seven assists with four steals while Norris Cole tied a career-high with 20 points. The only blemish on the night was Mario Chalmers, who left the game in the third with a nagging hand injury. The Heat have won each of their past four games by at least 17 points and are now a half-game behind the Bulls.
After starting the season scorching hot with a 16-6 record, the Pacers are reeling fast as they have now lost five of their past six games and fell to the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
Elsewhere…
- The Lakers beat the Hawks 86-78 despite another rough shooting night from Kobe Bryant who scored just 10 points on 5-of-18 shooting. The Lakers are still trying to figure out their offense under Mike Brown, as the team has managed to score over 90 points in just three of the past seven games. Pau Gasol stepped up with 20 points and 13 rebounds while Andrew Bynum had 15 points and 15 rebounds.
- The Spurs withstood a surprising rally to gut out a victory against the Pistons 99-95 for their eighth consecutive victory and fourth straight on the road. It was a historical night for Ben Wallace, who played in his 1,055th game – a record for an undrafted player since the NBA-ABA merger. This was likely the final meeting between Duncan and Wallace, as Wallace plans to retire after this season.
- Tony Allen held Kevin Martin, who averaged 31.4 points in four games last season, scoreless as the Grizzlies defeated the Rockets 93-83. Mike Conley and Rudy Gay led the Grizzlies with 21 and 20 points respectively while Kyle Lowry was the only Houston starter in double figures with 24 points.
- Despite missing Derrick Rose once again, the Bulls found a way to hold off a big rally to hold off the Kings 121-115. Luol Deng took on the playmaker role on his way to 23 points, seven rebounds and a career-high 11 assists while Joakim Noah added 22 points and 11 rebounds. The Bulls have won six of their past seven and clinched the Eastern Conference coaching spot in the All-Star game for Tom Thibodeau.
- After resting three days for the first time this season, James Harden scored 22 and Kevin Durant added 21 as the Thunder easily defeated the reeling Jazz 111-85. The Thunder retained the best record in the league at 22-6 while the Jazz fell to 14-14, dropping them to 10th in the standings. Devin Harris continued his horrid season with just 6 points while Gordon Hayward was held scoreless.
- Alvin Gentry decided to gift a win to the Nuggets as he sat both Steve Nash and Grant Hill to rest them due to the heavy schedule. The Nuggets, on a two-game winning streak, had little trouble as they defeated the Suns 109-92. Aaron Afflalo led the charge with 20 points while Ty Lawson added 17.
- The Blazers lost to the lowly Wizards 124-109 after losing LaMarcus Aldridge early to a sprained ankle, a painful sight for the Blazers fans. X-Rays were negative but he will likely be out for a while. Nick Young starred with 35 points and John Wall had 29 points and nine assists. If you were a betting man, you were in luck, as the Wizards were 17-1 on the money line. Nicolas Batum started over Wes Matthews and responded with 33 points despite the loss. The Blazers have now lost four of their last five games, putting them in a tie with the Grizzlies for the eighth seed. The last time the Blazers allowed 124 points in regulation was back in January 26, 1993.