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Jeremy-Refocused: Lin comes back hot for the Los Angeles Lakers

By Daniel Tran

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After an All-Star break where he took a step back from the grind of NBA basketball and avoided being traded, Jeremy Lin came to back to the Los Angeles Lakers rejuvenated and firing on all cylinders.

“Frustrating” has been a word that has come up a lot when talking about Jeremy Lin’s time with the Los Angeles Lakers. Whether it is his lack of aggression or his seemingly irreparable relationship with head coach Byron Scott, Lin has felt exasperation of being a man caught in a no-win situation and caused dissatisfaction among fans that were expecting much more than what he has brought so far.

“I got a chance to get away…I just like to go and hoop and so that’s what I did during the All-Star weekend. When you’re in it everyday, sometimes it becomes a grind. It was definitely good mentally, good physically.” – Jeremy Lin

Lin, to his credit has done his best to fight through his shooting year since his rookie season at Golden State. Up until the All-Star break, he was averaging 10.6 points on 43.6 percent shooting from the field. He never blatantly threw anyone under the bus or blamed anyone else for his struggles even though he would have been justified in doing so. He just kept working.

However, sometimes working hard can be so exhausting it begins to be a detriment. It’s like continually smashing your head into a brick wall hoping to break through to the other side – you might be making progress slowly, but what will that matter when you are bloodied and broken with little to show for it? Sometimes it’s better to just take a step back and see that there are other venues towards success.

After stepping away from the Lakers facility and the daily demands of the coaching staff, Lin came back after the All-Star break a new man; and playing like it, too.


It is like night and day watching Lin play these past couple of games. He has been more aggressive looking for his shot, ignoring Byron Scotts request that he look to pass more, which is what he needed to do in the first place. He is shooting 3.8 more shots per game and still upped his efficiency, shooting 66.7 percent from the field the last two games.

The biggest difference, however, has been his aggression towards the basket; a strength that he has not consistently used the entire season. Instead of settling for outside jumpers, he is running like a freight train to the rim, averaging seven free throw attempts, instead of the three he was attempting prior to the All-Star break.

He was also caught jawing with the Brooklyn Nets’ Bojan Bogdanovic in the closing seconds of their game last week.  The edge has returned for Lin in all aspects of the game it seems.

Apparently, all he needed to do was just take a couple days to be with the ball alone.

“I got a chance to get away and it’s weird when things aren’t going that well, the one thing I like to do is get in the gym without anyone telling me what to do or how to play,” Lin explained. “I just like to go and hoop and so that’s what I did during the All-Star weekend. When you’re in it everyday, sometimes it becomes a grind. It was definitely good mentally, good physically.”

Realizing that this is a contract year probably helped with the process as well. With Lin’s next contract so crucial to his future in the NBA, it is a surprise that it took this long to see Lin in attack mode looking to get numbers in a lost season.

Being selfless for the majority season has given Lin a bit of an identity crisis. He was so wrapped up in being a good teammate and deferring to other teammates that his own aggressive style of basketball fell by the wayside, resulting in unproductive games.

But, being strictly a distributor was never Jeremy Lin’s game. He needs to be a scoring threat in order open up his passing lanes, not the other way around. Seeing Lin go back to his aggressive roots is refreshing, and what Laker fans were hoping for when he brought in at the beginning of the season.

It is far from being Linsanity again, but it is definitely a step in the right direction. Taking a break from being a professional player and just being a basketball player has greatly benefited Lin’s mentality and maybe fans will see what the real Jeremy Lin can do when he stops smashing his head trying to be something he is not, and playing his style of basketball regardless of what anyone else says.

Next: Jeremy Lin needs Korean BBQ after win against the Celtics

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