OK, the whole Jeremy Lin thing is starting to get pretty ridiculous.
If you're just now emerging from underneath a rather large boulder, Lin struck again on Tuesday night against the Toronto Raptors. The New York Knicks star scored 27 points and dished out 11 assists, yet another stud-like performance from the NBA's hottest stud.
Oh, and he nailed a clutch three-pointer to give the Knicks a 90-87 lead with 0.5 seconds left on the clock. The Knicks held on to win their sixth game in a row.
Like I said, stud-like.
Lin has done it all now. He proved a lot in the Knicks' last five games, specifically that he can run the pick-and-roll as well as anybody in the league and that he's by far the best point guard the Knicks have on their roster. It looked like a fluke at first, but Lin put that notion aside when he lit up the Los Angeles Lakers for 38 points and seven assists last week.
"Fluke this!" he seemed to say.
Lin's numbers in New York's last six games no longer reek of the dreaded F word. You can't argue with 26.8 points and 8.5 assists per game. To boot, we're no longer talking about a small sample size. It's not a big sample size yet, but it's a sample size that is only getting bigger and more impressive.
After already having proved that he's no fluke, Lin proved on Tuesday night that he's clutch too. To borrow a phrase from Gus Johnson, he was COLD-BLOODED. Very few other players in the league knock down that shot at that precise moment. It takes skill, luck and a little bit of something else. Lin has all three going for him.
Fluke this, indeed. Take a look at Lin's accomplishments from a big-picture perspective, and it's clear that we're dealing with a player who has the abilities to be one of the best players in the NBA.
I'm not saying he is, mind you. I'm merely saying that we're out of reasons to doubt this guy. He's shown that he's legit. All he has to do now is stay legit. If he does, then he'll be one of the best players in the NBA.
I'll be surprised if Lin, the Knicks or the millions of Lin fans out there ever experience a high like the one they experienced last night, though. There really aren't many things that can top a game-winning three to cap a hard-fought comeback.
Make no mistake, this is as good as it gets.
At least until the next game.
That, for the record, is on Wednesday night against the Sacramento Kings. The next step up, I guess, would be a game-winning four-point play.
I'm not ruling it out. When it comes to Linsanity, it's clear you can rule nothing out.
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