LINSANITY!
JEREMY OUT FOR YEAR
Clutching his right knee — an expression of pure shock on his face — Jeremy Lin uttered the devastating verdict: “I’m done, I’m done, I’m done.”
Then he grimaced in pain, broke into tears, and sprawled out on the Bankers Life Fieldhouse court Wednesday night in Indianapolis. Lin was right. A patellar tendon rupture was the official diagnosis, confirmed in a statement released Thursday by the Nets. Lin is out for the season.
And with that, one of the major pieces of Brooklyn’s 2017-18 team is gone.
“You got to call it what it is,” coach Kenny Atkinson said Thursday. “It’s a big blow.”
Lin, who appeared in just 36 games last year due to hamstring woes, was determined to return to peak form. He worked tirelessly in the offseason to make that possible.
Before going down in the fourth quarter of the 140-131 loss to the Pacers, Lin tallied 18 points and four assists.
There were high hopes for the backcourt pairing of Lin and D’Angelo Russell, who joined the team this summer via the trade that sent Brook Lopez to the Lakers. Russell had 30 points in the opener, and according to Atkinson, he and Lin had developed strong chemistry.
“It’s amazing how much those two talked on the court,” the coach said. “I’m calling a play and they’ve already discussed it. And they’ve usually picked the right play.”
Atkinson did not wish to address how his game plan will change in Lin’s absence or who will replace him in the starting lineup. The sil- ver lining is that the Nets are deep at guard. Expect Caris LeVert, Allen Crabbe, and Spencer Dinwiddie — who all received 15-plus minutes versus Indiana — to see heightened playing time. Others who have not yet touched the floor, such as Sean Kilpatrick and Joe Harris, likely will be thrown into the mix.
“Jeremy obviously did a lot for the team,” LeVert said. “Whatever I can do to help [now], I’m willing to do it.”
Yet all of the personnel questions were cast aside in the immediate wake of the update on Lin. Those will be answered before the shootaround on Friday, as the Nets get set for their home opener against the Magic.
“I think my sole singular thought is for [Jeremy’s] health, his well-being, his family,” Atkinson said. “I’m really thinking about him. I’m not even thinking about coaching.
“To me, today is about supporting him.”
That was the tone at Thursday’s practice, held just after the demoralizing news hit. The session ran longer than normal, partially because it began with a dia- logue about Lin and the importance of being there for him at this time.
The Nets expect their wounded point guard to play a leadership role from the sidelines, as he did last season. Atkinson chuckled recalling how Lin would visit him in his office and tell him which plays to run.
“The more he’s around, the better for me,” he said.
“He’s a big brother to me,” the 23-year-old LeVert said. “He has a lot of great advice, a lot of experience, so he’s someone I’ll definitely lean upon throughout the season.”
In his agony and distress on Wednesday, Lin still delivered a positive message to Atkinson — one the coach revealed despite his efforts to not talk about the team.
“I will mention one thing about the team,” Atkinson said. “[Jeremy] said to me last night, ‘Hey listen, I think we’re better equipped this year.’ ”
That feeling will soon be put to the test, but the Nets are keeping their spirits high.
“We got to step up for [Jeremy],” LeVert said. “That’s what he would want for us.”
The Empire State Building will have its tower lit in black and white for the Nets’ home opener.