With the Jeremy Lin phenomenon showing no end in sight, it feels rather timely that I recently finished When The Garden Was Eden by Harvey Araton about the Knicks of Clyde and Willis. In many ways, and Clyde recently noted the same in an interview, there is a similarity between the Lin/Carmelo storyline and the Frazier/Monroe dynamic back then. Who would sacrifice and could it work? Now, to be honest, it is almost absurd that in order for the parallel to work that Jeremy Lin, with 6 starts under his belt, is either a modern day Walt or the Pearl. Nevertheless, if the assumption is allowed to stand, we see that what is ultimately required is sacrifice. And, to me, that's what 6 shots and 13 assists represents. Jeremy Lin is not just a flash in the pan. He is a talented player that needed a chance, and he can be a legitimate starting point guard. And if I'm right, that should be enough to allow Carmelo to come back into the mix and be the dominant player that he has always been.
As for the title of this post, I remain one of 2 million New Yorkers without the MSG network. And, since every story needs to have a bad guy, and given that nepotism is something I am intimately familiar with, my nominee is the guy who was born on third base and thinks he hit a triple.
