ANAHEIM – After sitting out the Lakers’ past three games due to an ankle sprain, Jeremy Lin admitted that he was a bit overwhelmed during the first few minutes of his return against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday.
“It felt like everything was going way faster than I could process,” he said. “Part of it is not playing for a while, but the ankles are holding up OK.”
Nonetheless, Lin appeared in control for the majority of the night, as he racked up 15 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals in 24 turnover-free minutes.
Though the Lakers lost the preseason contest in overtime, 114-108, Lin’s teammates expressed relief in having the first-year Laker back in the lineup.
“Jeremy Lin makes a big difference,” Kobe Bryant said. “He creates shots for others. We got somebody else that can penetrate and make plays for others, put pressure on the defense. It’s a really big difference.”
Lin made his difference on the scoreboard with a solid shooting performance, going 3-for-5 from the field and 8-for-10 at the free throw line.
Beside putting the ball through the hoop himself, the Harvard product also piloted the Lakers’ offense, which scored 53 points in the two regulation quarters that he played and 41 in the two he did not.
“(I’m) just trying to stay aggressive the whole game and make plays,” Lin said. “That’s kind of how I like to play, so as long as I continue to do that, I feel like, throughout time or over time, things will open up – the floor will open up. Especially as a point guard, you can’t just score all the time. It just depends (on) what the defense is giving you.”
After the game, fellow point guard Ronnie Price recognized the value Lin’s return brings to the team’s offense.
“He can get to the basket and do a lot of things,” Price said. “So he puts a lot of pressure on the defense that way. And I think a lot of guys are gonna be happy that he’s back. He’s getting guys open looks and easy shots.”
One of the benefactors of Lin’s offensive direction was Ed Davis, who finished with 11 points on 4-for-5 shooting. Davis has gone 19-for-24 this preseason (79.2 percent) and credits his success to the amount of high-percentage shots he has taken.
Many of these quality looks have resulted from his connection running the pick-and-roll with Lin.
“I love playing with J-Lin,” Davis said. “He’s a pick-and-roll guy. That’s what he wants to do. He gets to the lane. I’m just trying to get him open, and he can take the jump shot or he can find me at the rim.”
In addition to his offensive contributions, Lin also displayed a more aggressive defensive approach against Phoenix, as evidenced by him fouling out with 11 seconds left in regulation.
“I’m trying to be a better defender, and I know I’ve gotten better. I know I’ve worked a lot on that this offseason,” he said. “So I think it’s maybe a style that refs haven’t really seen me play before in terms of being more aggressive and being more of an attacking defender. But I’d rather foul out now and try to slowly build a reputation as a defender who plays a certain way.”