Jeremy Lin is having a rocky year in his first season in a Los Angeles Lakers uniform, which is creating speculation that the playmaker will eventually leave Hollywood in the offseason.
But in a recent interview with Mike Bresnahan of Los Angeles Times, Lin denied that he has already made up his mind on what he intends to this summer, saying that he is not in the mood to talk about free agency until after the 2014-15 NBA season.
"I'm not going to answer any of those free agency questions until after the season," said Lin, who will become an unrestricted free agent in the offseason. "I'll discuss that later."
Lin, who was acquired by the Lakers in a trade with the Houston Rockets in the offseason, started the season as the team's starting point guard, but was eventually replaced by Ronnie Price. When Lakers coach Byron Scott made another change, he started rookie Jordan Clarkson instead of Lin.
Previous reports indicated that Lin's days in Los Angeles are already numbered because of the impressive play of Clarkson. But is Lin jealous of his rookie teammate? The fifth-year guard says he is not bitter, and is very supportive of Clarkson, who will likely start at point guard for the remainder of the season.
Scott publicly criticized Lin for his inconsistencies earlier in the season, but the first-year Lakers coach was impressed with the way the former Harvard University standout has been performing over the past several weeks.
"I think the last five, six games, Jeremy's played extremely well at both ends of the floor," Scott said of Lin. "He's not thinking so much out there. That's the biggest thing that we talked about months ago, quit thinking so much and just play and react to the situation."
In five games this month, Lin averaged 13.2 points on 43.4 percent shooting from the field to go along with 6.6 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game. Lin credited Scott for his recent impressive performances for allowing him to play the type of game he is comfortable with, particularly running more pick-and-roll plays.
"That's who I am," Lin said via LA Daily News. "That's what allowed me to have success in the past. That's the reason why people are paying me money to play pick-and-roll."
But will Lin's recent performances be enough to convince the Lakers to keep him this offseason? Or will Lin still consider moving out to get a better role elsewhere?
