Toronto Raptors: Jeremy Lin explains why he chose the Raptors
By Paul Taylor
Jeremy Lin spoke to the local media, to discuss why he decided to join the Toronto Raptors after being waived by the Atlanta Hawks.
When reports first starting circulating that Jeremy Lin might be joining the Toronto Raptors, there was a mixture of surprise and intrigue. In many ways, this describes his NBA career in general.
After finalizing his buyout with the Atlanta Hawks and clearing waivers, Lin officially signed for the Raptors on Wednesday. The deal was for the remainder of this season and included a guaranteed salary of $697,358.
The question is, why did the 30-year-old decide to join the Raptors? The subject was brought up during his press conference with the Toronto media.
As per TSN‘s Josh Lewenberg, Lin explained that it simply came down to the team really wanting him. He said it was nice to be wanted and meant something to him.
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The Torrance, California native did add that he wanted the opportunity to play for and win with a team that had genuine championship aspirations. He’s made the playoffs four times in his previous eight seasons in the NBA, but as he pointed out, has never advanced past the first round.
The timing of Lin’s arrival was ideal, after the news that Fred VanVleet would miss around five weeks of action. And he didn’t disappoint during his Raptors’ debut against the Washington Wizards.
Despite coming off the bench, the point guard still saw 25 minutes of action. In that time he recorded eight points, five assists, five boards, one steal and a block.
Lin will be important to the Raptors during VanVleet’s absence, as a valuable backup to Kyle Lowry. If his performance versus the Wizards is any indication, the team are going to be in good hands.
In this respect, anything around Lin’s career averages will also do just fine. During his time in the NBA — which consists of 458 regular season games and 218 starts — he has averaged 11.8 points on a shooting percentage of .436, along with 4.4 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.1 steals.
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What kind of impact are you predicting for Lin? Do you see him becoming an important part of the Toronto Raptors’ rotation, or are you not expecting much from him? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.