It was at once a forgone conclusion that the New York Knicks would match any offer restricted free-agent Jeremy Lin would receive. Well, the Houston Rockets and Lin have agreed on a four-year, $25 million deal, but the Knicks may not match it after all. After acquiring Raymond Felton from the Portland Trailblazers, the Knicks now have three point guards and there is a good chance Lin will not be their fourth.
The Knicks now have Felton, Jason Kidd and Pablo Prigioni on the roster, leaving very little space for Lin. With their backcourt loaded, "Linsanity" may be headed to Houston instead of New York City.
"He did not see this happening," Peter Diepenbrock, Lin's coach at Palo Alto High School talking about the Knicks adding three-point guards, told Yahoo! Sports. "He sounded surprised."
The Knicks have three days to match Lin's offer once he signs, meaning New York has until 11:59 p.m. ET Tuesday to match the Rockets' offer sheet.
At this point, adding Lin to the roster would mean the Knicks are not willing to lose out on the potential money he can bring in. Felton is a much better, and a more proven point guard than Lin, and he is surely the better fit. However, Lin has more marketability than Felton and the Knicks would not like to miss out on that opportunity. He helped raised Madison Square Garden's stock to an all-time high, but it looks like now he will help the Rockets gain some extra cash.
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