9 Players the New York Knicks gave up on way too soon

5. Jeremy Lin

The story of Jeremy Lin is known to virtually every fan of the New York Knicks. He was signed as something akin to emergency point guard depth in 2011, then was pressed into service amidst injuries and poor play. He erupted for 25 points in his first substantial action, then was moved into the starting lineup and led the Knicks on a seven-game winning streak, all without star forward Carmelo Anthony.

“Linsanity” led the Knicks to a 16-10 record in his 26 games in the rotation, and New York recovered to make the playoffs. Lin went down with a knee injury in late March and missed the playoffs, having averaged 18.5 points and 7.6 assists per game in that stretch.

Lin became a restricted free agent that summer, and the Knicks had every opportunity to re-sign him. Instead, they encouraged Lin to seek other offers, not wanting to pay Lin after such a short stint in the league. That led to Lin signing a creative and punitive contract with a balloon payment in the final year, known as a “poison pill” that made it really hard for the Knicks to match the offer.

New York should have offered Lin a fair deal. Then, they should have matched the offer sheet; the Knicks instead captured lightning in a bottle, with a player who brought genuine joy to the franchise for the first time in years, and let him walk for nothing. Lin wasn’t a star in his other stops, and injuries eroded the rest of his career, but he was worth re-signing and the Knicks just let him go.