Jeremy Lin received cheers from the Madison Square Garden crowd in his first game against the Knicks since leaving his former team to sign with the Houston Rockets over the summer. Knicks fans gave Lin a strong applause when he was introduced before the game began. However, the cheers turned into boos as the game went and Houston pulled away.
Lin had 22 points and 8 assists, and most importantly, he was 9-15 on field goals in Houston’s 109-96 win on Monday night. It was the second-highest point total of the season for Lin, and his second-best shooting performance of the year.
“It was a lot of fun playing out there,” Lin said after the game. “I think our team took a step in the right direction. For me, it was great to be back and it was a lot of fun to be back again.
“It was actually a lot better than I thought (it would be),” Lin said of the reception.
Lin was not in the mood to be nostalgic about the “Linsanity” craze he sparked in New York last season.
“I’ve moved on, they’ve moved on,” he said. “We have good memories, but at the same time we’re all in a different place now.”
The win was no doubt satisfying for Lin after he took some criticism for leaving for Houston. Center Tyson Chandler said in October that Lin couldn’t run the Knicks’ offense. Raymond Felton, who replaced him on the Knicks, said he was a better player than Lin. And then you had Carmelo Anthony call Lin’s contract with Houston “ridiculous.”
Oh yeah, having a game against the Knicks while handing them their sixth loss of the year had to have felt great for Lin.
Below are some of his highlights from the game:
