NBA Rumors: Jeremy Lin Drawing Interest From EuroLeague Team, Per ‘Sportando’
With nearly a month passed since the start of the 2019 NBA free agency season, Jeremy Lin has yet to sign with a new NBA team. However, a new report suggests that the veteran point guard — who last played for the Toronto Raptors during last season’s championship run — is drawing interest from one of the top teams in European basketball.
Citing an unnamed source, Sportando reported on Friday that the 30-year-old Lin is currently CSKA Moscow’s “top target” at guard, as the reigning EuroLeague and VTB League champions are looking to add one more backcourt player to complete their roster for the upcoming season. This comes after Lin played sparingly for the Raptors in this year’s playoffs, appearing in just one minute of action in their NBA Finals series against the Golden State Warriors, as noted separately by ClutchPoints.
Originally brought in by the Atlanta Hawks for the 2018-19 season as a mentor to rookie guard Trae Young, Lin was acquired by the Raptors in February after the Hawks bought out his contract. In 74 combined games for both teams, Lin was mostly used in a second-string role, averaging 9.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 3.1 assists while shooting 44 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from three-point range. He was, however, reduced to third-string duties in the playoffs, as he averaged a mere 1.1 points in eight postseason games for the eventual NBA champions.
Jeremy Lin reportedly a "top target" of CSKA Moscowhttps://t.co/IwyYYPX6fJ pic.twitter.com/g4wFdTdPVr
— Eurohoops (@Eurohoopsnet) July 26, 2019
As a journeyman point guard with close to a decade’s worth of pro experience, Lin remains best-known as the undrafted player who emerged as an unlikely star for the 2011-12 New York Knicks, sparking the “Linsanity” phenomenon among fans. As ClutchPoints recalled, he was still able to achieve long-term success in the NBA despite his inability to reach top-tier status after his breakout season, as well as his recent injury history.
Al in all, Jeremy Lin has career averages of 11.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 4.2 assists over nine seasons spent with eight different NBA teams.
At the moment, it remains unclear whether Lin is interested in signing with CSKA Moscow and taking his talents from the NBA to Europe. However, he isn’t the only erstwhile NBA free agent currently on the Russian team’s shortlist, as Sportando wrote that CSKA Moscow is also considering former Wichita State star Ron Baker. The 26-year-old shooting guard last played for the New York Knicks and Washington Wizards in the 2018-19 season, where he averaged a combined 0.9 points, 0.7 rebounds, and one assist in 15 games for both teams, per Basketball-Reference.
