In the span of 25 games, the aura of the New York Knicks and Madison Square Garden was changed positively by a D-League traveler named Jeremy Lin. Facing adversity and media scrutiny, the 23-year-old took advantage of what he was given and brought a 8-15 team going downhill fast into a seventh seed. His reign was known as “Linsanity.”

A season-ending injury later, Jeremy Lin is now a free agent. The Knicks won his Early Bird rights (able to re-sign with his current team without using salary cap exceptions), but might not use them. According to ESPN’s Ian Begley, the New York Knicks won’t match the current offer sheet Jeremy Lin signed with for the Houston Rockets (four years, 28 million).

This sounds odd because a source told Marc Stein the Knicks would match any offer up to “a billion dollars” to keep Lin. Also, Jason Kidd has come out to say he’d love to mentor Lin and has signed a three-year deal with New York worth nine million. The most interesting move was acquiring Raymond Felton and Kurt Thomas from the Portland Trail Blazers in a sign and trade.

While many people think the Knicks aren’t smart for letting the Harvard alum walk, I think they’re doing the right thing.

His team history proves that Linsanity might’ve been a fluke. Lin might only be 23, but he’s been a D-League player most of his career and was almost cut by the Knicks this season. When he first emerged, many coaches didn’t focus the game plan around him. But once they did, his glowing offensive stats deteriorated, along with his knee. I’d have to agree with Carmelo Anthony: Giving a player 28 million for 25 games is ridiculous.

Speaking of the contract, if you look closer into the clauses, the numbers will shock you. Although Houston’s offer is worth 28 million, thanks to how the Knicks’ payroll is constructed, the last year on his deal would cost New York 58 million.

The reason why it costs the Knicks so much is because of luxury tax. New York has 61.5 million committed to their core stars (Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire, Tyson Chandler) for the 2014-15 season, which is Lin’s last year on his deal. They’ve went over the soft salary cap this year, and if they continue this rate, the tax rate will be extremely high.

What Houston put in Lin’s contract that has put the Knicks in this loophole is what we call the “poison pill.” A poison pill contract is one that offers a regular salary the first few years while making the last an asinine amount of money. It’s been used regularly by general managers to exploit the strict salary cap and luxury tax, while creating a possible trade asset in the final year. The Rockets have used this method already, signing Chicago Bulls center Omer Asik to a three year, 24.3 million contract (14 million in his final year).

So do you still think Carmelo Anthony was wrong for calling this contract ridiculous? Obviously he has some type of basketball smarts, knowing Jeremy Lin (or any player for that matter) isn’t worth that much for one year.

In fact, the Knicks didn’t even want Jeremy Lin in the first place. Why’d you think they’d let him test the market this whole time? They were going aggressive for Steve Nash. So aggressive, they were willing to trade one of their budding young players (Iman Shumpert) for a 38-year-old who has back problems. The Knicks knew this was something special, but nothing permanent and assumed the rest of the league thought the same.

It’s the safer bet to go with someone cheaper and more proven like Raymond Felton rather than Lin. Felton is older and heavier, but had his best tenure as a Knick a few years ago. He also showed good chemistry with Stoudemire (who had a serious downfall from last year) under former coach Mike D’Antoni. Now that Mike Woodson runs the show in New York, Felton could establish his own system, run the pick and roll with Stoudemire, and give Anthony his typical touches.

Either way, I don’t see why the Knicks would want to match it after their franchise player called it ridiculous. Carmelo Anthony has attempted to pull what LeBron James did and build a team around him that works together and has each other’s backs. If he wants to do this and question one of his player’s offer sheets, it probably won’t happen. Whether we like it or not, the Knicks run around Carmelo Anthony.

It was fun to see something magical like Linsanity happen the way and when it did, but thanks to business reasons, it’s finally over. The Knicks would be making one of their best decisions in a while by just letting Lin go to Houston while keeping a decent salary with exceptional players. Even if they did match the offer, the Knicks would be putting themselves in a financial hole they just got out of not long ago and risking it on a 25 game resumé. It’s not worth it.

Knicks fans, the day has come. Mike D’Antoni has resigned as head coach of our beloved team, which means that the Knicks can start competing for that championship we so desperately desire.

Has Carmelo played poorly this season? Yes, he is shooting his worst percentage of his career, and he has been reluctant to facilitate the ball in D’Antoni’s system, which is predicated on ball movement.

Has Amar’e Stoudemire played poorly this season? Yes, if you have watched the Knicks as much as I have, Amar’e has not looked himself. His bread and butter 15-17 foot jump shot has been off all season.

Do the Knicks need a true point guard? Yes, if you still think Jeremy Lin is the answer, you’re sadly mistaken. To be fair to D’Antoni as well, he needed a point guard to run his system, and run it well.

Despite all these things, D’Antoni had to go. Run ‘n’ gun just doesn’t ever win. D’Antoni has always won a ton of regular season basketball games, but has yet to win the NBA Championship. There’s only so much a team can do with a coach whose idea of defense is to just watch his team and scream out “defense!”

From the get-go it was obvious that D’Antoni and Carmelo Anthony couldn’t mix. Melo likes a style of basketball where he can dominate the ball. He likes isolation basketball and would much rather touch the ball 27 times and shoot 20 rather than constantly reverse the basketball, or play point-forward, which was one of the dumbest decisions I’ve ever seen a head coach make.

D’Antoni likes to constantly move the ball, make the extra pass and run in transition. As you can see, these two were never going to mix. When the Knicks traded for Melo, many assumed that it meant the end of D’Antoni when his contract ran out and the pursuit of Phil Jackson, who many believe will come back to coach in 2012-2013. This would be the perfect fit. Melo in the triangle offense would be dynamite, because the triangle has the scorer on the wing, which is where Anthony loves to shoot. Jackson has ran different triangle systems, but if he were to wind up in New York, I would bet he would run a guard at the top, Anthony on the wing and Stoudemire rotating between the high post and low post.

Regardless of whether they land Phil Jackson, something had to be done. The Knicks do have a lot of talent between Anthony, Stoudemire, Chandler, Fields, Lin (although I still question him), Davis, J.R. Smith, Shumpert and my man Steve Novak. When you can go nine players deep in the NBA, or at any level of basketball, that is a monster asset to have. How the Knicks are 2-8 since Melo’s return is inexcusable. D’Antoni lost the locker room, never had his superstar on board with his system, and the time came for a changing of the guard.

Next issue to put to rest is that Carmelo is to blame. Has Anthony struggled? Sure, I won’t try to refute that. However, this is the same player who brought Jim Boeheim his only NCAA championship at Syracuse. This is the same Carmelo Anthony that has never averaged less than 20 points per game for a season, and averaged over 28 points per game in two seasons.

Also Knicks fans, let’s not forget who the most clutch player in the NBA is statistically. Melo is constantly one of the best fourth quarter scorers and since 1996-1997, with under 24 seconds left in the game the player with the best shooting percentage having taken a minimum of 30 shots? You guessed it, Carmelo Anthony. So Knicks fans I ask you, do you really think he just forgot how to play basketball?

Now Melo never bought in to the system, and if Melo doesn’t start picking it up I’ll retract this statement, but the bottom line is as a head coach, you have to be able to use your players to maximize their talent. If Mike D’Antoni is this great offensive genius, then how could he never take a dynamic scorer and make him fit? Carmelo Anthony now needs to show that he is a true leader. He needs to pick up his play, he needs to lead by example on the court and he is the one that needs to take this team to the next level.

The question is what happens now? First off, the Knicks need a true point guard. I’m tired of hearing that Jeremy Lin is a star and the answer to the issues and Melo needs to go so Lin can run the team. Stop it. If Jeremy Lin was this good do you really think 29 teams would have not drafted him or signed him? D’Antoni can make average guards look great.

To name a few, Leandro Barbosa, Raja Bell, Raymond Felton, Toney Douglas in the second half of last season and now Lin. I’m not saying Lin can’t be a nice contributor, but the man is not the answer. Steve Nash is someone the Knicks should pursue in the offseason. He will not cost a whole lot, because he’s on the back end of his career. He will cost about six to eight million dollars a year, which if they restructure that a bit, they should be able to sign him.
Second is the job of the interim head coach. Mike Woodson will have to get this team committed to the defensive side of the floor, especially Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire. Melo and Stat both have the ability to play defense, when they want to. As the leaders of this team, Woodson is going to have to make it clear to them that they need to set the example by playing defense and giving 110 percent on every play.

Lastly, the Knicks need to just survive the regular season and still be playing in late April. This team is talented enough to pull off a deep playoff run. If they can survive the turmoil and just make the postseason, they can do damage.

So Knicks fans, I ask you all to sit back, relax and enjoy this team’s turnaround. The problem was not Melo or Stat, it was D’Antoni. Please refrain from stupid comments on how Jeremy Lin and D’Antoni should have run the show and the Knicks should have dumped a top five scorer in the NBA. He’s having an off season. If players left the minute things went wrong in this town, then Eli Manning would not have been quarterbacking the Giants for long. Have a little bit of faith; I know it’s hard with a team that hasn’t won a playoff game since the Allan Houston era.

I promise, the troubles will be over soon.

The New York Knicks needed a point guard to lead their star-studded lineup. Proof of this was their 8-15 start to a season of high expectations. Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony weren’t playing well together, and Toney Douglas was doing everything that he was expected not to do. Baron Davis wasn’t coming back from injuries and kept on facing set backs. Head coach Mike D’Antoni was on the verge of being fired.

Then comes a 6-foot-3 man by the name of Jeremy Lin.

After four stints with the D-League and being cut by two teams (Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets), Lin joined the Knicks as the last man on the roster, but has played sensational to the point where he’s the starting point guard.

In the four games Lin has played legit minutes for the Knicks, he’s averaged around 25 points a game, seven assists, and three rebounds. The team is 4-0 and hasn’t played with stars Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony during this span. He’s taken over Madison Square Garden by storm, having people chanting “MVP” when he takes free throws.

People have been in love with this guy since he first came off the bench against the New Jersey Nets on Feb. 4. There have been many nicknames for him (Linsanity, Linning, all he does is Lin, etc.) and even being compared to Denver Broncos QB Tim Tebow. Sports Illustrated has already claimed Lin is one of the greatest undrafted players who ever played the game.

It might be early to say this, but I believe this “Linsanity” as most people call it now is here to stay for a while, and it might get bigger with the return of Stoudemire and Anthony.

Jeremy Lin has been a stud at every level of the game before he hit the NBA.

On his high school team, Palo Alto High School in California, he was a senior captain and led his team to a 32-1 record, including a big upset win over nationally ranked Mater Dei 51-47 to claim a CIF Division II title. Lin was named first-team All-State and Northern California Division II player of the year.

His legend would only grow at Harvard University. During his sophomore season, Lin averaged 12.6 points per game and was named All-Ivy League Second Team. Junior year, Lin was the only player in NCAA Division I men’s basketball to be top 10 in the conference for shooting, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, field goal percentage, free throw percentage, and three-point shot percentage. He finished his career as the only player in Ivy League history to record at least 1,450 points, 450 rebounds, 400 assists, and 200 steals.

The reason why he went undrafted and got cut by two teams is because the depth of that position and systems the teams ran. The Golden State Warriors have enough guard depth in Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis, so there was no need for his services. The Houston Rockets needed a center more than a guard, and had Kyle Lowry and Kevin Martin already. They released Lin to sign center Samuel Dalembert.

Lin has excelled with the Knicks thanks to the system Mike D’Antoni runs, rather known as the “run and gun.” This system runs off a lot of pick and rolls, and needs a point guard with speed and ability to see the floor. He’s another version of Steve Nash, where he’s extremely fast off the dribble and can shoot but lacks defense.

During his short tenure as the Knicks starting point guard, he has outplayed players like Deron Williams, Devon Harris, John Wall, and Kobe Bryant. If that doesn’t stand out to you, then I don’t know what will.

People have been critical of Anthony and Stoudemire killing the team’s chemistry during their first 23 games of the season. The problem is Carmelo Anthony isn’t a point guard, and D’Antoni forced this upon him before the season started. Both Anthony and Stoudemire are shoot-first players, and they needed a point guard to evenly dish out to both players.

Lin is going to make this team a lot better. If you don’t remember in Pheonix, Nash and Stoudemire complimented each other very well. This will reflect in New York for years to come. With Anthony buying into the fact to pass the ball more, he’ll get his amount of touches and still be a big factor.

Right now, the Knicks are Linning without their stars. When Stoudemire and Anthony come back, the Knicks might be Linning the NBA Finals.

Ever since that trade for superstar SF Carmelo Anthony in February, Amar’e Stoudemire (STAT) has now become the second option and possibly the first player to be traded this season.

It is such a sad story to hear especially reflecting back on how effective he was. During the free agency frenzy two years ago with players such as LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, and Joe Johnson, Amar’e stood the bravest. Most of these players either signed with each other or back with their respective teams. Stoudemire made the boldest move and reunited with head coach Mike D’Antoni and signed a max contract (5-yr, $100M) with the New York Knicks.

The Knicks he originally signed with weren’t the Knicks we know today. This team was still rebuilding from the days of overblown contracts and consistent trading of draft picks from Isiah Thomas, their former general manager and coach. Donnie Walsh brought in players like Raymond Felton, drafted Danillo Gallinari, and completed D’Antoni’s team with Stoudemire.

This team was relevant before the Carmelo Anthony trade even went down. They were on pace to make the playoffs by being a seventh seed without Anthony. Once Anthony demanded a trade to New York that instant, James Dolan folded too quickly and resisted the request of Walsh to decline the trade and wait for the off-season. It was too late, as the Knicks gave up a good amount of players to get Melo’ along with a few bench players.

The New York Knicks have been playing under-average basketball since the Carmelo Anthony trade. Reasons could be from a lack of decent bench players to having no point guard to run the infamous D’Antoni run and gun offense. But this shouldn’t be the reason why Amar’e is playing like he is lately.

Last season, Stoudemire averaged 25.3 points per game while grabbing 8.1 rebounds. At this point into the season, he averages 17.7 points per game and averaging 8.2 rebounds.

The lack of offensive play could come from Anthony’s lack of passing. In a game against the Denver Nuggets, Stoudemire didn’t shoot the ball at least five times during the fourth quarter and overtime, while Melo’ took over 30 shots in the game.

It’s games like this that have fans and reporters looking at possibilities to trade Stoudemire to get value. According to a few reports, the Philadelphia 76ers have inquired about trading for Stoudemire. Possible trade ideas include Andre Iguodala and Spencer Hawes, or Elton Brand and Lou Williams.

Although Stoudemire is the reason why the Knicks became relevant again, this trade idea works for both teams. The Knicks need better ball movement and more consistent role players, while the 76ers need a first scoring option.

All four possible players eligible for Stoudemire make sense in their own ways.

Andre Iguodala isn’t the player he once was when combined with Allen Iverson, but he’s exactly the versatile shooting guard the Knicks need. A stat sheet stuffer averaging 12.8 points per game, 5 assists per game, and 6.4 rebounds. Iguodala isn’t a shoot first guard, but rather makes plays for other teammates and once in a while can get hot and drop 30.

Spencer Hawes is a solid big man down low. Usually a 10-10 player, he’s starting to improve and show his presence in the paint. Of course he’s not Stoudemire, but he’s one of the best passing big men in the league. Hawes averages three assists per game, so there would be better ball distribution with him.

Elton Brand isn’t anything special like he once was with the Los Angeles Clippers, but he would be a solid replacement. He’d probably come as a trade package that involves a point guard since this position is what the Knicks really need.

Lou Williams would probably be the most likely trade asset out of all four to be traded for Stoudemire. All the Knicks need is a decent point guard that is young with a lot of potential, and Williams fits this criteria. He’d probably get traded because of the 76ers having another point guard starting over him in Jrue Holiday. Only 26 years of age, D’Antoni’s system would make him look like Raymond Felton 2.0.

There might not even be a trade at all. What many people are concerned about with Stoudemire is not only that hefty contract, but rather his knees. The knees are a major part of his game; as big men always have to jump up to get rebounds and deal with posting up other big men. Not only the knees, but his back is another issue. During the first round of the NBA playoffs last season, Stoudemire played with back issues that cost the Knicks a first round sweep.

It was sad enough to even write this article, but business is business in the NBA. Feel-good stories don’t win championships. We’re seeing this with Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts now. Not everyone gets a happy ending. If a trade has to go down to better the teams future and championship dreams, so be it.