Against Sacramento on Wednesday, the Knicks got a glimpse of what their future could look like if Jeremy Lin's remarkable scoring production doesn't last forever and all of this “Linsanity” eventually subsides.
And it looked pretty good.
Lin took a break from his recent run as hero and instead just played the part of distributor as the Knicks ran their win streak to seven games with a 100-85 victory over the struggling Kings at Madison Square Garden.
By no means did the Knicks' man of the hour turn back into a "pumpkLin," however. He had 10 points and 13 assists, giving Lin his third double-double of the season and his second in a row. But his streak of scoring at least 23 points during each of his first five starts was snapped.
Part of his limited production was due to limited minutes. Lin could afford to spend time on the bench Wednesday because of his team's commanding performance against Sacramento, with the Knicks taking a 54-36 halftime lead. His 26 minutes on Wednesday were his fewest since Feb. 3. He had played at least 35 minutes in each of his six previous games.
But the other part was due to the production of his teammates. Landy Fields had 15 points and Bill Walker and Steve Novak each added 14.