NEW YORK — Emeka Okafor didn’t play a single minute against the Knicks Friday night, but he may have had the best post-game quote of them all.
“Great job @Hornets! Way to “Curb the LINthusiasm!!!” Okafor tweeted after the Hornets stopped the Knicks’ seven-game, Jeremy Lin-inspired winning streak, 89-85 at Madison Square Garden.
Still, there may be a bright side to the loss for the Knicks entering Sunday’s nationally televised game against the defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks.
Maybe Linsanity will die down just a little.
“I don’t think this is good, because I hate losing,” said Lin, who finished with 26 points, five assists and nine turnovers. “But I know what you’re saying in terms of everything dying down a little bit. I think from that end, it may help me, it may help the team a little bit in terms of just having everything off the court cool down for a little bit.”
Linsanity has reached such levels that Knicks interim GM Glen Grunwald said it had dwarfed the Vinsanity he lived through with Vince Carter.
“It’s a great story,” Grunwald said of Linsanity. “I don’t know what to say other than it’s a lot of fun and great for our team and our franchise and our friends. And it’s just one of those special occasions.
“I lived through Vinsanity when I was with toronto in Canada and that was big then and this is so much bigger than that, it’s hard to believe,” Grunwald said.
Lin had eight of his nine turnovers in the first half, and trailed by as many as 14 points.
“It was just a lackluster effort on my part, just coming out and [being] careless with the ball,” Lin said. “Nine turnovers is obviously never gonna get it done from your primary ball-handler. It’s on me in terms of taking care of the ball and the game in general.
“If everyone’s going to credit me for these last seven games, then I definitely deserve this one on my shoulders. So that’s fine with me.”
Lin has tallied 45 turnovers in his first seven starts, an NBA record.
“I told him that he was trying to make the hardest pass out there, he was trying to make the home-run pass,” Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni said. “That will happen for young guys. When they collapse so much he just has to kick. He’ll learn, he’ll get through it.”
Lin’s life is about to change dramatically — again — as the Knicks expect both Carmelo Anthony and newly acquired J.R. Smith to play soon. Anthony could return Sunday from a groin injury against the Dallas Mavericks, while Smith will likely play next week after arriving late Saturday.
“I don’t think it will change from my standpoint,” Lin said. “My approach to the game, I think I’m going to come in with the same mentality to attack and be aggressive.
“I think I’ll be able to run less pick and rolls and hopefully be more efficient. Obviously, it’s always a good thing when you have more weapons, more playmakers. Not that we don’t have enough right now, but obviously someone with Melo’s capabilities you don’t get that every day from anybody.”
