Charlotte Hornets, Jeremy Lin Rumors: Steve Clifford Refuses To Start His Two

“I kept looking in the fourth quarter (for a way to reinsert Lamb) but Jeremy Lin was really the one who did the best job on Kevin Martin”, Clifford told The Charlotte Observer. Meanwhile Clifford has both Jeremy Lamb and Jeremy Lin coming off the bench and they have both been great which has Hornets fans clamoring for one of them to take the starting spot.

Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford knows that if his team is going to surprise a few people and make a push for an Eastern Conference playoff berth, his bench players will play a pivotal role. Bad news to start the night indeed, as Wiggins found his stride in wins over Chicago (31 points) and Atlanta (33 points) after opening the season with four forgettable performances. Nemanja Bjelica hit two free throws, but then he fouled Lin on a 3-point attempt at the quarter buzzer, and Lin made all three free throws to give Charlotte a one-point lead entering the second. The Hornets started the final quarter on a 6-0 run to go up 91-80 with ten minutes remaining.

Notes: Minnesota coach Sam Mitchell said Garnett missed the game simply to rest as the team played its second game in as many days.

Hairston has started all seven games for Charlotte this season and he has been extremely underwhelming as his PER (5.7) is the lowest on the team among guys that have played in every game and he is shooting just 32 percent from the field and 23 percent from three.

Lin Prefers Playing In Charlotte To Big Cities Like NY or L.A. He added 20 points, eight rebounds, and five assists, but turned the ball over eight times; teeter-tottering between flashes of brilliance and his customary brand of sloppy execution when asked to run an National Basketball Association offense. Fully recovered and healthy for now, Anthony is averaging 21.9 points on 38.1 percent shooting along with 6.9 rebounds through New York’s first eight games… “We wanted to make up for what we did last game, which was give them a negative boost against the Spurs when the starters came out strong”. Cody Zeller added 14 points and six rebounds.

Hornets guard P.J. Hairston left Tuesday’s game with a migraine and did not return. Kevin Martin had 18 points and five assists…. Lamb and Lin are the offensive focal points of the second unit but if they were inserted into the starting lineup they would take a back seat to Al Jefferson and Kemba Walker. Payne finished with 10 points and five rebounds and hit both of his 3-pointers.

The game started with the Wolves in high gear despite all the game-time scratches.

“I came up short”, Towns continued, holding himself to the unbelievably high standards he sets. “I tried to go out tonight and contribute as much as possible on both ends. I didn’t do what I had to do to help us win this game”.