Knicks will match Jeremy Lin’s offer, Coach Mike Woodson says

The Knicks will “absolutely” match the Houston Rockets’ four-year, $28.8-million offer sheet for Jeremy Lin, New York Knicks Coach Mike Woodson said Wednesday.

Woodson said Lin was expected to play a key role in the team’s future.

“Jeremy Lin has always been a big part of what we’re trying to do as we move forward with our franchise,” Woodson told reporters in Las Vegas, where the Knicks are participating in summer league.

Lin averaged 14.6 points and 6.2 assists in 35 games last season before a knee injury prematurely ended his campaign.

In mid-March he led the team to a 6-1 stretch, which helped catapult the obscure, 23-year-old point guard from Harvard to worldwide fame.

“I was in shock, I was surprised at the way everything happened,” Lin said Wednesday at the ESPY Awards. “Suprised that I was able to play that much that quicky and to be able to get heavy minutes, it was just a lot of fun.”

Lin’s jersey went from not even being sold in stores at the beginning of the season to being the second-best seller in April, behind only former MVP Derrick Rose’s jersey.

Despite his meteoric rise, Lin said he’s not putting pressure on himself heading into next season.

“In terms of expectations, I just want to make sure I try my best and I play unto God’s glory and be OK with whatever the results may be -- that’s kind of the attitude and the motto that I’m trying to take,” Lin said.

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