As expected the Houston Rockets came to terms with restricted free agent point guard Jeremy Lin last night on an offer sheet. The deal is for four-years and just shy of $29 million, with the Rockets holding a team option for the fourth year. Also as expected, the contract was backloaded with Lin's salary spiking to more than $9 million in the third and fourth years of the deal.
But it's unlikely Lin will ever play for the Rockets on this deal with the New York Knicks intending to follow through on their plans to match the offer for the restricted free agent. It likely means the Knicks and owner James Dolan will take a luxury tax hit in at least the third year of the deal. But the Knicks are undeterred, telling ESPN's Marc Stein in no uncertain terms that they will match with this comical quote:
Source with knowledge of @nyknicks' thinking: "They will match any offer on Jeremy Lin up to 1 billion dollars" (via @ESPNSteinLine)
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) July 6, 2012
Read more on the Rockets at The Dream Shake and SB Nation Houston. Also, be sure to subscribe to the SB Nation Youtube Channel for video commentary.