Jeremy Lin's Mad At The Knicks, But It's A Healthy Kind Of Mad

The honeymoon may not be over, but Jeremy Lin's New York marriage has definitely begun. Though he hasn't yet put pen to contract, he's already got one tabloid trying to stir up shit between him and the Knicks. That's about an official a welcome as the New York media has to offer.

Last week, Lin received a 4-year, $29 million offer sheet from the Houston Rockets, with the fourth year being a team option. The Knicks always maintained, publicly and privately, that they intended to match. And with today being the day contracts can actually be signed, there's roughly zero chance Lin isn't a Knick by dinner. But according to the Lin is a little ticked that the Knicks merely sat back and waited to match, rather than offering up a deal first.

"He was surprised that the Knicks didn't make the first move,'' a league source said. "They know they've got to mend some fences with him because he believes what the Rockets have told him, that the Knicks weren't as interested as they are.''

There's some weird editorializing in the Daily News article, but no one's really at fault when both sides are trying to get the most out of a business arrangement. No, the Knicks don't owe Jeremy Lin anything. They're up against the cap, and there's precisely zero reason for them to bid against themselves for a player they were always going to re-sign anyway. And Lin doesn't owe the Knicks anything either; just because they gave him a shot after two other teams cut him, he's not supposed to try and get everything he can on the contract that could set him for life? There's always, always, a little bad blood in contract negotiations. Each side has something the other wants. And if both sides come out of talks feeling a little screwed, then it's likely the deal made was a fair one.