Jeremy Lin vs Lakers Highlights 38 points! 10-FEB-2012

NEW YORK - There were 19,763 fans at Madison Square Garden on Friday night, and while in the deepest reaches of their imagination they may have dreamed of a night like this, not one could really have believed it possible.
Knicks' Jeremy Lin (17) spins past Los Angeles Lakers' Derek Fisher (2) during the first half of Friday night's game. Lin finished with 38 points, seven assists and four rebounds.
AP
Knicks' Jeremy Lin (17) spins past Los Angeles Lakers' Derek Fisher (2) during the first half of Friday night's game. Lin finished with 38 points, seven assists and four rebounds.

The Jeremy Lin craze that had taken hold over the last week surely would come crashing back to reality with Kobe Bryant and the Lakers arriving. A night earlier in Boston, Bryant had been asked about Lin and insisted he had no idea of what Lin had been doing and when he was asked if he would need to guard him, gasped, “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”

Maybe it’s time to get ahead of ourselves. Maybe it’s time to join the dream.Lin followed his 28-point, eight-assist outing Monday in his first career start by scoring 23 points and handing out 10 assists Wednesday against Washington, becoming the first player since LeBron James in 2003 and just the sixth since 1970 to have at least 20 points and eight assists in his first two starts, according to research from the Elias Sports Bureau provided by the Knicks.

He became an instant star in New York just as fans were ready to check out basketball after the Giants' Super Bowl run was over, and just when it appeared the Knicks might fall too far behind in the standings to salvage the season.

Some Lin shirts were scattered throughout Madison Square Garden – though Spike Lee was still wearing Landry Fields' No. 2 in his courtside seat. Ratings on MSG network are up since Lin joined the lineup, and the NBA said some of its Asian TV partners have added Knicks games to their broadcast schedules so fans can see the league's first American-born player of Chinese or Taiwanese descent.Lin followed his 28-point, eight-assist outing Monday in his first career start by scoring 23 points and handing out 10 assists Wednesday against Washington, becoming the first player since LeBron James in 2003 and just the sixth since 1970 to have at least 20 points and eight assists in his first two starts, according to research from the Elias Sports Bureau provided by the Knicks.

Lin hit two free throws with 52.3 seconds to play to give the Knicks an 89-82 lead, giving him 38 points. He picked up an important charge on LA and former Stanford standout Landry Fields made two of four free throws in the final seconds to secure the victory.

Friday marked the deadline for teams to guarantee player contracts for the remainder of the season. The Knicks locked up Lin on Tuesday for a reported $788,000.