Jeremy Lin "LINSANITY" Thread; Volume 4.

[Clyde_Style]

Lin is gonna be so loaded next season...i wouldnt be surprised by the time he retires, he will build a huge church

Her Holy Mother of Linsanity

[spaceballer]

Hmm...it seems some more light is being shed on the new agent's role.

According to a release sent out by Geisler on Thursday, Tanner will represent Lin in all areas of contractual agreements, marketing endorsements, licensing, personal appearances, media relations, community investments and other business opportunities. In addition, Montgomery will collaborate with Tanner on free agency and other basketball-related matters.

"I believe Jim and the team at Williams & Connolly are the best fit for me in all aspects of my career," Lin said in a statement. "With the quality and character of their firm and clients, their extensive basketball experience and tremendous success in athlete representation, I am confident that Williams & Connolly will provide me with the guidance I need to continue to develop personally and professionally. I am excited to have them work with Roger Montgomery and my current team."

Lin's decision to switch agents comes at a crucial part of his career, as he's a restricted free agent and looking to secure his first multi-year, multi-million-dollar contract. Not only that, Lin has the ability to maximize his earning potential off the court with more lucrative endorsements. As of now, his biggest one is Volvo.

Tanner is one of the most respected agents in the game, and he's been ranked as one of "Washington's Top Lawyers" for media and sports law by Washingtonian Magazine several times in the past few years. In addition, his law firm was ranked No. 1 last year in Washington, D.C., and eighth-best in the country by the Vault Guide.

Insiders predict Lin will more than likely re-sign with the Knicks for three years (with a fourth-year option) at $3 to $5 million per year.
http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/knicks ... hes-agents

[lleepar]

Yes, I think Jeremy Lin's legal needs will exceed those typical of most NBA players. I don't even think a firm with only national experience and clout would be sufficient. He clearly needs one with international litigation experience. If he wants to build a global brand, he will need a firm versed in the laws of other nations.

[snipped]

I think you're right in several of your observations. And now, hours after my initial reacton to the news that W&C might represent Lin, I'm feeling rather stupid for not having put together some obvious history of the firm that I knew, but completely forgot. In my own past, I'd primarily focused on them as political power-brokers and knew them as fierce litigators. But I should have remembered their founder's sports connections too (see following link).
http://www.wc.com/practice-profile-530.html

Those connections put W&C into the sports halls of power long before Hollywood agent firms like CAA dipped their toes in the sports water. (CAA's sports division is only 5 or 6 years old and are relatively new kids on the sports block.) I don't know how long W&C has done representation for individual athletes, but their relationship with leagues and owners goes way back. But their marquee basketball athlete clients are aging, so a young, internationally known athlete like Jeremy Lin would be someone they'd seek to represent.

I think you're also right about some of the division of labor between Roger Montgomery and W&C. I found the following exerpt (from the link above) to be interesting:

In representing sports figures in player and contract negotiations, licensing negotiations, business structuring, and other matters, the firm's attorneys offer a key advantage: they provide the same services as traditional sports agents, but charge on an hourly-fee basis rather than a straight percentage-of-income basis. This important difference can save hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars over the course of a professional athlete's career.

So it just may be that Montgomery's over-all supervision of Lin's career would continue, with W&C representing him in specific negotiations after Lin, his family, and maybe his long-time agent decide on the objectives to be sought in specific negotiations.

[lleepar]

Jeremy signs new rep to direct free-agency fight

New York Post
By MARC BERMAN
Posted: 1:02 AM, June 22, 2012

The Knicks’ Jeremy Lin, with free agency looming July 1, is beefing up for negotiations by retaining the powerful Washington-based agent Jim Tanner of Williams & Connolly.

The undrafted Harvard point guard was using little-known Roger Montgomery, who guided a small agency in San Antonio. A release said Montgomery will continue to work with Lin in conjunction with Williams & Connolly, a Beltway law firm that has former President Bill Clinton among its many political clients.

Tanner said he first met with Lin and his family when he came out of college, but didn’t sign him. They became reacquainted two months ago, after Lin’s left- knee surgery. Powerhouse agency CAA also tried to sign Lin, but failed.

“What’s most interesting in this process is how much interest he has off the court, with so many companies already expressing interest,’’ Tanner told The Post. “He had a phenomenal year in terms of his performance. He captured everyone’s imagination. Everyone can identify with his story being an underdog, overcoming odds and excelling.’’

Tanner declined to comment on Lin’s chances of re-signing with the Knicks, saying he is too new to the situation.

Lin is supposed to play for the U.S. Select Team that will face Team USA during scrimmages starting July 5, but his contract won’t be finalized until July 11. There is precedent for free agents pulling out of the Select Team.

“I don’t want to comment on that yet,’’ Tanner said.

Tanner also represents, NBA stars Grant Hill, Shane Battier, Tim Duncan and Ray Allen, the latter a free agent who may have interest in the Knicks if they still have their $5 million mid-level exception after a union hearing.

Montgomery and Tanner will collaborate on Lin’s new contract that could get tricky if another team (which has to be under the cap) offers him a back-loaded proposal. The Knicks can match any offer, but a team under the cap can go as high as $15 million in the third year of a deal. The first two years can’t be higher than the average salary (roughly $5 million). The Knicks may or may not have to use their mid-level exception on Lin, pending Lin’s Bird Rights hearing.

Knicks general manager Glen Grunwald, a well-decorated lawyer out of Northwestern, has said he will re-sign Lin, but Montgomery recently told The Post he didn’t consider that a slam-dunk.

Montgomery needed help mostly because Lin is a marketing gold mine. There has been criticism Lin hadn’t cashed in with enough endorsements.

The new firm will represent Lin in all areas of contractual agreements, marketing endorsements, licensing, personal appearances, media relations, community investments, and other business opportunities.

“I believe Jim and the team at Williams & Connolly are the best fit for me in all aspects of my career,” Lin said in a statement. “With the quality and character of their firm and clients, their extensive basketball experience and tremendous success in athlete representation, I am confident that Williams & Connolly will provide me with the guidance I need to continue to develop personally and professionally. I am excited to have them work with Roger Montgomery and my current team.’’

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/knicks/l ... z1yV58hd26

[NOODLESTYLE]

http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/knicks ... a-believer

Warriors starting point guard Stephen Curry, who teamed up with Jeremy Lin in Golden State during the 2010-11 season, says the Knicks' restricted free agent has enough game to not only start, but thrive in any offense.

"Oh yeah, I think he's shown that," Curry, one of the best young point guards in the NBA, told ESPN New York on Wednesday at a launch event for the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S III smartphone. "Granted, it was great to see him play in the (Mike) D'Antoni system, which is wide open and it's a point-guard offense. But if he's in New York or wherever he is, I know he'll adjust to whatever role. The skills he showed that month he was out there won't go away."

Two of the biggest reasons Curry believes Lin has what it takes: Witnessing his work ethic while he was with the Warriors and watching him continue his late-season tear for a while -- from Feb. 4 to March 24, to be exact. During that 26-game span, Lin averaged team-highs in points (18.5) and assists (7.7).

"People always ask me, 'Did you expect him to go up like that?'" said Curry, who considers Lin "a great dude," and they still remain close friends. "Nobody could expect him to play at that high of a level for (how) long he did, and probably even longer next year. I knew he'd last in the NBA. He's a great talent, he works hard, he gets better every day you see him. But nobody could expect once he got an opportunity to start and play significant minutes that he would over-exceed everybody. I'm happy for him. Nobody saw how much work he put in his rookie year and even over the summer before we had to release him."

Curry called the point guard "the toughest position on a night-to-night basis," and said Lin will have to bring it every game. For almost two months, he did. Can he do it for a full season, not only on offense, but defensively against widespread talent at the one?

"You have Russell Westbrook, Mario Chalmers, Steve Nash, Chris Paul, Tony Parker -- I can go and on," he said. "You've got to be on your game every night or you'll get exposed. You can have fun with it that way, too. When you know you're playing well, you're really doing something. You're playing obviously with 30 of the best point guards in the world.

[lleepar]

I found the New York Post article (above in this thread) interesting for a couple of reasons. First, the article contains some comments from Lin's newest team member, Tanner. It's also the first time I've read that CAA had tried to sign Lin.

But what really caught my eye was the comment that Lin's "contract won’t be finalized until July 11". I was surprised to see a firm date. But also, I'm not really sure what "finalized" means in this case -- whether it just means "signed" or just that the contract is in some final form for review.
____________________

Edited to add:
My question about the July 11 date was answered in the NYTimes article:
..."The free-agent negotiating period opens at midnight July 1, although deals cannot be consummated until July 11." ...

Full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/21/sport ... ss&emc=rss

[lleepar]

.
Good to know he's making sure his skills and fitness work are a priority.

New York Knicks Sensation Jeremy Lin to Host a Youth Basketball Camp
Anthony Fernandez - June26

The NBA’s first Taiwanese-American player, New York Knicks Sensation Jeremy Lin will be back in his parents’ home country this summer for a Youth Basketball Camp.

The Youth Basketball Camp will be held at a New Taipei City high school between Aug. 27-30 and is targeted at basketball lovers between the ages of 9 and 16.

Knicks Sensation Jeremy Lin will be accompanied by his personal fitness coach and a shooting coach during the hoop camp in order to assist the New York Knicks point guard to stay fit and get ready for the next NBA season during his trip.

http://www.athletepromotions.com/blog/n ... ball-camp/