Raptors reportedly on verge of signing veteran point guard Jeremy Lin

Sports

If you were drawing up the kind of player the Raptors would benefit the most from in this buyout season for NBA veterans, Jeremy Lin would fit the bill perfectly.

He’s a veteran backcourt player who is a solid three-point shooter, an effective pick-and-roll player with no sense of entitlement for shots and playing time and role.

Atlanta Hawks guard Jeremy Lin (7) drives against Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet (23) in Atlanta. ESPN reports point guard Jeremy Lin is finalizing a buyout with the Atlanta Hawks to allow him to sign with the Toronto Raptors.  (John Bazemore / AP)

That his addition seems inevitable would be a late-season coup the Raptors have never pulled off.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Lin is finalizing terms of a buyout of his contract with the Atlanta Hawks and will join the Raptors as soon as the transaction is official.

The 30-year-old Lin is averaging more than 10 points a game with the Hawks and will fit seamlessly into the spot in the Raptors lineup filled until last week by Delon Wright.

He gives Toronto a proven three-point shooter in a backup role – he’s a career 35 per cent shooter from beyond the arc even though his numbers have fallen off this season with the Hawks – and is the creative backcourt player the Raptors could use.

The 6-foot-3 native of California became one of the great sensations of the last 10 years when he burst on the scene in 2012 with the New York Knicks. The “Linsanity” of the time included a memorable Valentine’s Day game in Toronto when his three-pointer at the buzzer gave New York a win over the Raptors.

Lin will be able to sign with the Raptors once his buyout from the Hawks – he’s in the final year of a contract that pays him about $12.5 million this season — goes through. He could join Toronto right after this weekend’s NBA all-star break.