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CHARLOTTE, N.C. A dozen media members encircle the starting point guard on one side of the locker room. On the other, a smaller group gathers around the starting center. The backup Rashard Higgins Jersey point guard, even after an 18-point showing in his second home preseason game with a new team, gets dre sed quietly and slips out the door. Few notice, and no one stops him.The backup point guard was Jeremy Lin. And while that October preseason game wasan extreme example, it showcases the new reality for the new Hornets guard: Lin is an NBA player like any other these days, and he has taken to Charlottes lower key atmosphere in a way that allows him to shine on the court without the madne s of Linsanity and the New York and Los Angeles media frenzy and Houston drama that came with it.Im far past it, Lin told Sporting News on Monday night, after the Hornets beat the Pistons to improve to 12-8. Im not really worried about it at all.MORE: |Theres a sense of ease these days with Lin. He on a two-year deal paying him $4.3 million, far le s than the three-year, $25 million deal he struck in 2012 with the Rockets, coming off . He wears , adding at least 4inches to his 6-foot-3 frame, and he . But after three years of unrealistic expectations yet solid production with the Rockets and Lakers, the spotlight has turned.They were just expecting me to do what I did in New York, which it's just not po sible if you don't have the ball in your hands, Lin said last month.The ball is usually inKemba Walkers hands now. He is the starting point guard, and his numbers have jumped to near-All-Star levels this season. The Hornets upgraded their offense dramatically this summer, adding Nicolas Batum, Jeremy Lamb, Spencer Hawes and Frank Kaminsky along with Lin, and that spacing has opened up Walkers game hes shooting career-bests of 43.8 percent from the field and 36.6 percent on 3-pointers, while his turnover rate remains low.A big part of that is simple division of labor. Batum is a true playmaker at small forward, and Lin often slides next to Walker down the stretch as a shooting guard.From preseason, from Day One, I've been comfortable with him, Walker said. Just making plays he's making a lot of great plays, and he takes a lot of pre sure off me and Nic. It's fun to play with him.MORE: Lin says Morgan Burnett Jersey much of the same. I like to play the two, and I knew I would create easier shots for him, he told Sporting News. He was a shooting guard in college, hell remind you (without bringing up that the college was Harvard). When he played next to James Harden for the Rockets, he often was asked to move off the ball and let the All-Star take the reins.Lin is playing 52.4 percent of his minutes at shooting guard, according to , but he is averaging 13.0 points and 3.1 a sists per 36 minutes there. Compare that to 20.2 points and 6.1 a sists per 36 minutes at point guard while leading the Hornets to scoring 14.9 points per 48 minutes more than their opponents.So yes, the Hornets have outscored opponents more with Lin at point guard than Walker. Much of that is because he often runs the role against opposing second units, but it also helps that he has improved in ways that arent reflected by his more traditional statistics 10.5 points, 3.0 a sists and 2.8 rebounds a game while shooting 41.1 percent from the field and 29.8 percent on 3-pointers. He has cut down on turnovers and increased his 3-point and free throw rates, all part of the plan for Charlottes rebuilt offense.Playing shooting guard, even if he is le s effective at it, gets him on the court more Joe Schobert Jersey at the ends of games.A lot of it's just matchups, how the game is going, which one of them is playing better that night or playing better in a certain group, Hornets coach Steve Clifford said Monday. But more than anything, it's matchups."MORE: Clifford and Lin clicked quickly. In their first conversation, Clifford broke down Lins game in a way that really impre sed the point guard because he had a much more nuanced understanding of it than previous coaches. Hes also praised Cliffords defensive scheme and detail-oriented coaching style. The Hornets coach, who and is lauded for his prowe s with a clipboard, told Lin he would help him develop his game and give him opportunities not Denzel Ward Jersey afforded to a player who has spent the past three seasons with Harden and Kobe Bryant.He's done that to some degree, Lin said. I know clearly what he expects from me. But that's why I feel like it's a proce s. I feel like he's going to continue to learn my game to see what I can do. Obviously watching film is one thing, but implementing it into a game, into a full situation is another thing.As time goes on, we'll just be more and more comfortable, and I'll be able to pick my spots in the offense, and he'll be able to see what really works, what I can do well not just what I can do well, period, but what I can do well that fits with the guys and the system. It takes time.MORE: The Hornets have that time, as long as they keep winning. They started 0-3 but have turned a corner. Their lo ses are to the Heat, Hawks (twice), Spurs, Bulls, Knicks, Cavaliers and Warriors not a single bad one among the bunch and they have six victories against Kareem Hunt Jersey teams that made the playoffs last season.Clifford said early in the season that he prefers to have a well-defined closing group, but he has since changed his tune. He likes the flexibility this team affords him, a result of the roster's depth and the lack of a clear hierarchy beyond All-Star candidates Walker and Batum and highly underrated forward Marvin Williams. Lin gives him more ballhandling and a strong pick-and-roll defender, while Lamb is the more natural off-the-ball scorer. The Jeremysoften startthe fourth quarter together they lead the team in fourth-quarter minutes but one typically is replaced by Walker midway through the period.We respect that, and it's just our job to be ready whenever our number's called, Lin said. We're just trying to win games, man. We're trying to win games and be as productive as we can we when we get on the floor.And in that, the backup point guard sounds like any other.