Brooklyn Nets: What’s the goal for 2017-18 without Jeremy Lin?

Jeremy Lin suffered a knee injury and will be out for the rest of the regular season, so what are the new goals for the Brooklyn Nets in 2017-18?

Everything was good just a week ago for the Jeremy Lin and the Brooklyn Nets, who were riding high off of a 3-1 record during the preseason. The potential of an explosive backcourt starring Lin and newcomer D’Angelo Russell was forming rather nicely, giving teams matchup problems on both ends of the floor.

The excitement and hope came crashing down just as Lin hit the floor in Indiana on Wednesday night. The Nets’ 140-131 loss on the scoreboard was secondary to the loss of their point guard to a then assumed knee injury. Lin fell awkwardly after driving down the lane for a layup attempt, immediately grabbed his knee and began throbbing in pain on the court.

Lin could be heard saying “I’m done. I’m done,” before tumbling back to the floor. He was helped to the locker room by teammates as even Indiana Pacers crowd watched in shock.

According to ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski, Lin has been diagnosed with a ruptured patella tendon of the right knee. The injury requires surgery and Lin is expected to miss the entire 2017-18 regular season.

Nets general manager Sean Marks released a statement regarding Lin on the team’s website Thursday morning.

"“Jeremy worked tremendously hard during the offseason and in training camp and was excited for the prospects of the team this season.  We feel awful that the injury will cost him the season, however our entire organization will be there to support Jeremy in every way possible throughout his recovery. Jeremy remains an important part of this team and will continue to contribute in a leadership role.”"

Before the injury in 28 minutes of action, Lin poured in 18 points and dished out four assists as Brooklyn looked very dangerous in the backcourt. Russell’s 30 points, which tied a Nets regular season debut record, were helped by Lin’s presence on the court.

Russell will need a new backcourt mate to fill in for Lin this season and in regards to a free agency pickup, there are still some suitable options. Recently cut players from preseason such as Trey Burke and Jameer Nelson would help take some pressure off of Russell by still being able to create their own shots. Nelson is a 13-year veteran and can serve as a change of pace for the young and aggressively offensive minded Russell.

Brooklyn will need to be aggressive in its approach to finding a replacement for Lin as the team has 81 games left to play and a lack of movement would send a negative message to the loyal fanbase. In the meantime, Caris LeVert will be getting plenty of looks next to Russell due to their nice chemistry developed so far in preseason and training camp.

Nets players sent plenty of well wishes to their fallen teammate, further demonstrating Lin’s impact on the team as a veteran leader.

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Brooklyn will return to action Friday night for its home opener against the Orlando Magic.

Next: 2017-18 Week 1 NBA Power Rankings

It will be very interesting to see who will start alongside Russell moving forward.