Point guard Jeremy Lin to sign with Brooklyn Nets

Jeremy Lin (Joe Murphy/Getty Images)

On the first day of NBA free agency, the Brooklyn Nets brought a memorable name back to the Big Apple.

Point guard Jeremy Lin took to Twitter on Friday to announce that he will sign with the Nets.  According to multiple reports, the deal is for three years and $36 million with a player option for the third year, a trade kicker and bonuses.  It is the first major signing of the Sean Marks era.

A $12 million annual salary with the current cap spike seems like a steal for the Nets, who still have over $40 million in cap space to use on other players.

The 27-year-old Lin spent last season with the Charlotte Hornets, averaging close to 12 points and four assists per game.  He had a breakout season with the New York Knicks in 2011-12, when he scored at least 20 points nine times in a 10 game span.  The LinSanity era sent New York into a frenzy, but it was short lived.  Since 2012, Lin has played for the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers and the Hornets.  He seems to have found a home in Brooklyn.

Lin is a pick-and-roll specialist, and he will fit right in with Brook Lopez.  New head coach Kenny Atkinson was an assistant with the Knicks during the LinSanity era and was largely responsible for this success.  It’s possible that Lin took less money to sign with the Nets because of Atkinson.

Not only is Lin well liked around the league, but he will be a huge marketing tool for the Nets.  The hope is that he continues to get better as he enters the prime of his career.

The $36 million deal given to Lin has become the top free agent deal in franchise history for a player coming over from another team.  It’s slightly higher than the atrocious $35 million deal the Nets gave Travis Outlaw back in 2010.