Los Angeles Lakers point guard Jeremy Lin had his first double-double game in over a month as he recorded 10 points and 10 assists in Monday's 115-100 loss to the Phoenix Suns at US Airways Arena.
With Kobe Bryant (rest) and Ronnie Price (elbow) still sidelined, Lin played over 30 minutes in back-to-back games for the first time since losing his starting job in December.
Lin, who is shooting roughly 47 percent from the field this month, shot 4-for-9 from the field and split his two free-throw shots to finish in double digit for the first time in five games.
The 10 dimes also marked the first time Lin recorded double-digit assists since his last double-double (18-points and 11-assists) performance against the Minnesota Timberwolves on November 28.
However, Lin's effort wasn't enough to prevent the Lakers from absorbing its fifth straight loss and eighth out of the 10 games played this January.
Nick Young, who has been in a shooting slump as of late, came alive offensively as he shot 7-for-12 from the field and 6-for-7 from the charity stripe to finish with 24 points in 26 minutes off the bench.
Despite missing their leading scorer, the Lakers went toe-to-toe with the Suns' high-powered offense until the closing minutes, but turnovers (23 in the game) and poor free-throw shooting (24-for-35) really cost them the game.
"We turned the ball over & didn't take care of it. We ended up shooting ourselves in the foot from that stand point," Lin told the press after another loss the Suns, who managed to beat the Lakers in all four regular-season games.
Lakers head coach Byron Scott was still not impressed by Lin's showing despite picking up 10 assists, believing the former Harvard standout could have facilitated the offense much better.
"He has to get us into our offense a lot better, a lot quicker," said Scott, who recently commented about Lin's difficulty in putting up consistent effort on both ends of the floor.
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