Is Jeremy Lin worth what he’s being offered? [Poll]

Writers from around the Tribune Co. discuss restricted free agent Jeremy Lin, the international sensation whose contract offer in the neighborhood of $25 million for three years -- including nearly $15 million in the final year -- from the Houston Rockets can be matched by the New York Knicks.

Check back throughout the day for more responses and join the conversation by voting in the poll and leaving a comment of your own.

Brian Schmitz, Orlando Sentinel

As a player, no -- not at $8 million a season. As a brand, he’s a steal at that price.

Verdict: He’s worth it. Because you can’t separate the two Jeremy Lins now. The player and the product are one and the same. It works for Tim Tebow. Why is Lin in question?

The Rockets backloaded their offer to Lin at $14.9 million in the third year.

It’s pricey. But Houston had the first Asian sensation -- Yao Ming --- and realize Lin also is good for business.

The journeyman became an overnight Linsation in New York. The Knicks should keep him because Linsanity is an asset. It’s Insanity for a team with deep pockets to let him go for nothing.

K.C. Johnson, Chicago Tribune

What you have to do with so-called poison pill contracts is look past the outlandishly priced year and focus on the average annual salary. That said, Jeremy Lin isn’t worth $8.3 million annually.

Maybe off the court he is, where the Knicks clearly reaped untold marketing benefits from the cultural and international phenomenon of Linsanity. On the court, Lin is a raw, rotation player. He’s no All-Star. He’s adept in pick-and-roll and a very crafty penetrator. He’s also turnover-prone, a non-factor on defense and hasn’t proved he can sustain his talents over a full NBA season.

Is now the time to mention he has started just 25 games? Lin is a good player, not a great one. This contract is, as Carmelo Anthony said, ridiculous.

[Updated at 12:54 p.m.:

Ira Winderman, South Florida Sun Sentinel

Worth it to New York? Absolutely. No place was Linsanity more of a hit last season.

Worth it to Houston? Only out of desperation, with it still difficult to digest how the Rockets traded away Kyle Lowry and essentially chased away Goran Dragic with no concrete backup plan at point guard.

Worth it in comparison to the rest of this free agent class and the league as a whole? Of course not. But when Kwame Brown can land the same 2012-13 salary as Ray Allen in free agency, it is not difficult to appreciate that the system is broken.

Lin had his moments, although they essentially were limited to about a month. Then the Heat defense smothered him in the Knicks’ final game before the All-Star break. Then he got injured. Then he disappeared.

The Lin contract is part of a greater debate when the likes of Eric Gordon, Roy Hibbert and Brook Lopez are receiving maximum contracts.

Is Lin worth it? Are any of them worth it?]

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Should Jeremy Lin stay with the Knicks?

Jeremy Lin reportedly agrees to Houston’s offer

Carmelo Anthony calls Jeremy Lin contract offer ‘ridiculous’