Jeremy Lin is at it again.
In one of the wildest finishes of the year, the Knicks topped the Toronto Raptors Tuesday night 90-87, thanks to a game winning three-ball by Lincredible himself. Just another chapter in the cinderella story that is Jeremy Lin’s young career.
He’s selling jerseys, captivating crowds, and inspiring some of the craziest nicknames in basketball history. But most importantly to him, he’s winning games; or should I say, Linning games.
The Knicks are 6-0 since inserting Lin into the rotation and giving him major minutes. After his amazing start, critics wondered if fatigue would be a factor and weren’t sure if “Super Lintendo” (my favorite nickname of his) would be able to handle the workload. If he hasn’t shut those critics up, something is Lincredibly wrong here.
In addition to playing well, Lin has answered the call when the Knicks have needed it most, becoming more clutch than, say, a Lebron James. Against the Timberwolves a few nights ago, Lin hit the game-winning free throw which sealed the game for New York and brought their Linning streak to five games. On Tuesday against the Raptors, Lin drove to the basket late in the fourth quarter, drawing a foul and nailing the layup for an and-1. He hit the free throw which tied the game at 87. A few seconds later, he nailed a game winning shot from beyond the arc, giving the Knicks a 90-87 victory.
The thing that amazes me the most about him is not his outstanding level of play, but the humility and humbleness that he displays in his post game interviews. It is never about him, but rather the team. He knows that his play has brought the Knicks from the bottom of the Eastern Conference to potential contenders, but he will never acknowledge the fact that he is probably the best offensive player the Knicks have right now with Carmelo Anthony out. He is the ultimate team player; he never takes credit for the things he does on the court, instead praising his teammates for their effort and intensity.
Lin may be putting up big numbers and winning games for New York, but he is absolutely right when he makes it more about the team than himself. Since inserting Lin into the starting lineup, the Knicks have gotten solid minutes from just about everyone on the roster. From Steve Novak and Iman Shumpert off the bench, to Jared Jeffries and Bill Walker in fill-in roles, to Tyson Chandler and Landry Fields becoming revitalized in the starting lineup, Lin’s play is infectious. Every single person on this roster is benefiting from his tremendous play and will continue to benefit for as long as he is a Knick. Lin isn’t just a great player; he’s a perfect teammate.
The saddest part of my night was when I moseyed on over to Twitter. Now, I’m not usually one for Twitter; it’s mainly for stalkers and narcissists (also see: Facebook) but i was intrigued to see how people would be reacting in the Twittersphere to Jeremy’s game winning three pointer. The first thing that popped up on my computer screen, however, practically ruined my night. A tweet from Floyd Mayweather, whom I don’t even follow, said this exactly, “Jeremy Lin is a good player but all the hype is because he’s Asian. Black players do what he does every night and don’t get the same praise.”
Floyd, do us all a favor and stick to knocking people out.
Racism is disgusting. To me, there is absolutely no place for it in this world. To hold someone of a certain color in either a higher or lower esteem than a person of a different color is just ignorant. The thing that bothers me when people make everything about race and skin color is that if no one made everything about race and skin color, racism would not exist. To make this whole shenanigan about race and Lin being Asian is just stupid, not to mention the fact that it’s disrespectful to Lin himself. However, I do think this is great for the Asian community. This is, in a way, reminiscent of when Yao Ming came into the league and dominated for as long as he did. It was devastating to everyone involved in the NBA (fans, players, coaches, executives) when he went down, but perhaps even more devastating to the Asian community in the sense that Yao was Asian basketball; he was the face of it for years and it was sad to see him go down. (You never want to see someone’s career end because of injury.) But Jeremy’s play has given hope to all NBA fans and has made the sport more exciting than it has been in recent years.
Besides, what Mayweather said is completely false. There are no black (or white, or green, or purple, for that matter) players in the NBA who have come from absolutely nowhere and burst onto the scene quite like Lin has. No one has ever done what Lin is doing, and frankly, I doubt anyone ever will. To come off the bench the way he has, and to play as well as he has, and to shock the world the way he has, will never be duplicated again. That’s why this is such a great story. Enjoy it now, people, because this is a once in a lifetime headline.
Once again, thank you Floyd for the intelligent input. Maybe some time in the near future you’ll look past the fact that Jeremy is not black, but is playing better than just about everyone in the NBA right now, whether they’re black, white, or purple.