Jeremy Lin introduced his retirement from skilled basketball Saturday night time after a nine-year NBA profession that noticed him briefly develop into the face of the New York Knicks and the namesake of a sports activities phenomenon.
“As athletes, we’re all the time conscious that the potential for retirement is rarely distant. I’ve spent my 15-year profession realizing that at some point I must stroll away, and but truly saying goodbye to basketball at the moment has been the toughest determination I’ve ever made,” Lin wrote in a social media submit.
Lin, the son of Taiwanese immigrants, grew up in Palo Alto, Calif. Spurred by his mom, he graduated from Harvard College, which doesn’t give out athletic scholarships.
He went unselected within the 2009 NBA Draft, then signed along with his hometown Golden State Warriors, the place he performed for a yr. Lin’s debut drew vital consideration from American and Chinese language media, with the fan base’s massive Asian inhabitants celebrating his arrival. Nonetheless, his enjoying time was restricted because the season progressed, and he spent a lot of the yr on the bench.
The Knicks claimed Lin off waivers in 2011 after shedding beginning guard Iman Shumpert to an ACL tear. Lin initially needed to compete for a backup function and knew the crew was contemplating chopping him. Hampered by accidents, New York had hit a hunch, nevertheless. Heeding a prod from Carmelo Anthony, coach Mike D’Antoni gave Lin an opportunity to play in February 2012 because the crew’s offense stalled.
Inside days, Lin skyrocketed to fame after averaging 24.6 factors, 9.2 assists and 4.1 rebounds over an 11-game stretch. Followers, friends and commentators embraced the 23-year-old’s breakout, dubbing it “Linsanity.”
Although the hysteria solely lasted about two weeks, Lin’s aggressive fashion challenged racial stereotypes surrounding Asian American gamers. As some extent guard, he’s credited with displaying that Asian People weren’t passive gamers incapable of main an offense. His capacity to dunk showcased his athleticism and set him aside as somebody in a position to spark a fireplace in teammates and followers.
Lin’s fame eclipsed most of his predecessors by a large margin. Wat Misaka, a Japanese American who served in america Military throughout its occupation of Japan, grew to become the primary Asian American participant in skilled basketball in 1947. Like Lin, he performed for the Knicks, who had been then a part of the Basketball Affiliation of America, however Misaka’s professional profession lasted only a yr, throughout which he solely performed in three video games.
In 1978, Raymond Townsend grew to become the primary Filipino American within the NBA, however his two-year run didn’t draw widespread recognition. Later got here Chinese language large Yao Ming, who grew to become a face of the league and an eight-time All-Star throughout his 2002-2011 profession. Yao was a phenomenon in his personal proper. The Corridor of Famer stays the most important Asian-born star in NBA historical past and is a revered icon and government in his dwelling nation.
Lin, although, was totally different. He was a homegrown star from Northern California who confronted years of racist feedback from opponents and residential followers whereas enjoying at Harvard, then needed to combat for a roster spot. The NBA hadn’t seen anybody like him carry out on the degree he did.
“It’s been the glory of a lifetime to compete towards the fiercest opponents beneath the brightest lights and to problem what the world thought was doable for somebody who seems like me,” Lin mentioned in his retirement submit.
“Linsanity” propelled the 6-foot-3 guard to All-Star standing as he led a seven-game successful streak that helped ship the Knicks to the 2012 NBA playoffs.
“It’s a terrific story,” Kobe Bryant mentioned in a mid-“Linsanity” interview, a day after saying he had no thought who Lin was, and on an evening when Lin outscored him 38-34.
“It’s a testomony to perseverance and arduous work. I’m certain he has put in an excessive amount of work to all the time have that perception in himself. Now he has the chance to indicate it.”
The Knicks misplaced within the opening spherical of the playoffs after operating into LeBron James and the Miami Warmth, who went on to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy that season. Lin tore his left meniscus lower than a month earlier than the playoffs began, resulting in season-ending surgical procedure. Nonetheless, regardless of the early ending, “Linsanity” had already etched him into NBA historical past a number of occasions over.
LeBron James praised Lin’s play and management forward of their showdown within the 2012 NBA playoffs. (Mike Ehrmann / Getty Photographs)
The 89 factors Lin scored in his first three begins with the Knicks had been essentially the most by a participant for the reason that 1976-77 NBA-ABA merger, based on the Elias Sports activities Bureau. He later grew to become the primary Asian American to win an NBA championship as a part of the 2018-19 Toronto Raptors.
Lin’s first and solely NBA championship didn’t sit proper with him, nevertheless. He publicly mentioned he didn’t earn his ring after enjoying poorly throughout the Raptors’ playoff run. As soon as the season ended, he discovered himself with out a crew, going unsigned throughout free company.
“I had this 12-game stretch the place I didn’t play that effectively, and that was it,” Lin informed Enterprise Insider in 2022. “So that you gotta assume for me, after enjoying 9 years within the league, I might anticipate like, OK, I’ve a repute, individuals know what I can do. However I used to be fairly stunned at simply how briskly individuals had been like, ‘OK, he’s carried out.’
“Once I add all of that up, I might say race has a task to play in that. I simply don’t understand how large, however my intestine is that race positively has a task to play.”
The shortage of NBA curiosity led Lin to the Chinese language Basketball Affiliation in 2019, the place he grew to become a star as soon as once more. Although he returned briefly to the U.S. in 2021 as a part of the Warriors’ G-League crew, the Santa Cruz Warriors, he spent the remainder of his profession enjoying in China and Taiwan, successful one other championship and TPBL Finals MVP with the New Taipei Kings in June.
Past the Knicks, Raptors and Warriors, Lin additionally had transient stints with the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte Hornets, Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks. A journeyman his total profession, he by no means spent greater than two seasons with any crew. Lin ended his NBA tenure averaging 11.6 factors, 2.8 complete rebounds and 4.3 assists per sport.
“I’ve lived out my wildest childhood desires to play in entrance of followers all around the globe,” he mentioned in his retirement announcement. “I’ll eternally be the child who felt absolutely alive each time I touched a basketball.”
(High photograph: Chris Trotman / Getty Photographs)
