Anybody who follows professional basketball has an exciting new story to follow: the saga of Asian-American phenom Jeremy Lin, whose recent heroics with the New York Knicks have taken the entire sports world by storm. It has even stirred up a small amount of controversy. Boxer Floyd Mayweather tweeted that "all the hype is because he is Asian. Black players do what he does every night and don't get the same praise."
Lin, whose very name has given rise to a wave of silly neologisms (Lin-sanity, Lin-derella story, etc.), is an unlikely NBA success story because: A) He is a Harvard graduate; B) of his ethnic heritage; and C) He has led the sometimes hapless Knicks to six straight victories since becoming a starter.
He has also galvanized the ethnic community from whence he came. Alan Ma, a city planner from Queens, has gathered four times to watch the fledgling superstar with cousins he only saw once the entire previous year. "To see an actual live Asian American here unfold before our eyes, it really is something special to us," his cousin Jerry Ma said recently. "It means a lot more than anyone could imagine."
Perhaps even more important than Lin's cucumber-cool demeanor on-court or his astonishing, game-winning three-pointers is the fact that he has hit the big leagues in a most unconventional manner. Coming to Harvard from a successful high school career in California, the 6' 3" point guard was certainly no favorite to make his name in the NBA. But after being cut by the Golden State Warriors and the Houston Rockets in December, the injury-plagued Knicks recruited him and now look like blooming geniuses.
Up until a few weeks ago, Jeremy Lin wasn't even sure that the Knicks were going to keep him for the whole season — he was even sleeping on his brother's couch on the Lower East Side! Parents and grandparents alike should direct their young ones' attention to Lin's emergence, to show them that hard work, self-belief and character actually count in this world, and not just being blessed by nature with the proper body-type. Amazing grace — an untattooed, God-fearing, Asian-American Harvard grad has made people forget about self-serving brats like Kobe Bryant, who could learn a thing or two about teamwork from this inspiring young man. May he continue to prosper in good health....