Jeremy Lin returns to the New York area a few years after his star shined brighter than ever. In 2012 Lin was an end of the bench point guard on the New York Knicks. With the team hitting a rough patch in the season, head coach Mike D’Antonio started to play Lin, and eventually it worked out. Jeremy put up numbers against the likes of 2012 NBA All-Stars Deron Williams and Kobe Bryant. His sudden success and stardom propelled him to a late addition to the NBA’s Rookie vs Sophomore game and some considering him for the All-Star team.
“There was a three that I hit in the corner,” Lin said to the media on Wednesday. “That may have been my favorite moment in my career. I just remember the fans and how loud that place got, I always described it as, I’ve never felt it before, but it felt like I was two or three inches off the ground, it felt like I was hovering, just from how loud it was. I would say that’s a really cool memory.”
In a matter of weeks, ‘Linsanity’ was born. On top of that, Asian markets immediately flocked to Jeremy Lin. He wasn’t a seven foot big man like Yi Jianlian, Yao Ming or even Zhou Qi, he was a regular guy. Him being one of few players to not only play in the NBA of Asian decent but also having some success in the biggest market in the United States drew so many more eyes to his progress. Since then, Lin’s career has been full of ups and downs including stints with the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers and Charlotte Hornets.
“Everything happened overnight,” Lin said after the press conference. “When [Linsanity] first started, I am not going to lie, it was cool. Then it became a burden because I didn’t know what I had gotten myself into. I didn’t know how big things had become. One, two, three years removed, every year I embrace it more, every year I am more appreciative, every year I love it more and that is where I am right now.”
This summer, Jeremy Lin signed a deal to join the Brooklyn Nets, his fourth team in four seasons. This decision to come back to New York feels a tad bit different, though. His return to New York comes after a successful season in Charlotte and it also allows him to be reunited with the man who helped develop ‘Linsanity’. But that’s the era of his life Lin is looking to move on from. He’s said in the past that he wants to put that behind him and he reiterated that fact in front of the media on Wednesday, after the Nets formally introduced him as one of 10 new signees.
“I’m in a much, much different place mentally as a person than I was when I was with the Knicks,” Lin said. “So when you talk about that platform, I want to embrace it. I am not just saying Asians. If you look at what is going on in the world and a lot of violence that is going on in the world in terms of the justice system and all of these different things that is real life. That is so much bigger than basketball. I have a voice because of basketball to be able to talk and influence [people] and do things that are related to things that are affecting people’s lives and things every day. That is a very unique situation.”
When specifically asked if there will be a return to ‘Linsanity’ in Brooklyn, Lin shut down any ideas about a comeback to that time in his life.
“I will be myself but I don’t really draw too many comparisons to Linsanity the phenomenon. I am just going to keep playing. People will always kind of compare me to that. In a lot of ways, not in a negative way or a way that I am offended but it kind of dehumanizes me to refer to me as a phenomenon. I am going to be here, keep playing my game, do the best that I can and whatever you guys want to call it, that is up to you guys.”
Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson was a development coach with the Knicks at that ‘Linsantiy’ time, working with the lower level bench guys on the Knicks and he worked closely with Lin. Jeremy has long attributed Kenny for his success in the NBA. It was Atkinson who sparked that confidence in his game. Lin and Atkinson are reunited once again but both men see this as a different opportunity to showcase Jeremy’s talents as the lead point guard. Lin sees it as an opportunity for him to build with a team from the ground floor.
“The way I was looking at free agency is kind of like investing in a startup company. You don’t necessarily look at the product right then and there at that moment, but you’re betting on the founder a lot of times, on what that person is capable of doing because sometimes as you go through the process the final product is going to change a little. That’s very common in startups. That’s how I saw this. I’m betting on certain people. I’m betting on Kenny, I’m betting on Sean, I’m betting on myself, I’m betting on Brook Lopez. If I didn’t feel like this organization had a chance to go where I want to go, then I wouldn’t have signed up for it. It’s a process, it’s a challenge and the biggest thing I’d say is that I believe in this, I believe in what we’re capable of becoming.”
Atkinson views Jeremy Lin thriving in the offense they want to build with him running the show. Pick and rolls with Brook Lopez, planting shooters and slashers alongside them will also help out tremendously in what Atkinson says will be a free-flowing offense. An offense the coach said mimics the system with the Atlanta Hawks and traces back to the San Antonio Spurs’ ball movement.
“Jeremy, as we all know, we had a great experience together”, said Atkinson. “It was a great experience and we’re looking for him for leadership number one, number two is to play in the system that maybe is a little different from the ones he’s played in in the past. Obviously he’ll be our full-time point guard. We’re looking forward to that and we’re going to challenge him on the defensive end and look for him to get better there.”
“Everybody touches it, quick decisions offensively, play with pace and obviously the pick-and-roll will be a big part of the game,” Atkinson said. “Those are all characteristics that fit Jeremy’s style and fits the style of the guys we signed.”
JEremy Lin wore his hair in braids to the press conference and set the internet on fire with his new hairstyle choice. Lin is also ready to make another change and take the next step as a player after choosing to step into an expanded role with the rebuilding Nets, who are coming off a 21-61 season and no first round draft picks of their own until 2019.
“I met with my agents and family and close friends and they said what do you want and I said I want to see how good I can be,” Lin said. “I have played a lot of different roles; I have sacrificed for a lot of teams that I have been on in the past and I have taken on smaller roles to try to help the team succeed. I want to win, I’m 27-years-old and coming into this position. [Coach Atkinson’s] going to do everything he can to help us grow,” Lin said, then added that he hoped the excitement, whether fleeting or not, becomes contagious.
“Now I have that chance to take a much bigger role and be a much bigger part. It is no surprise to anybody if you look at the numbers my whole career, when I have the ball in my hands, when I play longer minutes, when I am more comfortable, when I am empowered, I play better. And I am hoping I can take that next step as a player and hoping that I can help this team grow. I want to make my teammates better and make the game easier for everybody. I guess that is what will define me as a player.”
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Jeremy Lin’s return to New York certainly sparks a small resurgence for the Nets. He’s going to bring his notoriety in the Asian community and also a skillset that fits with their star big man Brook Lopez. It’s a start and Jeremy knows that the start of something great in Brooklyn could possibly begin with him.
“Hey man, if anybody here needs a team to root for, feel free to join the Nets fan base and come root for us. I would love to bring as many people as we can to this organization and hopefully we’ll be able to create that following and that momentum and that environment that we would love to have.”
