Linsanity (now featuring Billy)

[sonofdaxjones]

Floyd Mayweather @FloydMayweather  Reply  Retweet  Favorite · Open
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.

 

I mean really?

It's pretty much true. What Lin has done is remarkable, and being in New York helps, but a lot of the attention he is getting is because he isn't black.

Agreed that the race thing is a major factor. But a black guy that went to Harvard, was undrafted, then exploded like this would still be getting a crap ton of attention.

Possibly. But compare him to a guy like Monta Ellis. Who the eff knows who Monta Ellis is? But he's averaged 22+ ppg over the last three seasons. Lin will without a doubt be a much, much bigger star than Monta Ellis if he averages 20 a game over the next three seasons. Because of his race.

Ellis was Parade Magazine HS player of the year and skipped college to enter the draft. How is that comparable to Lin?

It's not comparable _fan, but sometimes you just got to let the "too cool for school" crowd prove how dumb they can be sometimes.

Just sit back and observe, but never assimilate.

[wes mantooth]

MichiganCat getting destroyed here with Monta Ellis comparo.

[kso_FAN]

MichiganCat getting destroyed here with Monta Ellis comparo.

I get his point, and I don't doubt that race is part of the story. It's unique, but the back story adds to it greatly. Had Lin gone to Stanford, been all PAC 10, and been a 2nd round draft pick it wouldn't be as big either.

[felix rex]

Does the Asian thing make it bigger or smaller (<--unintentional Whitlock reference) in the states? Obviously it's better from an international standpoint.

There's a shitload of Asians in the States and lots of white dudes that are more than happy to see non-black non-Euro's have success.

Remember when that Chinese guy won the hurdles at the olympics? Oh man. The Chinese state press had a great time with that. "It's about technique, not athleticism."

[felix rex]

MichiganCat getting destroyed here with Monta Ellis comparo.

I get his point, and I don't doubt that race is part of the story. It's unique, but the back story adds to it greatly. Had Lin gone to Stanford, been all PAC 10, and been a 2nd round draft pick it wouldn't be as big either.

This is what I think. Also, I have no idea who Monta Ellis is. So there's also that.

[hemmy]

Floyd Mayweather @FloydMayweather  Reply  Retweet  Favorite · Open
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.

 

I mean really?

It's pretty much true. What Lin has done is remarkable, and being in New York helps, but a lot of the attention he is getting is because he isn't black.

Agreed that the race thing is a major factor. But a black guy that went to Harvard, was undrafted, then exploded like this would still be getting a crap ton of attention.

Possibly. But compare him to a guy like Monta Ellis. Who the eff knows who Monta Ellis is? But he's averaged 22+ ppg over the last three seasons. Lin will without a doubt be a much, much bigger star than Monta Ellis if he averages 20 a game over the next three seasons. Because of his race.

Race plays a part of it sure...but it is also largely fueled by:

1 The fact that nobody in NBA history scored more points in their first 6 starts than Lin
2. He was a bench-warmer getting very few minutes and now he is hitting game winners, and scoring 38 points
3. Its in New York
4. The moment he had a good game the Knicks started promoting the crap out of it in hopes for their own Tebow mania.

And,

Lots of people know who Monta Ellis is, but unless you are a superstar (which Ellis is not) you cannot get Lin type attention without some additional push (all the things already discussed). There have been a lot of players over the years in various sports in Ellis' position - a good scorer who has consistently played for bad/insignificant teams in a market like Golden State.

If Lin was doing the exact same thing except in Golden State (his team last year) there would be a lot less attention. There would still be some, but there would be no "Linsanity"

[felix rex]

Floyd Mayweather @FloydMayweather  Reply  Retweet  Favorite · Open
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.

 

I mean really?

It's pretty much true. What Lin has done is remarkable, and being in New York helps, but a lot of the attention he is getting is because he isn't black.

Agreed that the race thing is a major factor. But a black guy that went to Harvard, was undrafted, then exploded like this would still be getting a crap ton of attention.

Possibly. But compare him to a guy like Monta Ellis. Who the eff knows who Monta Ellis is? But he's averaged 22+ ppg over the last three seasons. Lin will without a doubt be a much, much bigger star than Monta Ellis if he averages 20 a game over the next three seasons. Because of his race.

Race plays a part of it sure...but it is also largely fueled by:

1 The fact that nobody in NBA history scored more points in their first 6 starts than Lin
2. He was a bench-warmer getting very few minutes and now he is hitting game winners, and scoring 38 points
3. Its in New York
4. The moment he had a good game the Knicks started promoting the crap out of it in hopes for their own Tebow mania.

And,

Lots of people know who Monta Ellis is, but unless you are a superstar (which Ellis is not) you cannot get Lin type attention without some additional push (all the things already discussed). There have been a lot of players over the years in various sports in Ellis' position - a good scorer who has consistently played for bad/insignificant teams in a market like Golden State.

If Lin was doing the exact same thing except in Golden State (his team last year) there would be a lot less attention. There would still be some, but there would be no "Linsanity"

Yeah. Just saw this from Doyel:

And not in the "everyone's a unique little someone who makes me uncomfortable" way, either. There's only one Jeremy Lin, as in, he has done things nobody in NBA history has done. Good things. No, great things. Since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, nobody has scored as many points as Lin (89) in his first three starts. Or scored as many points (136) in his first five starts. Or gone 5-0 while scoring at least 20 points in those first five starts.

And if anybody has ever single-handedly lifted his franchise's value by millions of dollars -- in a 10-day span in the middle of the season -- that would be news to me. Because this stuff just doesn't happen.

No matter what Floyd Mayweather says, this story is unique. Lin isn't getting "all the hype because he's Asian," as Mayweather buffoonishly claimed last week. There haven't been, as Mayweather claimed, "black players [who] do what he does every night." There haven't been white players who do it, either. Not European players, not South American players. Big players, short players, players who will or won't eat green eggs and ham ... the NBA player who has done what Jeremy Lin has done simply doesn't exist, because Lin is doing unprecedented things.

[wes mantooth]

Doyel is amazing.

[MakeItRain]

Good God I agree with Hemmy.  Race is a factor with Linsanity but I'd list it even lower than Hemmy did.  Another aspect of this is it is not only the Knicks but its the fact that the Knicks were expected to win, they sucked, and now this kid appears to be carrying them to wins.  It's why now New Yorkers are now freaking out about Melo coming back.  This dude would be getting hype for this if he was as dark as Serge.

On the topic of Asian hype vs black I'd like to present.

[mcmwcat]

the race factor here may be that Lin was denied playing opportunities because of his race.

[michigancat]

And not in the "everyone's a unique little someone who makes me uncomfortable" way, either. There's only one Jeremy Lin, as in, he has done things nobody in NBA history has done. Good things. No, great things. Since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, nobody has scored as many points as Lin (89) in his first three starts. Or scored as many points (136) in his first five starts. Or gone 5-0 while scoring at least 20 points in those first five starts.

And if anybody has ever single-handedly lifted his franchise's value by millions of dollars -- in a 10-day span in the middle of the season -- that would be news to me. Because this stuff just doesn't happen.

No matter what Floyd Mayweather says, this story is unique. Lin isn't getting "all the hype because he's Asian," as Mayweather buffoonishly claimed last week. There haven't been, as Mayweather claimed, "black players [who] do what he does every night." There haven't been white players who do it, either. Not European players, not South American players. Big players, short players, players who will or won't eat green eggs and ham ... the NBA player who has done what Jeremy Lin has done simply doesn't exist, because Lin is doing unprecedented things.

He passed John Drew for most points in his first 5 starts, so he's obviously the best thing going since John Drew.

I agree with Hemmy's points 2-4, though.

[OregonSmock]

Floyd Mayweather @FloydMayweather  Reply  Retweet  Favorite · Open
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.

 

I mean really?

It's pretty much true. What Lin has done is remarkable, and being in New York helps, but a lot of the attention he is getting is because he isn't black.

No other player in NBA history scored as many points as Lin did in his first 4-5 starts. 

[bigwillie20]

Floyd Mayweather @FloydMayweather  Reply  Retweet  Favorite · Open
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.

 

I mean really?

It's pretty much true. What Lin has done is remarkable, and being in New York helps, but a lot of the attention he is getting is because he isn't black.

 

and

 

[MakeItRain]

the race factor here may be that Lin was denied playing opportunities because of his race.

Or because he could have played in the Pac 10 but chose to go to Harvard.

[OregonSmock]

And not in the "everyone's a unique little someone who makes me uncomfortable" way, either. There's only one Jeremy Lin, as in, he has done things nobody in NBA history has done. Good things. No, great things. Since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, nobody has scored as many points as Lin (89) in his first three starts. Or scored as many points (136) in his first five starts. Or gone 5-0 while scoring at least 20 points in those first five starts.

And if anybody has ever single-handedly lifted his franchise's value by millions of dollars -- in a 10-day span in the middle of the season -- that would be news to me. Because this stuff just doesn't happen.

No matter what Floyd Mayweather says, this story is unique. Lin isn't getting "all the hype because he's Asian," as Mayweather buffoonishly claimed last week. There haven't been, as Mayweather claimed, "black players [who] do what he does every night." There haven't been white players who do it, either. Not European players, not South American players. Big players, short players, players who will or won't eat green eggs and ham ... the NBA player who has done what Jeremy Lin has done simply doesn't exist, because Lin is doing unprecedented things.

He passed John Drew for most points in his first 5 starts, so he's obviously the best thing going since John Drew.

I agree with Hemmy's points 2-4, though.

He also passed Shaq and Michael Jordan, but hey, you keep beating that contrarian dead horse.

[michigancat]

And not in the "everyone's a unique little someone who makes me uncomfortable" way, either. There's only one Jeremy Lin, as in, he has done things nobody in NBA history has done. Good things. No, great things. Since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, nobody has scored as many points as Lin (89) in his first three starts. Or scored as many points (136) in his first five starts. Or gone 5-0 while scoring at least 20 points in those first five starts.

And if anybody has ever single-handedly lifted his franchise's value by millions of dollars -- in a 10-day span in the middle of the season -- that would be news to me. Because this stuff just doesn't happen.

No matter what Floyd Mayweather says, this story is unique. Lin isn't getting "all the hype because he's Asian," as Mayweather buffoonishly claimed last week. There haven't been, as Mayweather claimed, "black players [who] do what he does every night." There haven't been white players who do it, either. Not European players, not South American players. Big players, short players, players who will or won't eat green eggs and ham ... the NBA player who has done what Jeremy Lin has done simply doesn't exist, because Lin is doing unprecedented things.

He passed John Drew for most points in his first 5 starts, so he's obviously the best thing going since John Drew.

I agree with Hemmy's points 2-4, though.

He also passed Shaq and Michael Jordan, but hey, you keep beating that contrarian dead horse.

John Drew is second. John Drew. FWIW, he's 6th (at best) in points in the first 6 starts, behind legends such as Sam Vincent. It's impossible to find the complete lists of total points for first X number of starts, because it's a meaningless statistic.

[OregonSmock]

And not in the "everyone's a unique little someone who makes me uncomfortable" way, either. There's only one Jeremy Lin, as in, he has done things nobody in NBA history has done. Good things. No, great things. Since the 1976 NBA-ABA merger, nobody has scored as many points as Lin (89) in his first three starts. Or scored as many points (136) in his first five starts. Or gone 5-0 while scoring at least 20 points in those first five starts.

And if anybody has ever single-handedly lifted his franchise's value by millions of dollars -- in a 10-day span in the middle of the season -- that would be news to me. Because this stuff just doesn't happen.

No matter what Floyd Mayweather says, this story is unique. Lin isn't getting "all the hype because he's Asian," as Mayweather buffoonishly claimed last week. There haven't been, as Mayweather claimed, "black players [who] do what he does every night." There haven't been white players who do it, either. Not European players, not South American players. Big players, short players, players who will or won't eat green eggs and ham ... the NBA player who has done what Jeremy Lin has done simply doesn't exist, because Lin is doing unprecedented things.

He passed John Drew for most points in his first 5 starts, so he's obviously the best thing going since John Drew.

I agree with Hemmy's points 2-4, though.

He also passed Shaq and Michael Jordan, but hey, you keep beating that contrarian dead horse.

John Drew is second. John Drew. FWIW, he's 6th (at best) in points in the first 6 starts, behind legends such as Sam Vincent. It's impossible to find the complete lists of total points for first X number of starts, because it's a meaningless statistic.

Okay, Mr. Contrarian Talking Point.  The Knicks are also 7-0 since Lin has become a starter.   You can pretend like it's not a big story all you want, but the fact of the matter is that no one else in NBA history has done what Lin has done.  No one. 

[michigancat]

Okay, Mr. Contrarian Talking Point.  The Knicks are also 7-0 since Lin has become a starter.   You can pretend like it's not a big story all you want, but the fact of the matter is that no one else in NBA history has done what Lin has done.  No one. 

He deserves plenty of hype - I don't deny that at all. I just believe the hype is increased because of his race, regardless of whatever meaningless statistics people use to justify it.

[Fedor]

Okay, Mr. Contrarian Talking Point.  The Knicks are also 7-0 since Lin has become a starter.   You can pretend like it's not a big story all you want, but the fact of the matter is that no one else in NBA history has done what Lin has done.  No one. 

He deserves plenty of hype - I don't deny that at all. I just believe the hype is increased because of his race, regardless of whatever meaningless statistics people use to justify it.

#teamrusty

w/ one caveat, the hype is greater because of what his race isn't (african-american, latino, euro), than what it is (asian).

If it was a white dude with the same story, Harvard, D-league, NBA back up, then blowing up w/ the Knicks, the hype would be nearly equal. 

[nicname]

I would say that race plays another factor as well.  Sorry if this has been mentioned.  I think it is pretty obvious that part of the reason that the guy wasn't drafted, not noticed, etc. is because he "just doesn't look like an NBA player," and much of that is because of his race.  It isn't racist, it is just the way it is, when these GMs see player after player develope or flop in the league they develop an image of the kind of player that they believe will succeed.  A thin (though he isn't rail thin), 6'3 Asian dude with a mediocre jumper isn't going to wow scouts.  Sometimes though there are players who "break the mold," Lin happens to be one of them.  

So there is the race factor above and then the novelty of the 'unknown guy from Harvard who was living on his bros couch who came out of nowhere to do spectacular things in his first few games in the league.  AND ITS IN NY, AND HE'S ASIAN.

Tbh, when I first heard of him after his (not really a debut) debut game was, "Jeremy Lynn <--- notice the spelling eh, must be some white dude who threw down a nasty dunk or something.

[nicname]

Okay, Mr. Contrarian Talking Point.  The Knicks are also 7-0 since Lin has become a starter.   You can pretend like it's not a big story all you want, but the fact of the matter is that no one else in NBA history has done what Lin has done.  No one. 

He deserves plenty of hype - I don't deny that at all. I just believe the hype is increased because of his race, regardless of whatever meaningless statistics people use to justify it.

#teamrusty

w/ one caveat, the hype is greater because of what his race isn't (african-american, latino, euro), than what it is (asian).

If it was a white dude with the same story, Harvard, D-league, NBA back up, then blowing up w/ the Knicks, the hype would be nearly equal. 

Good post. 

Also good post earlier by hemmy.

[nicname]

Kind of like if he was an asian dude who balled out for 25 ppg at UNC and then was drafted in the lottery and did the same thing he is doing now.  People would notice, but the story wouldn't be nearly as big.

[michigancat]

If it was a white dude with the same story, Harvard, D-league, NBA back up, then blowing up w/ the Knicks, the hype would be nearly equal. 

agree 100%.

I mean, remember all the hype this guy got at his peak?

http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/willija02.html

[steve dave]

anyone who can't enjoy the crap out of this has problems, problems I love to mock.

[michigancat]

anyone who can't enjoy the crap out of this has problems, problems I love to mock.

no doubt. If anything, Lin gave us Billy's bow, which is the kind of thing that makes sports worth living.