The Effects of Linsanity

Just a week ago, Jeremy Lin was nobody.  Now, he is the most talked about athlete in all of sports and America's man of the hour.  Who really is this man and how did he come to be at the center of the sports world?

Jeremy Lin has burst out on the scene by leading
the underperforming Knicks to five straight wins.

For those of you who still don't know, Lin is an Asian-American professional basketball player who attended Harvard University, and after going undrafted and being cut by two teams, he has landed on the NBA's biggest stage with the New York Knicks where he was thrust into the starting job last week.  Since then, he has taken the NBA by storm by winning five consecutive games for the disappointing Knicks team playing without their two "stars" (Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire) and setting the all-time NBA record for points in his first four starts.  He truly is living the American Dream.

Lin's play, however, is not only translating into wins for his team, he is generating mass revenue and excitement for the league.  He has gotten the nation's largest city to become ecstatic about basketball, and in turn, his jersey is in higher demand than anybody else and ticket prices have skyrocketed up 27% for the Knicks.  How has one man had such a tremendous effect?

The answer in my opinion is simply because he's Asian.  There is no doubt that people have preconceived notions of what an NBA basketball player is supposed to look like, and there is no doubt that a 6'3 Asian-American man who graduated Harvard with a 3.1 GPA and is devoutly Christian does not fit the standard profile.  He is simply breaking every stereotype, and that is exactly what makes Lin's story so incredible and inspirational.

One fan turns his Carmelo Anthony jersey in a Lin one.

His story will have a tremendous effect on Asian-Americans as it gives them a true hero that is making a real impact in American culture.  Yao Ming couldn't be this heroic figure to Asians for two reasons: he was from mainland China, and he was 7'5, which automatically qualifies him as a lock to be in the NBA.  Lin, on the other hand, is much more relatable to, as he resembles many Asian-Americans who have never before had an iconic figure so similar to them.

He is as meaningful to the Asians in America as Jackie Robinson was to Blacks because he is being that "trailblazer" who sets the way for many to follow.  I'm not predicting Lin to continue his dominance or be a legendary figure as Jackie Robinson was, but culturally, his impact will be very similar, as I believe he has generated hope and inspiration for Asian-American basketball players to continue.

Ultimately, it doesn't matter if Lin's glory dies out and he returns to being a below average basketball player.  His story has been blown up by the Internet and has reached everywhere, so his impact on the next generation has already been made.