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overall pick John Wall, was all it
took for Lin to sign his first NBA
deal with his favorite childhood
team,
the
Golden
State
Warriors. Lin’s struggling shot
prevented him from leaving the
bench and sent him down to the
NBA’s Development League
three times as a Warrior. The
2010-2011 All-NBA D-League
Showcase First Team member
was let go from Golden State on
December 9, 2011. The Houston
Rockets scooped up Lin on
December 12, only to can him
on Christmas Eve after giving
him seven preseason minutes to
prove himself. But, whenever
the illusory hopelessness of his
NBA situation crept in, Lin
whispered Romans 8:28 to
himself : “And we know that God
causes everything to work
together for the good of those
who love God and are called
according to his purpose for
them.”
On December 27, the New
York Knicks grabbed Lin from
free agency to add depth to their
ailing backcourt and placed him
fourth on the point guard depth
chart. However, on January 17,
2012, Lin was sent back to the
D-League. Lin told Mercury
News’ Marcus Thompson II in
an interview that, at that point,
his frustration started a spiritual
war within himself. “Whine.
Complain. Whine. Complain.
But the other side of me was
thinking, ‘My God is all
powerful.’” Three days later, Lin
demolished the opposing D-
League competition by posting
28 points, 11 rebounds and 12
assists, prompting the Knicks to
call him up on January 23.
Linsanity
The 8-15 Knicks played so
poorly in a February 3 beatdown
by the Boston Celtics that coach
Mike D’Antoni threw Lin into
the fray in the fourth quarter
purely out of desperation. The
next day, the Knicks’ main
superstar Carmelo Anthony
lobbied D’Antoni to let Lin run
the offense in the second half of
their bout with the New Jersey
Nets. Lin responded to the extra
minutes by supplying the Knicks
with
25
points.
Shortly
thereafter,
Lin’s
28-point
performance to lead the Knicks
to victory over the Utah Jazz –
without stars Carmelo Anthony
and Amar’e Stoudemire –
prompted Coach D’Antoni to
“ride Lin like freakin’ Secretariat”.
After being named the
Eastern Conference Player of the
Week, Lin buried a last-second
three to defeat the Toronto
Raptors, driving Lakers forward
Metta World Peace to yell
“Linsanity!” at reporters. And
thus Linsanity was born. Lin
described his newfound fame in
relation to his faith by saying,
“There is so much temptation to
hold on to my career even more
now … But that’s not how I want
to do things anymore. I’m
thinking about how can I trust
God more. How can I surrender
more? How can I bring him
more glory? It’s a fight. But it’s
one I’m going to keep fighting.”
The Knicks had an 8 game
winning streak and won 9 of the
12 games in which Lin started
before the All-Star break, thanks
to his 22.5 points and 8.7 assists
per game. A torn meniscus
suffered during a March 24 clash
with the Detroit Pistons ended
Lin’s season and tenure as a
Knick. The Houston Rockets
officially acquired Lin on July 13,
2012 after offering a heavily-
backloaded contract to scare
away the Knicks from matching
the offer and re-signing him.
Jeremy Lin recognizes the
unique opportunity God has
blessed Him with, but does not
stop there. He realizes that he
must use the gift he has received
to glorify his Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ and spread the
gospel. “It’s a platform I’ve been
given … I want to be real. I don’t
want to have a false image. I
want people to see who I am and
what God has done in my life.”
Learn more about Jeremy Lin by
visiting jlin7.com.
Email Jonathan at
ebankj9770@gmail.com or visit
his Fiverr profile at
fiverr.com/ebankj9770.
>
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