So as I was hard at work writing another chapter for Pantheons book #2 at 4 AM on Friday morning, I was doing a quick research into a particular character online when the name Jeremy Lin came up within my peripheral vision. I saved the page and by 5:20 AM when I finally finished the chapter I went to check out Jeremy Lin, and I was startled to discover that he had led the NY Knicks in three victories. I haven't watched NBA basketball with much interest for quite sometime actually. But I was curious, I'd never heard of a Tawainese professional basketball before, so I went to Youtube and watched the clips for the three games, and I was like wow, this kid's pretty good, but more than that, there was something about the way, he relentlessly kept going ahead and pushing forward, and carrying his teammates with him the entire way. Whether it was a starter, or a bench player, a player that was amazing or a low-level player, Lin seemed to believe in them enough to pass them the ball, and like magic they were knocking down shots just as he was knocking down shots and taking it to the basket.
I decided I wanted to see something else about him and I found this Youtube clip of what a day in the life of Lin is like and I actually found myself smiling. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLzrLXQIbwM&feature=fvsr I realized that Lin was an underdog who really wanted it bad and who was willing to work very hard. So I checked to see when the Knicks were playing next and I realized they were going to play the Lakers and I was like "Oh boy, Lin's going to have a battle on his hand going against Kobe and his gang". With a bit of excitement, I told my wife about Lin and she joined me as we prepared for the game. The Sport Analysts all said the same thing, whenever Kobe Bryant comes to play at NY, he puts on a 50+ point show, and that Lin was going to get crushed. Well, the game started and Lin goes out and helps the Knicks to get a strong lead. For some reason, I felt really excited. Then there was a scary moment when Lin twisted his ankle and he hobbled a little bit and I was a bit disappointed thinking that he was done, but throughout the first half, Lin fought with everything he had. The Lakers sent a seven footer to double team him and he made a mistake or two going into the halftime break. They stopped Lin to ask him a few questions about what he thought about his great performance and the first half and he humbly says that the game of basketball is about five players not one, and he says right now he's going to watch the game tape to see why he isn't effectively passing the ball to his big man and his shooters. The lady looked shocked and asked him 'are you going to do that right now?' Lin answers yes and runs off. Later on the same lady reported that one of Lin's players says that Lin did watch the game tape and he realized that the problem was that he'd never been double teamed by a seven footer before and so for the second half he adjusted his game and with his resilience, he was able to get the ball to his teammates without discrimination and they stood with him and fought with more energy for every loose rebound. Near the end of the game, Kobe himself came to defend Lin, but he made short works out of Kobe, and soon the Laker hero kept a safe distance away from the young Knick. Lin did an excellent job on defense and helped demolish the very potent Laker offense. At the end of the game Lin finished with 38 points. The lady asked him what he thought about his 38 point game, but Lin wasn't really interested in that, but instead he mentioned the effective rebounding of one of his teammates, and the skill of another, and another, then he made his point 'it's not about the team feeding off of my energy, but it's all of us feeding off of each other's energy. When the game finally finished, I was content. I had not jumped out of my chair to cheer for someone since Michael Jordan, and here I was cheering my heart out for Jeremy Lin, this young Knick hero so humble yet full of confidence in himself and his teammates. I've bought into the Linsanity and I want to see this kid go to the playoffs and win, this underdog who got an opportunity, not because the team had wanted him, but because there were so many injuries, he was the last option left, the fourth string point guard who was about to get the boot in New York. Way to go Lin!
Why am I so excited about Lin? This Taiwanese Christian basketball player from Harvard. It's because Lin had a dream, to one day achieve a goal of becoming an NBA basketball player, but when the dream wasn't happening or moving forward like he planned, he still continued to work hard and made preparations through perseverance despite the fact that nothing good was coming his way. Jeremy Lin put his faith in God and he worked extremely hard and in turn he got an impossible miracle and that was to put a stop to Kobe Bryant the only place the Laker could never be stopped...in New York!
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