Linsanity has gone international.
In his preseason debut with his new team, the Beijing Ducks, Jeremy Lin scored 40 points and brought down six rebounds in a loss to the Zhejiang Lions last week. It comes after a frustrating offseason for Lin, in which the 31-year-old bemoaned the lack of free-agency opportunities that ultimately led to him signing in the China Basketball Association in August.
“Every year it gets harder. In English, there’s a saying: Once you hit rock bottom, the only way is up. But … rock bottom just seems to getting more and more rock bottom for me,” Lin said in July during a tear-filled speech in Taiwan for GOOD TV, a Christian outlet. “And so free agency has been tough because I feel like the NBA has kind of given up on me. And I always knew that if I gave anybody a reason to doubt that they would.”
The point guard is fresh off a half-season stint with the Raptors, playing sparingly in Toronto’s surprising run to an NBA championship.
It’s not surprising to see Lin dominate overseas after flashes of brilliance throughout his nine-year tenure in the NBA. Players like Stephon Marbury and Jimmer Fredette have put up splashy numbers while dominating the CBA. Fredette tried to use it as a springboard to get back to the NBA, but that ultimately did not work out.
Lin became a phenomenon during his single season with the Knicks in 2011-12, but was never able to match that hype in the following years, which included stints with the Rockets, Lakers, Hornets, Nets and Hawks.