Knicks' Carmelo Anthony Sets Record Straight About Jeremy Lin
Before this spring's magic, shorthanded run to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the most electrifying moment of the new century New York Knicks may well have been Jeremy Lin's magical 27-game run from the 2011-12 season, a stretch forever known as "Linsanity."
Linsanity holds a bittersweet legacy in the minds of Knicks fans, one emphasized by the fact that it all came crashing down due to injury and Lin's subsequent transfer to the Houston Rockets. Some have blamed supposed dissatisfaction from then-franchise face Carmelo Anthony for its early conclusion but Anthony himself offered to set the record straight in the latest edition of his podcast "7PM in Brooklyn.
"People always talk about ... nobody liked the Linsanity ... personally me, you get what I'm saying? They throw that out there," Anthony told co-host The Kid Mero and guest/fellow Linsanity witness Baron Davis. "But people don't know that, behind the scenes, we were very supportive of this."
Lin, whose breakout served as a major cultural moment for Asian-Americans, briefly became the face of New York basketball for about two months, his run of prosperity headlined by a 38-point showing against the late Kobe Bryant in a nationally-televised game against the Los Angeles Lakers. Current playing in Taiwan, Lin played seven more seasons in the NBA but never captured the same success he had in Manhattan.
Anthony emphasized that he and his teammates, including Davis, tried to encourage Lin to capitalize on his success by monetizing Linsanity, but a combination of the phenomenon's rapid pace and Lin's own reluctance to cash in made it a relatively moot point.
"Linsanity could've been a $100 million business, easy," Anthony said. "I'm trying to get this through to him. He was like 'nah, I'm not brought up on that, my parents.' I respected that, but I'm like ... matter of fact, bring your parents in here, let us talk to them."
Lin did eventually ink a few endorsement deals with brands like Adidas, Nike, and Volvo and also trademarked the phrase "Linsanity."
GEOFF MAGLIOCCHETTI
Editor-In-Chief at All Knicks