Barack Obama: I Knew About Jeremy Lin Before You Did

President Barack Obama told ESPN columnist Bill Simmons that he knew about the potential of basketball sensation Jeremy Lin well before the rest of America.

“I knew about Jeremy before you did, or everybody else did, because Arne Duncan, my Secretary of Education, was captain of the Harvard team. And so way back when, Arne and I were playing and he said, I’m telling you, we’ve got this terrific guard named Jeremy Lin at Harvard. And then one of my best friends, his son is a freshman at Harvard, and so when he went for a recruiting trip he saw Lin in action. So I’ve been on the Jeremy Lin bandwagon for a while.”

Obama, an avid basketball fan, is also a graduate of Harvard Law School. He told Simmons that he was surprised no one noticed Lin’s ability sooner.

“But look, it’s a great story. And what’s interesting is the fact that somehow folks were missing it in practice. I mean, that’s what’s interesting. Because you got to assume that during scrimmages he was running that pick-and-roll pretty well. And it is a terrific story. He seems like a wonderful young man. And, look, it elevates this great sport all around the world. It can't hurt ratings for basketball in China.”