linspired, kids edition: the jeremy lin story by jesse florea, mike yorkey

Other books in the Zonderkidz Biography Series:

Toward the Goal: The Kaká Story

Breaking Through by Grace: The Bono Story

Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story

Defender of Faith: The Mike Fisher Story

Gift of Peace: The Jimmy Carter Story

Driven by Faith: The Trevor Bayne Story

Speed to Glory: The Cullen Jones Story

The Admiral: The David Robinson Story

Reaching New Heights: The Kelly Clark Story

Heart of a Champion: The Dominique Dawes Story

0310735238_Linspired_int_CS4.indd 2 3/28/12 10:09 AM

ZONDERKIDZ

LinspiredCopyright © 2012 by Mike Yorkey and Jesse Florea

This title is also available as a Zondervan ebook.

Visit www.zondervan.com/ebooks

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zonderkidz, 5300 Patterson Ave SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530

ISBN: 978-0-310-735236

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2010, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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Portions of Linspired previously appeared in Playing with Purpose: Inside the Lives and Faith of Top NBA Stars by Mike Yorkey and are used by permission. Linspired is based on research and interviews with Jeremy Lin but has not been authorized by him.

Cover design: Kris Nelson Interior composition: Greg Johnson/TextbookPerfect

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Table of Contents

1.TheNBAGoesLinsane!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

2.MiracleNear34thStreet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

3.ComingtoAmerica. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

4.HoopandFaith. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

5.MiracleGrow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

6.It’sAcademic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

7.RaisingtheCurtainontheJeremyLinShow. . . 46

8.What’sinaName?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

9.UndraftedandUnwanted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

10.RookieBlues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

11.TheTemptingLifeoftheNBA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

12.LockedOut,ButLockedIn. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

13.NewYorkStateofMind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

14.FromCouchtoCenterCourt. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

15.Lin-describableTurnofEvents . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

16.All-StarOnslaught. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

17.FarEastFrenzy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

18.APrayerRequestfromandforJeremy . . . . . . . 120

AuthorBios. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

SourceMaterial. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129


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Chapter 1

The NBA Goes Linsane!

Seven, Six, Five, Four . . . Anychildwhohaspickedupabasketballdreamsof

onedayhittingagame-winning,buzzer-beatingshot.JeremyLingrewupwith imagesofhoopsgloryrun-ningthroughhismindashedribbledabasketballonhisfamily’sdrivewayinPaloAlto,California.He’dshootforhours,countingdownfromtenandreleasingtheballjustbeforethebuzzersounded.SometimesJeremy’sshotwouldripthroughthenetwithabeautifulswish.Otherattemptswouldbounceofftherimandfalldisappoint-inglytothepavement.

Onthoseoccasions,Jeremywouldgathertheball,takehisplaceonthedriveway,andstartthecountdownagain.Histeamjusthadtowin.

Seven, Six, Five, Four . . .


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EvenwithallofJeremy’spracticeanddreaming,heneverwouldhavedaredtoimaginewhattookplaceonFebruary14,2012.

Through a bizarre series of what can only be ex-plainedasGod-ordainedevents,thetwenty-three-year-oldfoundhimselfstartingaspointguardfortheNewYorkKnicks.Justweeksbefore,Jeremyfearedhe’dbecutbyhisthirdNBAteamintwoyears.NowinagameagainsttheTorontoRaptors,Jeremyheldtheballathalfcourtastheclocktickeddownfromeighteenseconds.

“Tiedateighty-seven,Linwiththeballinhishands,”the TSN announcer said as the crowd at Air CanadaCenterrosetoitsfeet.Jeremyhadhelpederasea17-pointsecond-halfdeficitfortheKnicks.Momentsearlierhisthree-point play on a double-pump, feathery four-footjumperandensuingfoulshothadknottedthegame87–87.

Withfivesecondstogo,Jeremystarteddribblingto-wardTorontopointguardJoseCalderon.Jeremymovedtheballbetweenhislegs,spottedupabouttwenty-fourfeet from the basket, and launched a high-archingthree-pointer.

Three, Two . . .“Linforthewiiin,”theannouncershouted.“Gotit!”Thecrowderuptedastheballswishedthroughthe

hoop,givingtheKnicksa90–87victory.Jeremynoddedhisheadtriumphantlyandbackpedaleddownthecourtbeforegettingchest-pumpedbyteammatespouringofftheKnicks’bench.Withthatshot,JeremyclinchedNewYork’s sixth straight victory and took the worldwide“Linsanity”crazetoanotherlevel.


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After his long jumper was the difference in the Knicks’ 90–87 victory over the Toronto Raptors on February 14, 2012, a joyful Jeremy points heavenward. Notice his wristband, which reads “In Jesus’ Name I Play.”

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“I’mjustgladitwent likethissowecancalmtheLinsanitydown,”Knicks’coachMikeD’Antonijokedafterthegame.1

EventhoughtheKnickswereplayingaroadgame,thecrowd’sreactionseemedmorefittingforNewYork’sMadisonSquareGarden.ThehometownRaptorshadlost,butthecrowdstayedonitsfeet,cheeringfortheNBA’snewesthero.Jeremy’sboxscoreonthenight:27points(12ofwhichcameinthefourthquarter)and11assists.Torontofans,justlikebasketballfansaroundtheworld,werecaughtupinawaveofexcitementsurround-ingaplayerwhoquicklycametoembodyhardwork,hustle,andarocksolidfaithinGod.

ButwhatsomepeoplemissedonthatFebruaryeve-ning was the fact that D’Antoni chose not to take atimeoutwhenNewYorkgotpossessionoftheballwithless than twenty-four seconds left and the score tied.ConventionalwisdomintheNBAsaystocallatime-out,drawupaplay,andmakesuretherightplayersareonthecourt.InsteadthecoachputtheballinJeremy’shandsandtrustedhimwiththeoutcome.

“He’stoogoodtocallatimeout,”D’Antonisaidtoreportersafterthegame.“Itmakesiteasytoacoachtobeabletotrustyourpointguard.He’ssmartenough,andIhavefaithinhim.”2

No, D’Antoni wasn’t talking about CarmeloAnthony—perhapstheKnicks’mostclutchperformer,whomissedthegamewithaninjury.Thecoach’swordsweren’t directed toward a wily veteran player who’dbeeninlast-secondsituationshundredsoftimes.And


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hewasn’tevendescribingatop-fiveNBAdraftpickwhowasdestinedforbasketballstardomsincemiddleschool.HewastalkingaboutJeremyLin—whowasfivefeet,threeinchesin high school,failedtogetdraftedbyanyNBAteam,andwasmakingjusthisfifthstart.

Obviously,Linsanitywasn’tjustsweepingtheworld;itwasaffectinghiscoachtoo.

In early February 2012, Jeremy was the last mancoming off the Knicks’ bench during garbage time;byValentine’sDay,hisdribbledrivethroughfiveLosAngelesLakersgracedthecoverofSports Illustrated, bas-ketballpunditsonESPN’sSportsCenterhadrunoutofsuperlativestodescribehim,andhisnumber17KnicksjerseywastheNBA’stopseller.

Hewascalled“Lincredible,”abalmof“Liniment”fortheNBA.Andhemovedfromanonymitytostar-dom—evenpop iconstatus—quicker thananoutletpasstostartafastbreak.

NobodywassayingthatJeremywasthenextSteveNash,MagicJohnson,orJerryWest,butthefactthatJeremy even made it onto an NBA roster was note-worthyforseveralreasons:

1. At6feet,3inches,hewasn’ttallforagamedomi-natedbyhumongousathleteswhocanjumpoutofthegym.

2. He came from an Ivy League school; HarvardUniversity,which lastsentaplayer to theNBAin1953—theyearbeforetheleagueadopteda24-secondshotclock.


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3. HewasthefirstAmerican-bornplayerofChineseorTaiwanesedescenttoeverplayintheNBA.

Theuniquenessofhisstory—hisracialbackground,hisIvyLeaguepedigree,andhisundraftedstatus—caughttheworld’sattention.ButtherewasmoretoJeremy—adeepreservoirof faith.Herewasapolite,humble,andhard-workingyoungmanwhounderstoodthatGodhadapurposeforhislife,whateverthatmightbe.

JeremyseeshimselfasaChristianfirstandabasket-ballplayersecond.Inthemidstofhiswild,implausiblejourneywithaleatherbasketballinhishands—hewastrustingGod.

“I’mnotexactlysurehowitisallgoingtoturnout,”Jeremyhadsaidafterhisrookieseason,“butIknowforafactthatGodhascalledmetobeherenowintheNBA.Andthisistheassignmentthathehasgivenme.IknowIwouldn’tbehereifthatwasn’tthecase.Justlookingback,though,it’sbeenahugemiracle[thatI’mintheNBA].Icanseehisfingerprintseverywhere.”

God’shandwascertainlyguidingJeremyduringhisfirsthandfulofstartsfortheKnicks,wheretheyoungpoint guard accomplished something that not evenMichael Jordan—Jeremy’s childhood hero—couldbragabout.


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Who’s Responsible for the Linsanity?On February 13, 2012, Jeremy Lin filed an application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to own the term “Linsanity.” His filing came six days after a thirty-five-year-old Californian applied for a Linsanity trademark. Despite not being the first to apply, Gary Krugman, a partner at the Washington-based law firm of Sughrue Mion, said Jeremy’s claim should trump the others. “Nobody can register a mark if it falsely suggests a connection with the person or an institution,” Krugman said. “I would guess that Jeremy Lin would be able to oppose on the grounds that Linsanity points uniquely and unmistakably to him.”3

If you haven’t seen them already, don’t be surprised to find Linsanity bags, cups, T-shirts, and other products in a sporting goods store near you.


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Chapter 2

Miracle Near 34th Street

What do Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, LeBronJames,DirkNowitzki,KevinDurant,andKobeBryantallhaveincommon?NoneofthemscoredmorepointsordishedoutmoreassiststhanJeremydidinhisfirstfiveNBAstarts.

Infact,noplayerinrecordedNBAhistory(statisticsstartedtobekeptwhentheNBAandABAmergedin1976)hadscoredatleasttwentypointsandtalliedsevenassistsineachofhisfirstfivestartsatbasketball’shighestlevel.Jeremy’sscoringprowessalsosetanNBArecord,ashis136pointswerethemosteverforaplayer’sfirstfivegamesasastarter.

In one short week—just a handful of games in alockout-shortened season—Jeremy progressed frombenchwarmertothetoastoftheBigAppleastheKnicks’leadingscorer,playmaker,andspiritualleader.


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WestoftheHudsonRiver,hebecamethefocusofanormallyfragmentedmediauniverseandsetthe24/7socialnetworkingworldonfire.EverybodywastalkingaboutJeremy:sportstalkshows,blogwriters,TVshows,evenlatenighttalkshowhostsandsketchcomedypro-grams.Tryingtofigureouthowmanysmartphones,lap-tops,andcomputersconvergedtocreateatidalwaveoftweets,touts,andonlinechatterwouldmakeyourheadspinfasterthanJeremy’sspinmovetothebasket.

ThereasonLinsanitywentviralwassimple:every-onelovesanunderdogstory,andhisimprobablejourneyhasalltheingredientsofaHollywoodfairytale.

Trailblazing Asian-American in the NBA. Harvard grad. Cut by two teams and riding the bench in New York. Even the fact that he had been sleeping on his

olderbrotherJosh’scouchontheLowerEastSideofManhattanwaspartof the lore. People imaginedthepoorguyhuddledunderablanketinJosh’slivingroombecausetherewasnoroomattheinn.

MoreimportanttoJeremythanhispersonalstatis-ticswasthefactthatNewYorkstartedtowin.BeforeJeremywasinsertedintothelineup,NewYorkhadlostelevenofthirteengamesandsatnearthebottomoftheAtlanticdivisionwithan8–15record.All-starCarmeloAnthonysatoutwithaninjury.Andhigh-scoringfor-wardAmar’eStoudemirewaswithhisfamilyafterthedeathofhisbrother.EvencoachMikeD’AntonihadhisjobonthelineastheproudKnicksfranchisewasn’t


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livinguptoexpectations.(D’AntonididendupsteppingdownasheadcoachonMarch14.)

ThenduringaFebruary4,2012,gameagainsttheNewJerseyNets,CarmeloencouragedD’AntonitoplayJeremyinthesecondhalf.Afterall,thingscouldn’tgetworse.MelohadcompetedagainstJeremyinpracticeandappreciatedhisspunkandhustle.

Jeremymadethemostoftheopportunitybyscoring25pointstoleadNewYorktoacome-from-behind99-92victory.Overthenexttwelvegames,theKnickswent9-3toeventheirrecordat18-18andgetthemselvesbackintotheplayoffpicture.

“They’replayingatahighlevel,”BostonCelticsall-starKevinGarnettsaid.“Linisobviouslytakingovertheworld.That’sdope.Youalwaysliketoseesomeonesucceedatwhattheylove.Heplayswithalotofpas-sion,andhe’s[giving]them,notjustthecity,butthatteam—life.”1

Jeremy’spassionshowedashedoveforballsonthehardwood,droveintothelaneagainstbiggerandstron-ger players, and even shouted at teammates to keeppushingthemselves.

Sometimes Jeremy’s zest for the game got him introuble.NotonlydidhescoremorepointsinhisfirstfivestartsthananyplayerinNBAhistory,healsocom-mittedarecordnumberofturnovers.Jeremyaveragedmorethanfiveturnoversagame,whichisn’tthekindofstatisticpointguardsbragabout.

Of course, there are different kinds of turnovers.Someplayersturnovertheballbymakingaweakpass


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or playing timidly. Jeremy’s turnovers often resultedfromhisaggressiveplayindrivingtothebasketortryingtothreadapasstoateammateunderthehoop.Thosekindsofturnoversaremucheasierforacoachtoforgive.Plus, Jeremy’saggressiveplayandexcellentcourtvi-sionfrequentlyresultedinmonsterdunksorwide-openthree-pointersforfellowKnicks.

“Hecanreallycreateforhimselfandhisteammates,”HallofFamepointguardMagicJohnsonsaidaboutJeremy.“That’swhyKnicksfansareenjoyingbasket-ball,becausetheynowhaveanexcitingteam.”2

PerhapsnoplayerbenefitedmorefromJeremy’spres-enceonthecourtthanfifth-yearproSteveNovak.Steve,likeJeremy,playedlimitedminutesfortheKnicksbeforethemonthofFebruary.Theexcellentlong-rangeshooterimmediatelygelledwiththeslashingpointguard.Steveoftencouldn’tcreateanopenshotforhimself,butwithJeremycollapsingdefenseswithhisforaystothebasket,Steveroutinelyfoundhimselfleftaloneandonthere-ceivingendofapassfromJeremy.Steveconnectedonnearly50percentofhisthree-pointshotsonceJeremystartedplayingandaveragednearly12pointsagame(whichismuchbetterthanhiscareer3.6pointscoringaverage).

Jeremy’sstorybecamethefeel-goodhitofthe2012seasonasheenergizedNewYorkandrevitalizedhisbasketballdreams.Ofcourse,noneofthiscould’vebeenpossibleifhisparentshadn’tcometotheUnitedStatestochasetheirAmericandream.


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Seeing DoubleJeremy Lin must have felt on top of the world when his photo appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated on February 20, 2012. But a week later, he was floating above the clouds. On February 27, Jeremy’s picture graced the covers of Sports Illustrated and Time — two of the biggest magazines in the United States. By mak-ing the cover of SI twice in a row, Jeremy joined Michael Jordan and Dirk Nowitzki as the only NBA players to earn this honor.

How rare is that double? Since 1990, only eleven other athletes have graced the cover of Sports Illustrated, the country’s premier sports magazine, for two consecutive weeks.

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Chapter 3

Coming to America

Jeremy’s story begins in an unlikely place: war-tornChinainthelate1940s.Civilwarhadrippedaparttheworld’s most populous country. Chinese Nationalistforces led by General Chiang Kai-shek fought thePeople’sLiberationArmy—ledbyChineseCommunistParty leaderMaoZedong—for controlofChina.Atthattime,asmalleliteclassofChineselivedwell,whilehundreds of millions barely survived. In 1949, afterthreeyearsofbloodyconflict, theCommunist forceswon.ChiangKai-shekandapproximatelytwomillionNationalistChinesefledfortheirlivestotheislandofTaiwan.Among those refugeeswereJeremy’sgrand-parentsonhismother’sside.

Jeremy’smother,Shirley(Shirleyisactuallyanan-glicizedversionofherChinesefirstname),wasborninTaiwan.Hermother(Jeremy’sgrandmother)wasoneof


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Taiwan’sfirstprominentfemalephysicians.Duringthe1970s,someAmericandoctorsvisitedTaiwantostudytheadvancesTaiwanesephysicianshadmadeinhealthcare.AsShirley’smotherconnectedwiththeAmericanmedicalcommunity,aseedwasplantedtoimmigratetotheUnitedStates,wherethefamilycouldpursueabet-terlife.In1978,justafterShirleygraduatedfromhighschool,herfamilymovedtotheUnitedStates.

ShirleyworkedhardlearningEnglishandsoonen-rolledatOldDominionUniversity,acollegeinNorfolk,Virginia.Shemajoredincomputerscience,afieldwithabrightfuture.Expertsfeltacomputerrevolutionwouldexplodeinthe1980s,becauseanewfangledinventioncalledthepersonalcomputerhadbegunfindingitswayintoAmericanhomes.

Thereweren’ttoomanyAsians(orsecond-generationAsian-Americans, for thatmatter) atOldDominion.The dozen or so Chinese-speaking students formeda small Asian support group for fun and fellowship.OnememberofthegroupwasagraduatestudentfromTaiwan—a handsome young man named Gie-MingLin,who’dcome to theUnitedStates toworkonhisdoctorateincomputerengineering.HisancestorshadlivedinTaiwansincethenineteenthcentury,longbeforeCommunistoppressionbeganonChina’smainland.

Sharing the same cultural background and a com-monlanguagebroughtGie-MingandShirleytogether,andtheybegandating.Notlongafter,aloveblossomed.WhenGie-MingtoldShirleyofhisplantofinishhisdoc-torateatPurdueUniversityinWestLafayette,Indiana,


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shedecidedtotransfertoPurdueandcontinueherunder-graduateclassesincomputerscience.

WhileatPurdue,ShirleyattendedaChristian fel-lowshipgroupandheardaboutJesusChrist’sloveandsacrificeforher.CuriousaboutwhoJesuswas,sheex-ploredandlearnedabouttheLordoftheuniverseandhowhecametoEarthtodieforhersins.SheprayedtoacceptChrist’sgiftofforgivenessandcommittedtofol-lowJesus.WhenshetoldGie-Mingwhatshehaddone,heinvestigatedthegospelandprayedtobecomeaChris-tianaswell.TheysoonpluggedintoaChinese-speakingchurchandbegantheirwalkwithChrist.

Lin Chu A-muen, the mother of Gie-Ming, came over from Taiwan to help raise the family during Jeremy’s formative years.

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Gie-MingandShirleymarriedwhiletheywerestillinschool.TheylikedlivingintheUnitedStatesandbe-cametwoofthemanymillionsofimmigrantschasingtheAmericandream.

Theycertainlyweren’tafraidtoworkhard—orlivefrugally.Earlyon,Gie-MingandShirleywouldgofish-ingonweekendsatanearbyreservoir.Gie-Ming,wholovedfishingandwasquitegoodatit,wouldcatchhislimitofbluegill,shad,crappie,orbassandbringhomehishaulinagalvanizedbucket.Theywoulddineonfishthatnightandtosstherestintothefreezertoeatduringtheweek.

Oneevening,Gie-Mingflippedonthetelevisiontorelaxandcameacrossabasketballgame.TheLakerswereplayingtheCelticsduringoneoftheirgreat1980sNBAFinalsbattles.ThesightofLarryBirdandMagicJohnson doing wondrous things on Boston Garden’sparquet f loormesmerizedGie-Ming.Hewassmittenbytheathleticismoftheselarger-than-lifefigureswhomadethebasketballcourtlooksmall.Gie-MingstartedwatchingNBAbasketballeverychancehehad,whichwasn’toftensincehisstudiesandpart-timeworktookupmuchofhisfreetime.

Wait! A new technology had arrived in people’shomesduringthattime.ItwascalledaVHSrecorder.This then state-of-the-art electromechanical devicecouldrecordtelevisionbroadcastsoncassettesthatcon-tainedmagnetictape.Suddenly,theimagesandsoundofTVshowsandsportingeventscouldbeplayedbackatamoreconvenienttime—orreplayedoverandover


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fortheviewer’senjoyment.TheadventoftheVHSre-corderrevolutionizedthewayGie-Ming—andmillionsofAmericans—watchedTVinthe1980s.

Gie-MingstartedtapingNBAgames.Helovedwatch-ing Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s sky hook, Julius “Dr. J”Erving’sgravity-defyingdunks,andMagicleadingthefastbreakandhandlingabasketballlikeitwasontheendofastring.Gie-Mingsoonbecameacertifiablebasketballjunkie.HestudiedthosetapeswiththesamefervoraswhenhestudiedforhisPh.D.Hecouldn’ttellfriendswhyhelovedbasketball,hejustdid.

One-year-old Jeremy is held in the arms of his father, Gie-Ming, on this outing with his older brother, Josh, and his grandmother, Lin Chu A-muen.

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Gie-Mingalsostartedplayingabitofbasketball.Hetaughthimselfhowtodribbleandshootbypracticingatanearbyplayground.Hewastooshytojoinabasketballleague,butheoccasionallyplayedapickupgame.Helovedbreakingasweatonthebasketballcourt,whichbecamehisfavoriteformofexercise.

WhenGie-MingandShirleycompletedtheirschool-ingatPurdue,theymovedtoLosAngeles,whereGie-Mingworkedforacompanythatdesignedmicrochips.Shirleyjumpedonthemommytrackandgavebirthtotheirfirstchild,asontheynamedJoshua.Twoyearslater,onAugust23,1988,tenyearstothedayafterKobeBryant entered the world, Jeremy Shu-How Lin wasborn.Anditdidn’ttakelongbeforehehadabasketballinhishands.


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Lin-credible TaiwanTaiwan sits about 140 miles from mainland China. Although Taiwan is the same size as Maryland and Delaware combined, nearly twenty-three million people live in this island nation. (That’s four times more than live in Delaware and Maryland.) With both of Jeremy Lin’s parents being born in Taiwan, Linsanity hit even harder there than even in the U.S. There were days where Jeremy’s photo appeared on the front page of all four Taiwanese newspapers. Basketball courts in schools and parks were quickly fixed up as more children caught basketball fever. Xinbei High School even took a break from classes so its 4,000 students could watch Jeremy on TV. They clapped red noisemakers and jumped up and down as Jeremy raced around the hardwood. “The students pleaded and I agreed to do this on an experimental basis,” princi-pal Wang Chi-kuang said.1

But after the game, it was back to the books. Students take their studies very seriously in Taiwan.

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Taiwanese fans gather at a Taipei sports bar to watch Jeremy and the Knicks play during Linsanity. Many Americans don’t realize how popular Jeremy is in the Asian culture, who see him as one of their own.


linspired, kids edition: the jeremy lin story by jesse florea, mike yorkey

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