关注者

Blogger 提供支持.
RSS

2012年2月24日星期五

Serby's Q&A with … Jeremy Lin


The Post’s Steve Serby sat down Thursday with the Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin. Here is the conclusion of that interview:


Q: How do you feel about being an inspiration to so many people?
A: I think it’s awesome because I’ve been inspired, too. And I think it’s important for any kid to have an inspiration. I think right now the way society’s going, I think role models are important, and kids need direction. If I didn’t have that direction growing up, who knows what I could be doing, because I’ve been lost many times in my life, and I’ve had to have someone guide me back on the right path. So any time I can do that and help other kids, I think that’s awesome.

Q: What was the worst instance when you were lost?
A: I would probably just say when I was really, really arrogant, and ... I just didn’t listen to anybody, just my typical teenage years where it’s just rebelling. I think I know everything. I don’t need to hear anything from anybody, and I’m just going to do it my own way.

Q: You’ve decided on living in Manhattan. Why?
A: My older brother’s there and my sister-in-law is there.

Q: First time you played at the Garden?
A: I was with Golden State, and I played about a minute-and-a-half to two minutes, and had a turnover, a steal and an assist.

Q: What do you remember about stepping on the court for the first time?
A: I remember walking in and I was like, “This isn’t as big as I thought it would be” (laughs).

Q: So you were not awed ... but you don’t seem to be awed by anything.
A: Well when the game starts, it’s all basketball.

Q: When you’re on the court now, has that really become a sanctuary for you?
A: Yeah definitely. It’s like our team is like our family. And we go to battle on the court and we fight for each other and we trust in each other and we rely on each other and that’s what it is on the court. When we’re out there together, we don’t care about our phones, we don’t care about the media, no one can reach us. It’s just us, being us, playing for us. It is, in some ways, a sanctuary.

Q: Favorite New York City things?
A: The energy of the city, and playing in the Garden.

Q: Spike Lee?
A: He’s very encouraging, and I’m very thankful for that, and obviously he’s a big part of New York basketball.

Q: Athletes you admire?
A: (Tim) Tebow. Yao Ming — he’s an unbelievable guy ... on and off the court. I think what athletes do off the court is more impressive to me than what they do on the court.

Q: Who are the point guards you have liked watching over the years?
A: Chris Paul, Steve Nash.
Q: Because?

A: Because you can’t measure their impact. You look at a team with them on the court, and then the team without them on the court.
Q: What drives you?

A: I would say knowing that what I’m doing is glorifying God, in that He’s created me and blessed me with the talent to be able to play basketball, and then I make sure I do it the right way.

Q: Do you want to be a pastor?
A: Somewhere down the road.

Q: Why?
A: I just think like when I’m done, I want to wake up every day knowing that I’m doing something that will have an eternal impact and eternal consequence.

Q: One thing you would change about yourself if you could?
A: Pride, I would say. Just dealing with pride, and the constant battle with that.

Q: What do you mean?
A: I think everyone, to some degree, we all struggle with our own pride. Learning to love people when we don’t want to love them, and to forgive people when we don’t want to forgive them, and to serve people who sometimes we feel like we’re above or we’re better or we’re smarter than, or whatever it may be.

Q: Superstitions?
A: Pregame nap, and reading my Bible before the game.

Q: You read the Bible before every game?
A: Yeah. I have to. It gets me centered, gives me peace when I pray and read the Bible. As athletes, it’s stressful sometimes. ... I hate having a bad game, so sometimes I need to remind myself just to let everything go and just to be myself, have fun and just give my best effort.

Q: Biggest obstacle you faced growing up?
A: I want to just say when I broke my ankle my junior year (at Palo Alto High School). It was the night before the championship game. That changed my whole life because before that, up to that point, I was a really bad practice player, I had a lot of attitude, I’d be kicked out of practice. I just wouldn’t listen to any of the coaches. I felt like I was just the best player. And once I broke my ankle it changed my whole perspective. On everything. I just told myself, “I don’t know how long I’m going to be able to play because at any minute you can lose your career, and while I play, as many days as God gives me, I’m going to make sure I go 100 percent.”

Q: What’s the worst thing you did in practice that got you kicked out of practice?
A: Just attitude, I would say. Just not playing hard, walking around, giving up, stuff like that.

Q: Biggest influence growing up?
A: My older brother, just kind of giving me advice on what it means to be mature, what it means to be responsible. (He) just led the way and gave me a lot of different advice, and also basketball. (He) pushed me — he was always better than me growing up, and he helped me become better. I was always chasing him and riding his coattails.

Q: Best piece of advice your parents gave you?
A: They always tell me, “Whatever you do, give your best effort, and give it unto the Lord, and trusting him with the results.”

Q: Most difficult course at Harvard?
A: Expository writing.

Q: Favorite course?
A: I’d say some sociology courses.

Q: How did you do in that expository writing class, by the way?
A: A solid C minus (smiles).

Q: What’s so solid about a C minus?
A: (Laughs) It was solid for me.

Q: Boyhood idol?
A: Michael Jordan.

Q: Three dinner guests?
A: Michael Jordan; Martin Luther King; Tim Tebow.

Q: Favorite movie?
A: “Oceans 11”; “Entrapment”; “The Italian Job” — a lot of stealing stuff (smiles); “Shooter”; “The Shawshank Redemption”.

Q: Favorite actor?
A: Probably Denzel Washington.

Q: Favorite actress?
A: Mila Kunis.

Q: Favorite entertainer?
A: Hillsong.

Q: Favorite meal?
A: Maine lobster ... fresh.

Q: Have you found a spot in New York?
A: No, whenever I go to Maine, I just make sure I go over there and get some Maine lobster.

Q: How often do you go to Maine?
A: Whenever they send me to D-League (smiles)?

Q: So there is a benefit going to the D-League then?
A: Relative cost benefit ... I would say I’d rather stay here.

Q: Your message to the Asian community?
A: Just thank you, and hopefully we can continue to break stereotypes. It’s just a lot more thank you and gratitude than anything else, because they’ve been absolutely unbelievable in terms of their support. Unbelievable.

Q: Did those stereotypes bother you when you were younger?
A: Yeah, of course.

Q: They would call you “Wonton soup” at games ... what was the worst thing you heard that really got to you?
A: I’ve been called a “chink” by another player on an opposing (college) team.

Q: Did you say anything to him?
A: I was like really confused, and then he said it again, and then I was just like, “You need to chill,” and I told the ref, I’m like, “He really needs to stop saying that to me.”

Q: What if he hadn’t stopped?
A: I probably would have done something stupid (chuckles).

Q: Your message to Knicks fans?
A: Thank you, let’s keep this thing going, and who knows? The sky’s the limit.

Q: Do you think this team can do some damage?
A: Of course. I think on paper, it’s as talented, or almost as talented, as any team there is. You add chemistry, you add defense, you add momentum, confidence, a system that works. If you’re clicking at the right time like the Giants were, who knows?

Linsanity: The Jeremy Lin Phenomenon That Is Driving The World LinsaneLinsanity: The Jeremy Lin Phenomenon That Is Driving The World Linsane


A phenomenon is sweeping through the US, China, Taiwan and many other parts of the world. It is called Linsanity.
It all started with  Jeremy Lin. He now boasts more than 1.5 million followers on on Weibo and hundreds of thousands of followers on Twitter and other social media sites.
Jeremy Lin...The Linsanity Phenomenon
You make me Linsane
Lindemonium
All I Do Is Lin Lin Lin
We are LINsane
Linsanity, a combination of the New York Knicks point guard’s last name and the word insanity, has been used by NBA stars, sports pundits, celebrities and fans alike to describe the phenomenon surrounding the player who went from being overlooked by multiple teams to breaking records in one week. After his first week starting for the NBA, Lin managed to become the first player in NBA history to put up numbers of at least 20 points and seven assists in each of his first four starting games.
Fans of New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin spell out Linsanity as they stand in the upper deck during the Knicks NBA basketball game against the Sacramento Kings in New York's Madison Square Garden (REUTERS Mike Segar)
A fan of New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin holds signs during the warm-up before the Knicks' NBA basketball game against the Toronto Raptors in Toronto (REUTERS Mike Cassese)
Fans hold up a banner for New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin during the Knicks' NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz. (AP Photo Kathy Kmonicek)
Fans cheer for New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards (AP Photo Haraz N. Ghanbari)
Fans of Jeremy Lin #17 of the New York Knicks hold up signs during the second half of the Knicks and Washington Wizards game. (Photo by Rob Carr Getty Images)
Fans of Jeremy Lin of the New York Knicks attend a game against the Washington Wizards on February 8. (AFP Photo Rob Carr)
Lin also made history in his first week starting for an NBA team as the second highest scoring player in league history over a period of four game starts. However, the guard’s accolades have surprised many, since multiple teams waived Lin from their rosters and he was playing in the NBA D-league only a few weeks ago.
“Michael Jordan scored 99 points in his first four career starts, Larry Bird scored 70 in his first four, Shaquille O’neal had 100,” Sports writer Tommy Beer Tweeted. “Jeremy Lin has 109. #Linsanity”
Fans of New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin hold up signs during the second half of their NBA basketball game against the Toronto Raptors in Toronto( REUTERS Mike Cassese)
Super LINtendo
LINing
Just LiNcredible
Linsane kids
A fan holds a sign in the stands as the New York Knicks play the Los Angeles Lakers in the third quarter of their NBA basketball game at Madison Square Garden in New York (REUTERS Ray Stubblebine)
A fan of New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin holds a sign during the warm-up before the Knicks NBA basketball game against the Toronto Raptors in Toronto (REUTERS Mike Cassese)
A New York Knicks fan holds up a sign during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Sacramento Kings.( AP Photo Frank Franklin II)
Jeremy Lin is no longer just a basketball sensation. The New York Knicks star also has become a global business phenomenon.
Thanks to Lin’s fairy tale February, ratings of Knicks television broadcasts have soared 70 percent, and the publicly traded stock of Madison Square Garden has hit a 52-week high. Lin’s T-shirt is now the No. 1 seller on NBA.com, and arenas around the NBA are selling out tickets to Knicks games.
Linsanity t-shirt
BAL LIN'
Just Lin It!
New York Knicks' Jeremy Lin items are on sale before the basketball game between the Sacramento Kings and the New York Knicks, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2012, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
That is just the beginning. Nike will soon roll out a new promotional campaign built around Lin, industry sources say – the first of what is expected to be a parade of endorsements featuring the 23-year-old point guard.
Nike Lin
Estimates of Lin’s economic impact begin at tens of millions of dollars, and reach into the hundreds of millions of dollars, especially if he continues to perform at a high level.
The excitement surrounding the New York Knicks point guard is providing a fresh impetus to the NBA’s lucrative China business in the wake of Yao Ming’s retirement. The Harvard graduate’s stunning rise this month is spurring further growth in viewership and merchandise sales that soared during the years Yao played with the Houston Rockets.
Yao was quoted Friday as praising Lin’s performance and dismissing any notion of him having been a mentor or inspiration.
Noting the differences between them — Yao was born in Shanghai and raised to play basketball, while Lin hails from Northern California and attended Harvard — Yao said the two were friends and sometimes exchanged text messages.
“The environments in which we were raised were very different, but I’m really happy that a guard like him could appear out of nowhere and have such a huge impact on the NBA,” Yao was quoted as saying by the official China News Service.
Sales of NBA merchandise are likely to surge across Asia, and the league likely will pick up new sponsors.
Beyond the tangible value to the Knicks, the NBA, apparel manufacturers like Nike and assorted sponsors, Linsanity also means important revenue for a host of small businesses, from sporting goods stores to Chinese restaurants holding Lin viewing parties. Even companies making knockoff apparel are likely to see a windfall.
Jeremy Lin milkshake
The ESPN Arcade has just launched a Linsanity-themed minigame called Jump on the Bandwagon Linsanity Edition.
Lin’s exploits also have riveted Taiwan, with reporters staking out the apartment where his grandmother and an uncle live. An estimated three million people in Taiwan have watched each one of his games. There is constant news coverage of him, with news channels flashing headlines when he spearheads a Knicks victory. Taiwanese newspapers splash his picture on the front page, with some running multi-page special reports.
Jeremy Lin is displayed on all the local newspaper front pages in Taipei (AFP PHOTO)

Lin is a devout Christian who credits God for his success. Whether or not God is responsible for Lin’s astounding point totals, his faith is another factor in keeping him stable
After Lin hit the game-winning shot at Toronto earlier this week, a reporter asked, “Can you believe this is happening to you?” The player slowly bobbed his head from side to side, letting the question bounce around a bit.
“No,” he finally said. “But I believe in an all-powerful, all-knowing God who does miracles.”
Lin is for real.
Jeremy Lin & Linsanity Gracing the Cover of Time Magazine
Puny headlines since Linsanity took off