# Cali's own Jeremy Lin gets some interest



## Sean (Jun 7, 2002)

*Jeremy Lin Interests Lakers As Backup*










A new name has emerged as a candidate to fill a spot on the Los Angeles Lakers' bench as a backup to starting guards Derek Fisher and Kobe Bryant.

Jeremy Lin, an undrafted 6-3, 200-pound combo guard from Harvard, is being considered by the Lakers after the team opened contract discussions with Roger Montgomery, Lin's agent, over the weekend.

"We're just trying to sort out the best roster fit, the best situation for Jeremy, but we're highly considering the Lakers," Montgomery said in a phone interview Monday.

Montgomery said the Lakers aren't the only team vying for Lin, with the Mavericks and an unnamed Eastern Conference team also in the mix. Added Montgomery: "As of late there are a few more players involved as well."

Lin averaged 9.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 steals while shooting 54.5 percent from the floor and 66.7 percent on three-pointers in five games while playing for the Dallas Mavericks summer league team in Las Vegas.

The 21-year-old guard should be landing on an NBA roster -- the Lakers' or another team's -- sooner than later.

"I think the end game is imminent," Montgomery said. "We're having some internal discussions [with the Lakers] that look positive. There's mutual interest and end game is certainly imminent. The Lakers are definitely in the mix."

The California native (Lin won a state championship at Palo Alto High School) turned heads last week in a summer league matchup against the Washington Wizards and No. 1 pick John Wall. Lin scored 13 points to Wall's 21, but did so on 6-for-12 shooting in just 28 minutes. Wall was 4-for-19 in 33 minutes. Lin averaged 16.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 2.4 blocks and 1.1 steals in his senior year at Harvard, earning a unanimous spot on the All-Ivy League first team.

Lin would become the first American-born player of Asian descent (Lin's family is Taiwanese) to play in the NBA since Watura "Wat" Misaka in 1947.[/quote]

http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angeles/n ... id=5392883


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## Sean (Jun 7, 2002)

*Harvard's Lin testing out his basketbal IQ in Las Vegas*

By Adena Andrews, NBA.com; Posted Jul 18 2010 12:50PM

LAS VEGAS -- Can't get an athletic scholarship to the Division I school of your choice? Try the next best thing. Try enrolling at a little school called Harvard University.

It's not the conventional route. But that's what hoops prodigy Jeremy Lin decided to do.

After four years of matching wits and jump shots in the Ivy League, Lin is now balling under the bright lights of the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas for the Dallas Mavericks .

"It's great to get out here and play five on five. It's been a while," Lin said after a recent game in Vegas. "Obviously there is a lot of high-level athletes. Overall, it's a fun experience"

Lin, captain of the California Division II state champs at Palo Alto High School, was a shoo-in for the state's player of the year. He was first-team All-State and Northern California Division II Player of the Year. Yet he received no Division I scholarship offers upon graduation.

So Lin went to his fallback plan and enrolled at Harvard. It wasn't his crossover that sealed his spot in the Ivy League. It was his IQ. The nation's oldest university does not offer athletic scholarships.

Lin, who averaged 16 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game as a senior point guard for the Crimson last season, was voted All-Ivy League First Team twice, was a finalist for the John Wooden and Bob Cousy awards and also received an invite to the Portsmouth Invitational. The most important accolade he left Harvard with was a degree in Economics.

In his what seems like his non-existent spare time, Lin also was editor of the school newspaper and interned for a California senator.

"The disadvantages [to playing at Harvard] -- no disrespect to the Ivy League, but it's not like playing in a bigger conference like the ACC, but the advantage is you play a disciplined game and you can't be one step late," he said.

Lin's already impressed some important people around the league.

"He is deceptively quick, a sharp shooter and he's got a great basketball IQ," Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said, "I haven't administered any test or talked in depth with him to test his other IQ."

Said Lin: "Being able to see defenses and rotate and see where the holes are, that's going to take some adjustment. Overall, I try to outthink the other team."

Lin, whose parents are from Taiwan, also stands to be the only Asian-American player in today's NBA if he makes a roster.

"I've been blessed by God to be in this opportunity," said Lin, signed by the Mavericks after going undrafted in June. "I'm trying not to think about it, to be honest. Because right now I'm in the process of trying to make it. But being able to play in the Summer League, the college situation, everything turned out perfectly. I'm just enjoying the ride."

Donald Lee, an Asian-American basketball coach near Lin's hometown in the Bay Area said, "It's great to have players like Yao and Yi Jianlian, but they are born in China and don't relate to the issues Asian-Americans face day to day. As someone who is heavily involved in Asian-American basketball communities, I think Jeremy will inspire more players to try to be like him in the future."

At Harvard, all was not perfect. Lin dealt with racial slurs and plenty of heckling from what is supposed to be the nations brightest in Ivy League gyms. At Summer League he accidentally hit a player and a fan yelled "He went ninja on him."

Still, Lin hasn't let the pressures of being undrafted, Asian-American or the resident nerd on the team affect his play at Summer League. The scrappy guard put up 12 points and two assists in his first Summer League game and attacks the basket every chance he gets. Lin thrives on contact and seemed at ease as he called plays with cotton up his nose from a bloody play in the third day in Vegas.

"I'm just trying to play my game, just trying to showcase it," Lin said. "Trying to be a playmaker, and that's not always scoring. It's other little things"

Lins' goal is to land on someone's roster, and rumblings around gyms in Vegas say Lin should have no problem finding a spot in the league. But Lin has heard the "you're a shoo-in kid" speech before. He plays each game as if he doesn't have a degree from Harvard to fall back on, if needed.

He excelled in the classroom. An NBA court is next.

Adena Andrews is a producer for NBA.com.

http://www.nba.com/2010/news/features/07/16/lin.andrews/index.html?cid=nba.2013


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## James Worthy (Jun 22, 2010)

I was gonna post about this kid, i like his game


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## azn kobe jr (May 6, 2006)

This would be good, another PG. Plus, it would make the Asian community in LA very proud


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## DaRizzle (May 22, 2007)

Is *HE* the next Asian Magic Johnson...cause our last Asian Magic Johnson didnt quite work out


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## Drk Element (Nov 10, 2004)

I saw a few of his summer league games. He's extremely quick, has very nice handles, and has a knack for stealing the ball. He needs to work on his jump shot though.


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## Gotham2krazy (Nov 22, 2005)

From what I've seen the thing I like most about this kid is ability to get to the hoop, he has no fear!


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## King Sancho Fantastic (Jul 19, 2005)

The kid took it to John Wall and didn't back down.


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## [Myst.] (Feb 27, 2008)

Could he be our new Sun Yue? I haven't really seen much of him but he seems to be a smart and tough PG which would be nice to have. I can't see us picking him up though.


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## sylaw (Nov 7, 2002)

The guy's a lot better than Sun Yue. He doesn't play scared at all. He has a really quick first step and gets by most defenders off the dribble. I say it would be nice to bring him in and see if he can make the squad.


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## Laker Freak (Jul 1, 2003)

He can't do much worse than Coby Karl, Sun Yue and Adam Morrison did.


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## elcap15 (Aug 8, 2006)

we baically have empty spots on the roster. Might as well fill them up with cheap contracts for players with upside.


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## Cris (Jun 18, 2003)

Laker Freak said:


> He can't do much worse than Coby Karl, Sun Yue and Adam Morrison did.


That is... if they actually played. By not playing, they didn't really hurt us.


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## azn kobe jr (May 6, 2006)

I don't think Sun Yue was THAT bad...he just needed more opportunities. Lin should be better though, playing in the States and playing in China is different basketball.


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## elcap15 (Aug 8, 2006)

Sun Yue WAS that bad. HE really had no business in the NBA. Maybe with a couple more years of development.


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## Sean (Jun 7, 2002)

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=5396732

The Golden State Warriors are closing in on signing summer-league sensation Jeremy Lin, according to sources with knowledge of the talks.

Sources told ESPN.com on Tuesday that the Warriors, by offering to guarantee more than half of Lin's potential first-year salary of nearly $500,000, have reached an agreement in principle with the point guard from Harvard.

Lin is expected to receive a multiyear deal, sources said.


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## King Sancho Fantastic (Jul 19, 2005)

I really hope we make a strong push for him. His game kinda reminds me of Hinrich.


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## Laker Freak (Jul 1, 2003)

:banghead: I bet he would have been a Laker had they offered him a guaranteed contract.


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## DaRizzle (May 22, 2007)

And KSF looks like a genius


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## King Sancho Fantastic (Jul 19, 2005)

DaRizzle said:


> And KSF looks like a genius


Happens all the time.


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