NBA · ESPN First Take: Jeremy Lin and Racism (page 1)

Watch the entire clip of the roundtable before you make your comment and tell us what you think is true or not true if you're going to comment.

THE GAME IS TOMORROW vs HOUSTON

Interesting comments made both ways.

In this league he always going to be hated on which is one of the reason I really wanted him to stay. But he was getting way more attention then our super stars, so he had to go imo. Damn shame too, kid showed he could play once he was giving a chance. Race is always been a factor, its been this way since the league started.

I have personally experienced what Lin has mentioned in the basketball court. I would go to a park early and wait for games to start and always I am picked last. It did not matter that I was 6'1". I am Asian so I was not selected for the first or sometimes 2nd game. I would have to wait patiently until somebody picks me or everybody has played and I get to pick my own team. Once I play and they see that I am pretty good, everybody does not want to be shown up by this Asian kid and I would get their best effort. I mean I would get double teamed in a pickup game so they can prove that I did not belong there.

If a person doesn't think that racism is not in the forefront of how Lin is being treated then there really isn't anything that can be said to change their mind.

Holfresh mentioned in another thread that my post was weak when I mentioned that Sampson was racist when he benched Lin. Maybe he is right but the situation just seems a little too familiar with me.

I think the point about the contract is huge. There are a lot of established guys are proven and don't make what he is getting.

NYKBOCKER, I believe coach Sampson is Native American

Here's the thing, what Links says is true, but it also true that him being Asian is a huge part of Linsanity, and also a huge part of his value to an NBA franchise. You have to take the good with the bad. If he's not Asian, he's not making anywhere near that money. He's smart enough to know that. The kid needs to shut up and play because you can't have it both ways. Enjoy the ride homie.

ShellTopAdidas wrote:In this league he always going to be hated on which is one of the reason I really wanted him to stay. But he was getting way more attention then our super stars, so he had to go imo. Damn shame too, kid showed he could play once he was giving a chance. Race is always been a factor, its been this way since the league started.

You really think Dolan gave a damn about that type of stuff?

newyorknewyork wrote:

ShellTopAdidas wrote:In this league he always going to be hated on which is one of the reason I really wanted him to stay. But he was getting way more attention then our super stars, so he had to go imo. Damn shame too, kid showed he could play once he was giving a chance. Race is always been a factor, its been this way since the league started.

You really think Dolan gave a damn about that type of stuff?

I don't think Dolan called this shot. I mean ultimately he did, but he was persuaded. When your super star isn't happy, and you traded the.farm to get him, you gotta make sure he happy no matter what, and that's what Dumblin did. It is what it is.

CrushAlot wrote:I think the point about the contract is huge. There are a lot of established guys are proven and don't make what he is getting.

There are also a ton of guys who are making way more than they're worth, Eddy Curry was a recent example.

ShellTopAdidas wrote:

newyorknewyork wrote:

ShellTopAdidas wrote:In this league he always going to be hated on which is one of the reason I really wanted him to stay. But he was getting way more attention then our super stars, so he had to go imo. Damn shame too, kid showed he could play once he was giving a chance. Race is always been a factor, its been this way since the league started.

You really think Dolan gave a damn about that type of stuff?

I don't think Dolan called this shot. I mean ultimately he did, but he was persuaded. When your super star isn't happy, and you traded the.farm to get him, you gotta make sure he happy no matter what, and that's what Dumblin did. It is what it is.

This fairy tale story is killed by the fact that the knicks were going to match his original contract that Houston offered, that Lin didn't sign. But then felt it was to risky to allow him to have a yr in which he makes 14mil.

The plan was to bring in Nash or Kidd to groom Lin and give Melo & Amare a vet pass first PG to play with. Lin would basically have Jr Smith role right now in running the 2nd team.

Fame and fortune is what brings out the competitiveness in ppl. The more people put you on a pedistal the more pple want to knock you down or measure themselves against you. The NBA champs get opponents best every night. Superstar players get game planned and have a whole defense tailored to stop them. Lin was viewed as a threat, meaning a guy who can win games, and a future star. He got crazy coverage so of course he is going to get challenged.

I bet you the kid who dropped 138pts is going to get challenged liked crazy every game he plays from now on.

But when race is the factor is that pple feel he got the fame and fortune due to his race. If Lin got minimal fame & fortune, but did the same exact things I don't think opponents are going to go at him as hard just because he is Asian. They are going to go at Lin hard because it would propel there name. Mario Chalmers is known more for what he did to Lin then anything else he has done in his career to date.

newyorknewyork wrote:

ShellTopAdidas wrote:

newyorknewyork wrote:

ShellTopAdidas wrote:In this league he always going to be hated on which is one of the reason I really wanted him to stay. But he was getting way more attention then our super stars, so he had to go imo. Damn shame too, kid showed he could play once he was giving a chance. Race is always been a factor, its been this way since the league started.

You really think Dolan gave a damn about that type of stuff?

I don't think Dolan called this shot. I mean ultimately he did, but he was persuaded. When your super star isn't happy, and you traded the.farm to get him, you gotta make sure he happy no matter what, and that's what Dumblin did. It is what it is.

This fairy tale story is killed by the fact that the knicks were going to match his original contract that Houston offered, that Lin didn't sign. But then felt it was to risky to allow him to have a yr in which he makes 14mil.

The plan was to bring in Nash or Kidd to groom Lin and give Melo & Amare a vet pass first PG to play with. Lin would basically have Jr Smith role right now in running the 2nd team.

Why let Lin shop around in the first place? Should have been taken care of way before free agency hit....WAY BEFORE!!!

Killa4luv wrote:Here's the thing, what Links says is true, but it also true that him being Asian is a huge part of Linsanity, and also a huge part of his value to an NBA franchise. You have to take the good with the bad. If he's not Asian, he's not making anywhere near that money. He's smart enough to know that. The kid needs to shut up and play because you can't have it both ways. Enjoy the ride homie.

Killa , this is an excellent point made here it really does work both ways.

This is what happens when you become a trailblazer, a firestarter an unknown.

IronWillGiroud wrote:

CrushAlot wrote:I think the point about the contract is huge. There are a lot of established guys are proven and don't make what he is getting.

There are also a ton of guys who are making way more than they're worth, Eddy Curry was a recent example.

Curry was a lottery pick, a 7 footer and had put up numbers. Lin was waived by two teams last year and is a back court player. He was the third best point guard on the Rockets. He had an incredible run for 25 games but he was never seen as a guy that would get the contract he got.

newyorknewyork wrote:

ShellTopAdidas wrote:In this league he always going to be hated on which is one of the reason I really wanted him to stay. But he was getting way more attention then our super stars, so he had to go imo. Damn shame too, kid showed he could play once he was giving a chance. Race is always been a factor, its been this way since the league started.

You really think Dolan gave a damn about that type of stuff?

I don't know what Dolan gives a damn about anymore. The only thing he does give a damn about, is making money. Oh wait, he let a golden goose in Lin (who cares about how good/bad he is. He makes money from Asian fans around the world) go for nothing. Guess the only thing he does give a damn about, is Isiah Thomas getting his orgasm.

JamesLin wrote:

newyorknewyork wrote:

ShellTopAdidas wrote:In this league he always going to be hated on which is one of the reason I really wanted him to stay. But he was getting way more attention then our super stars, so he had to go imo. Damn shame too, kid showed he could play once he was giving a chance. Race is always been a factor, its been this way since the league started.

You really think Dolan gave a damn about that type of stuff?

I don't know what Dolan gives a damn about anymore. The only thing he does give a damn about, is making money. Oh wait, he let a golden goose in Lin (who cares about how good/bad he is. He makes money from Asian fans around the world) go for nothing. Guess the only thing he does give a damn about, is Isiah Thomas getting his orgasm.

The cost of Lin versus the projected income he could potentially make for the franchise has been explained and his contract priced him out of the market. The Knicks sell out every game. Revenue sharing minimizes the amount a team can make from a players apparell sales and the cap hit for Lin's contract I believe was 65 mil. If he produced the numbers he was projected to that would be hard to justify. He isn't producing and the opportunity in houston suits him more than the opportunity in NY. Grunwald made a decision that benefitted the team on the court and with salary cap flexibility. It was the right move. It had nothing to do with who got the most attention. When you start talking about who is getting attention as a rationalization for player moves and signings you lose all your credibility in my opinion.