Why Are We So Obsessed With Jeremy Lin?
Author: DavidJones // Category: Ethics, Pop Culture, Sports, TV
If you’re not familiar with the name “Jeremy Lin,” then it’s likely you haven’t turned on ESPN, Twitter, or Facebook in the past week. For those who aren’t quite up to date on the “Linsanity,” Jeremy Lin is a point guard for the New York Knicks. Until two weeks ago, he was virtually unheard of in the sports world. After graduating from Harvard in 2010, Lin went undrafted and bounced around several NBA teams. His whole world changed on February 4. Despite sitting at the end of the Knicks’ bench and facing the possibility of being released, Lin got a chance to play against the Nets. Coming off the bench, Lin scored 25 points and had 7 assists. In the next game, Lin made his first start for the team and came away with 28 points and 8 assists. Since that time, Lin’s “out of nowhere” fame has continued to rise as he has guided the Knicks to a 7-1 record in games he has started.
Lin’s play has resulted in round the clock coverage and more puns and plays on words than any presidential election or Gene Shalit review. The NBA is talking about him, the NFL is talking about him, Saturday Night Live is spoofing the coverage from other networks, and even President Obama has given his stamp of approval on Lin’s play. To put it another way, the coverage of Jeremy Lin = coverage of Tim Tebow x 100.
But why? Why has Jeremy Lin stirred up so much attention? What has caused the entire sports world to turn their attention to this 6’3 undrafted point guard? What has caused “Linsanity” to take hold of millions and even Lee Strobel to tweet about it as I’m typing this very sentence?
I see 4 reasons why we are so obsessed with Jeremy Lin:
1) We Love Underdog Stories
Our country has fallen in love with the underdog. Whether it’s the Cinderella mid-major upsetting a powerhouse, a USA hockey team fighting hard against Canada, “Rocky” taking down the bigger man, or any team knocking the Yankees out of the playoffs, we love to see the “nobody” become a “somebody” by knocking off the champ. Think about all the sports movies you’ve seen growing up. Who’s the hero? The underdog. Who’s the villain? The top-rated team or individual of course. After all, no one rooted for the Cowboys in The Little Giants. No one cheered on Ivan Drago in Rocky IV. And no person in his right mind was hoping Jimmy Chitwood would miss the last shot in Hoosiers. We love the underdog, and Jeremy Lin is no exception. As a Harvard grad who only stands 6’3, Lin is in many ways the anti-LeBron. Coming out of high school, he had no hype, no height, and no offer to go straight into the NBA. Instead, he’s got an Ivy league education and the humility of a kid who got cut from his high school team, not a kid who’s knocking down 3′s over Dirk. And whether we admit it or not, the fact that Lin is Asian does play a role in this. While Lin was born in Los Angeles, his parents emigrated from Taiwan many years before he was born. The simple fact is there are not many Asians in the NBA today. Lin’s race has absolutely nothing to do with his overall play, but it does present a new element for many NBA fans. Sports fans love what we perceive to be an underdog story, and Jeremy Lin is living that out right in front of us.
2) Humility Is a Rare Concept…Especially Among Pro Athletes
We live in an age where players demand their money and will hold out if they don’t get it. If a college player is about to be drafted by a team he doesn’t like, he can simply tell them he won’t play for them if he’s drafted. It can be difficult for pro athletes to be humble, and oftentimes it’s extremely impossible for the public to believe that humility is genuine. After all, remember when Latrell Sprewell complained about his $14.6 million contract because, “I’m at risk. I have a lot of risk here. I got my family to feed”? When a superstar has genuine humility, it will come out. The reverse is true as well. Many people wonder if Tim Tebow is all talk in front of the cameras or if he’s actually the same man behind the scenes. Simply talk to the kids he spends time with before and after the games to find out the real answer. In many ways, Jeremy Lin is the same way. No, I don’t know about his charities or foundations. But I do know this guy was sleeping on his brother’s couch one week ago and uses every opportunity he has to put the praise on God and his teammates. When you hear him interviewed, he doesn’t talk or act like a guy who’s knocking down 3′s at Madison Square Garden. No, he sounds like a high school kid who is happy and even surprised that he’s playing on the national stage. His humility seems genuine. A rarity in sports today. And we as a culture are drawn to this treasure that is becoming so rare in the world of athletics.
3) The Media Says So
Let’s be honest; the media plays a big role in our obsession of Jeremy Lin. Why are we obsessed? Well, a big reason is because the media is obsessed. Lin is playing on a big stage in New York City. If this was Milwaukee, I don’t know if people would care. If he was playing in Miami, he might actually be hated. But the media has taken this story and crafted it into a national obsession that people can rally behind. To be fair, there are many professional athletes who have the attitude of Jeremy Lin and are doing great things for their team, their community, their charities, etc. However, for the most part, the media only acknowledges star power. No sports network will create a phenomenon out of a guy who’s scoring 6.8 ppg. The media is in love with Lin because he’s a superstar, at least in a small stat sample. Sadly, the media also has the power to destroy. If Lin starts having more turnovers than points, don’t think for a second that the media will go easy on him. When I think about the media’s influence on making and breaking superstars, I always go back to a line from The Dark Knight. When speaking to Bruce Wayne, Harvey Dent mentions, “You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” Sadly, this is often true in sports, but more from a statistical standpoint than a moral standpoint. When a guy plays well, he’s the darling of the media. When those numbers start to fail, he gets crushed by the media and fans alike. Case and point: the Denver Broncos. Many Broncos fans were elated to have Kyle Orton as their QB. But once he struggled a bit, the media and then the fans were calling for Tebow. And what happened when Tebow started to struggle? Networks started dangling the name of “Brady Quinn” as a possible fixture. The media controls a lot of how we think and feel about sports. Right now they’re in love with Jeremy Lin, and consequentially, so are we.
4) The Superstars Have “Dropped the Ball” on Leadership
Stay with me because this is going to get crazy. Let me take you back to July 7, 1996. The event was WCW’s “Bash at the Beach,” a wrestling pay-per-view. That night changed the landscape of professional wrestling forever. During that event, Hulk Hogan, wrestling’s American hero and poster boy, ran down to the ring and turned on the “good guys” to form the NWO. The world’s most popular wrestler had turned heel and become one of the bad guys. Many have said that event was the night when wrestling went from “Good vs. Bad” to “Bad vs. Badder.” The “hero” and “role model” was dead. A corrupt human was left in its place. While that may seem like a very weird and extreme example, it’s not too far from what has happened in the reality of professional sports. Before the days of social media, TMZ, Deadspin, and other intrusive media outlets, we didn’t know much about professional athletes. We saw them on the court and field, but their personal lives were their personal lives. Sure, there was promiscuity, gambling, drug use, and other things going on behind the scenes, but we didn’t see it and we didn’t know about it. Professional athletes were heroes and role models, no matter if they liked it or not. Today our eyes have been opened to the ever-changing sports world. Our favorite athletes are not always the “good guys.” In fact, many of them are the “bad” or “badder” guys. Team/brand loyalty is dead or at least on life support, and for many it’s all about the money. Guys who were once loved like LeBron, Tiger, Kobe, and Ovechkin have turned “heel” in the eyes of many sports fans. They’re not heroes. They’re not role models. And outside of their team clubhouses, they don’t seem like strong leaders either. This is not to say that these athletes have a responsibility to be leaders. But the truth is, fans have taken a glimpse into the on and off the field dealings of professional athletes, and we don’t like what we see. So is Jeremy Lin the next great leader and role model? Not necessarily, but in a sense he’s already claimed that role by default. When those with great influence drop the ball on leadership, it is passed on to others.
So why are we so obsessed with Jeremy Lin? Well, it could be for the reasons I’ve listed or it could be for reasons not even named. But nevertheless, as of today, the country and sports world is in love with Jeremy Lin, and we’ll just have to wait and see how much longer the “Linsanity” obsession will last.
[Photo source: thegospelcoalition.org]
