PEA RIDGE — I caught onto the latest NBA drama kind-of late.
Not being a big fan of professional basketball (Blackhawk ball is far more interesting), I did watch some NBA back In the days of Michael Jordan when his “airness” was really something to see.
While I was’t paying attention, the most recent headlines from the pro sporting world concerned the emergence of a New York Knicks basketball player in the person of Jeremy Lin, the son of Taiwanese immigrants.
The fact is, I never actually heard of Jeremy Lin until I saw him on the cover of “Sports Illustrated” magazine, a periodical I read while I was waiting for a haircut last week. It seems this Lin fellow was a 6’5” Harvard graduate who was a good player In high school and started all through his tenure on the Harvard University basketball team. Although a brainy lad with probably lots of avenues open to him to pursue a successful career of some kind, Lin really wanted to play professional basketball.
He tried out for two other NBA teams before trying the Knicks, getting cut from each team after a short time. The word was that he was too weak, or not quick enough, but it seems more apparent since those earlier times was that the real “ problem” with his professional prospects was his “Asian-ness.” Everybody knew that Asians can’t play point guard professionally, and everybody knew that Asians just didn’t have “it” when it came to basketball IQ.
Lin came to New York as hecould sleep on his brother’s crouch while he tried to catch on with the Knicks. Catch on he did as he got to practice with the team, though no money was in the offering, hence his residing on his brother’s couch. His time in practice caught the attention of the Knicks coach, who began to think that maybe he might be of some use.
Then the unimaginable happened. Several players through injury and personal difficulties left the Knicks short of able bodied players. To top it off, they were not playing well before the injuries, limping along with a losing record, so that when the Knicks decided to let Lin play, it was kind of a last resort.
Then for the next seven games, Lin would lead the team in scoring while providing the impetus for a seven-game winning streak. A player no one ever heard of, with not even a scouting report, was cutting a wide swath through the world’s toughest professional basketball league. And, above everything else,.....he was a ASIAN!
His “Asian-ness” led a lot of sportscasters, reporters, etc.
to cast aspersion his way, making Asian jokes, and suggesting strongly that it was all just dumb luck. After all, how many Asians have ever played point guard inthe NBA? It got so ugly at one point that some members of the sports media were getting fired for inappropriate comments.
After a seven-game winning streak, the Knicks finally lost, and the internet was buzzing with commentators pronouncing the end of the Lin-mania. After all, the next game after their loss was against the defending champion NBA champion Dallas Mavericks, with MVP Dirk Nowitski. Although the Knicks trailed most of the early going, Lin caught fire in the second half and sparked a rally to erase an 11 point deficit to win by double digits.
When February started, Lin was a nobody, but by the end of this month, multiple thousands will have bought his T-shirt, jersey replica and literally millions of Asians have demanded that their cable show Knicks games, a most lucrative development for the Knicks owners. A Kardashian girl announced her intention of dating Lin, and the young hoops star signed an $800,000 contract for the rest of the season. That’s a lot of environmental change for a person to go through, and remain sane.
Of course, this is why Lin is so popular. He doesn’t brag, he gives all the credit for winning to his teammates, and seems to be a very considerate person of no small depth. Perhaps his greatest talent, the thing the Knicks claim to love most about him, is his heart. He exudes energy, drive, and plays, to quote an old basketball phrase, like his hair was on fire.
The Lin story is a great one, andI think he will probably have a good career professionally, as long as he remembers how he started.
The sad thing is that, most likely, if the Knicks hadn’t have come up so short-handed, Lin would have never gotten the chance to show what he could do. More than likely, he would have eventually given up to pursue whatever career his Harvard degree set him up for.
How many other people like Lin are out there? Remember Arkansas quarterback Matt Jones? He was told by his Van Buren coach that he wasn’t cut out to play quarterback. After he transferred to Northside and won a state title as the quarterback there, the later fired Van Buren coach knew he made a mistake.
Years ago when I was teaching in north central Arkansas, the school had a softball team with a so-so won-loss record. The coach and the first baseman’s dad were friends. The back-up first baseman was a rather quiet girl who rarely got to play, but never complained nevertheless. Since it seemed likely the team would be eliminated the first day of districts, the first baseman’s dad decided to take his family with him on a trip to Florida or some such place. The senior girl, who rarely got to play, finally got to start a game. She didn’t waste her chance as she subsequently led her team to a district, regional, then state championship title, personally batting over .600 along the way. She was voted the state tournament MVP and was offered an athletic scholarship by Williams Baptist for her outstanding play. But, had the other girlstayed home, the team would have probably been eliminated early, and the state MVP would have never gotten a chance.
Closer to home, there was the case of Diane Miller right here in Pea Ridge over a dozen years ago.
As an eighth-grader on the local track team, she was told by her coach that she was too weak and small to run the mile, an event she wanted to compete in. She went through the season only being allowed to run short relays. The next year, she sought outside help and trained exclusively on her own. One year after being told by a coach that she didn’t have “it,” Miller was the state and overall state champion in the 3200 meter (two-mile) run and was voted the state’s outstanding distance runner that year.
It is great to have physical talents and I suppose it’s really cool if they are easy to see. The talent of heart, however, is hard to see, especially if you aren’t looking.
Heart can overcome talent and often does.
It really doesn’t matter what color you are, how tall or how short, or what you may look like. We are all different, with different talents and aptitudes, but we all have them. Heart is the ability to unlock those talents and take them where you might not think possible◊◊◊
Editor’s note: John McGee is the art teacher at Pea Ridge elementary schools, coaches elementary track and writes a regular sports column for The Times. He can be contacted through The Times at prtnews@ nwaonline.com.
Sports, Pages 7 on 02/22/2012