Tearful Jeremy Lin Seeks NBA Return after One Season in China

Sep 14, 2020 | China, NEWS, SPORTS

Former NBA Championship winner Jeremy ‘Linsanity’ Lin is leaving the Beijing Ducks after one season in China and seeking a return to the US

Jeremy Lin said Tuesday he is leaving the Beijing Ducks after one season in China and wants to return to the NBA, where he sparked the “Linsanity” craze of 2012.

The 32-year-old guard, who as a Toronto Raptors player in 2019 became the first Asian-American to win an NBA championship, signed for Beijing as an unrestricted free agent last year.

Lin helped Beijing reach the semi-finals of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league, where they were edged out by eventual champions Guangdong Southern Tigers.

“This decision has really been the hardest in my life,” Lin, who has complained about the rough-house treatment he received in the CBA, told his seven million followers in a video on the Twitter-like Weibo.

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This is gonna be my realest caption ever lol We love to tell kids to dream big but we don’t often talk about the fears they might face. Truth is, fear is a BEAST. It snuck up on me. Through all my career failures, setbacks and injuries. Through the pain of being traded, cut and having no offers. Through the depths of global embarassment, unmet expectations and crushed dreams. Through it all, I found myself a year ago battered - carrying so much emotional baggage. I signed in the CBA, it took a whole season, but God really came through for me. He taught me how to play to win again vs playing to not lose. To know the shots going in vs hoping its going in. To dream big again vs thinking everythings a setup for disappointment. To be a killer on the court with the talent He gave me 100% for His glory. This isn't about chasing the shadow of Linsanity. Or proving anyone right or wrong. Or about money, fame, reputation or power. It's about God's glory and kingdom. It's about goin right at all my past traumas and fears, instead of being forever crippled by them. It's ultimately about when I see God face-to-face that I could say through HIS strength, I lived with big big faith. I couldn't sleep right for 3 weeks with this decision weighing over me. I was brought to tears trying to verbalize the struggle to my family. I analyzed facts, but the reality is that faith ultimately comes down to taking a step towards what you can't see yet. Despite being beyond grateful with sooo much that the CBA, China, and all my Asia fans gave me this past season, today I decided to not return to the Beijing Ducks next season. Instead I will be waiting for free agency and preparing myself for the NBA — and continuing my greatest dream. And maybe the result is a footnote, and this decision today was the true test. New chapter, new mindset, new me. Work smarter, aim higher, reach further. And smile along the way! 2 Timothy 1:7 #FaithOverFear

A post shared by Jeremy Lin 林書豪 (@jlin7) on Sep 15, 2020 at 7:32am PDT

“Every morning I would wake up at 4:00 am or 5:00 am, thinking, thinking and thinking all the time.

“In the end, although Shougang (the Ducks) has treated me incredibly well… giving me everything I wanted, in the end, I feel that I still have NBA dreams.

“I still have time to play (there) and I have to chase this.”

Lin began his NBA career with Golden State Warriors in 2010 before his heroics with the New York Knicks in 2012 sparked a frenzy that was dubbed “Linsanity”.

He went on to play for several other NBA teams but has struggled with injury in recent seasons.

Despite that he enjoyed a successful stay in China, where the CBA was suspended for almost five months because of the coronavirus.

Lin averaged 22.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game during the regular season.

“I know that many of my fans have stood by me no matter if I was injured,” he said in the video.

“Why was this decision so difficult? Yesterday, when I shared this with my family and friends, when I told them I would have to leave China, I cried.”