If you only look at his career numbers, you wouldn’t think Jeremy Lin was something special. However, beyond the stats, his career held cultural significance. Lin broke barriers as one of the few Asian-American players in the NBA. He was also one of the most educated players in the league, having graduated from Harvard with a degree in Economics before joining the NBA.
Coming from near obscurity, he didn’t get drafted, played meaningless minutes in the first season, and then needed half the New York Knicks to get injured to get a real chance. But once he got it, he took it and ran. Linsanity became the biggest thing in sports and developed a cult following overnight.
With Jeremy Lin announcing his retirement from professional sports, it is time to take a look at some of the best moments of his life and career. He finished his NBA career with 480 games played and career averages of 11.6 points and 4.3 assists per game.
Reliving Jeremy Lin’s Best Moments Following Retirement
Linsanity vs. the Black Mamba
It is always fun when athletes have to eat their own words. It is even more significant when that happens to the great Kobe Bryant. At the beginning of Linsanity, Bryant was asked about the phenomenon before the Los Angeles Lakers played the Knicks in New York. He brushed it off, saying things like, “I don’t even know who that guy is.” In that game, Jeremy recorded his career high of 38 points and helped the Knicks beat the Lakers. The irony is that later they were teammates on the 2014-15 Lakers roster.
The Valentine’s Day Game-Winner
Some might say that the game-winner against Toronto was the height of Linsanity. At that point, Carmelo Anthony was injured, but Amar’e Stoudemire was not. In a close game, with several seconds left on the clock, maybe everyone expected that ball to go to Stat. But not Jeremy. He took a little hesitation move, created space, and pulled up for a jumper that gave the Knicks a win.
The Linsanity Documentary
Not many NBA players have had a documentary made about them. Even some of the greatest stars do not have a documentary about them. But Linsanity is a different story. His documentary, named “Linsanity,” was released in 2013 and followed the rise of his popularity. While we look at the best Jeremy Lin moments, we have to talk about the achievement that made him bigger than basketball.
Evan Jackson Leong directed the movie, tracing Lin’s life from childhood days in Palo Alto, California, to his rise to prominence with the Knicks. The movie shows how he overcomes discouragement and racism, achieving success through faith and desire. When it came out, the New York Times wrote that the movie offered a rare view of Christianity among Asian Americans.
Leong filmed Lin since he was a star college basketball player at Harvard, so they had a lot of content to show. In the documentary, we see Lin saying in 2011 that he will “become a rotation player, a starting point guard, and then win an NBA championship”. He achieved all of that.
Winning a Championship with Toronto
Speaking of winning a championship, Lin is one of the few Asian players, and the first Asian-American, to win an NBA title. To be fair, he didn’t play as many minutes during the Toronto Raptors’ championship run. But he ended up with a championship ring, something not many players can claim.
Finals MVP and Championship
In June 2025, Jeremy led the New Taipei Kings to a back-to-back league titles. The Kings won the second title after a Game 7. For his performance, Lin won the Finals MVP. He was also the regular season MVP and Clutch Player of the Year, averaging 19.5 points on 48% shooting. It was a fairy tale end to an amazing career. Enjoy your retirement, Linsanity!
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