After five seasons in the NBA, Asian-American Jeremy Lin has a thing or two to say about racial stereotypes in his career, and he wanted to bring some attention to the issue in an effective way. He’s recently given some talks about his situation and his thoughts on the overall issue of racial stereotypes in the NBA, and he also talked a little about some of the more elaborate pranks he has pulled before, including one he did with Adidas.
First and foremost, Lin wanted to share his thoughts on how to be successful – according to him, believing in oneself is the most important part of that, and once a person has built up the necessary confidence, everything else falls right into place. He reveals that it did take him a while to achieve that for himself after he joined the NBA, but now that he’s reached that point, he’s happy with his situation.
He also revealed that many people saw his performance in the NBA as an important development and focused on his career quite heavily, especially after he took part in some games with the New York Knicks three years ago in 2012. Many were skeptical of his chances in the beginning, but he managed to come out on top and prove all of his doubters wrong by succeeding in the end.
At the moment, he believes that many people see him as something more than a basketball player, and he’s hopeful to get a chance to use his current position to bring some attention to things that are important to him. Most importantly, he wants to break down some of the stereotypes surrounding Asians, and for what it’s worth, he’s been doing a great job at that so far through his playing.
He admitted to being initially frustrated at the fact that people only cared about his ethnicity, not his actual playing style or performance, but that quickly went away as he realized that this gives him a good platform on which to stand when he wants to bring attention to these issues. Hopefully, he’s going to use his powerful voice to achieve something truly good in the long run.
Meanwhile, he revealed that the favorite thing in his life remains to spend some quality time with his family and friends, and he of course enjoys taking a stroll through Asia and enjoying the sights. The night market is particularly interesting to him it seems, as it gives him the opportunity to take in the spirit of the city to its fullest.