Jeremy Lin officially retired from professional basketball in 2025, marking the end of a 15-year-long career. While this period was highlighted by some remarkable highs, including winning the NBA title with the Toronto Raptors, nothing is as iconic as his epic “Linsanity” run in 2012.
Jeremy Lin’s unreal streak of form over 11 games saw him elevated to legendary status in New York, as he led the Knicks to a 9-2 record, averaging 23.9 points and 9.2 assists per game. While this brief period remained close to Lin’s heart, it didn’t last very long, as the guard found himself joining the Houston Rockets ahead of the 2012-13 season.
Many people, including Carmelo Anthony, chastised Jeremy Lin for accepting a more “lucrative” offer with the Rockets. However, almost 14 years later, the former Knicks guard joined “Pablo Torre Finds Out” to share the real story about how badly he wanted to remain with the Knicks.
“I was crushed,” Lin began. “I still remember that very vividly because every day leading up to it is a three-day period. But everything, even before the three-day period, is like, ‘There’s no way they match.’ That three-day period felt like three months. My agent is just telling me, he’s like, ‘Be prepared, they won’t match.’ I was like, ‘There’s no way. I’ve got to go back to New York.'”
For context, Jeremy Lin is referring to the offseason period before the 2012-13 season when he became a restricted free agent. After his incredible “Linsanity” run, many expected the Knicks to re-sign him. However, with the Houston Rockets presenting a three-year, $29 million offer, Lin’s agent made it clear to him that New York would not be matching such a figure.
“There was no contract. They could have offered me three years, $9 million, but there wasn’t even that offer on the table,” Lin continued. “When the Rockets’ offer came in, the first thing I asked was, ‘Are the Knicks going to match this?’ He said, ‘I don’t know.’ I was like, ‘Can you go back to the Rockets and tell them we won’t accept this offer? We only want a lower offer.’ I tried to take less. I was trying to sabotage the Rockets’ offer.”
Jeremy Lin’s desperate attempt to get the Rockets to lower their offer sheet value was an indirect plea to the Knicks. Unfortunately, New York showed no interest in re-signing the guard.
“Finally, I’m like, ‘Can we just not accept their offer?’ And he’s like, ‘No, we can’t not accept their offer because the Knicks refuse to give us any offer. You have zero offers on the table. You have one option right now. There is no alternative.'”
“It was difficult for me to see that people thought that I willingly left the Knicks or that I did it for the money,” he added. “I’m just like, ‘Man, I would have played for significantly less if that meant staying with the Knicks because my heart was always here.'”
As promising as his desire to stay in New York was, Jeremy Lin’s brief tenure with the Knicks came to an end. The guard went on to spend two seasons with the Houston Rockets before joining the Los Angeles Lakers for the 2014-15 season.
Following his move to L.A., Lin witnessed a notable dip in performance as he started bouncing around the league. With injuries also taking hold, the guard was sidelined more often than he was on the court.
After the 2018-19 season, Lin left the NBA, playing basketball overseas in China and Taiwan. Although he attempted to make a comeback in 2021, working his way up through the G League, this did not pan out.
Now, 14 years later, Lin has returned to New York as a fan in attendance for Games 3 and 4 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden.
Jeremy Lin mentioned at the start of the interview how the Knicks’ recent success has vindicated many former players. As the former Knicks’ guard gains his moment in the sun once again, many fans also rejoiced at seeing “Linsanity” back in the arena.
