Final Results of the Recent Jeremy Lin Polls

In the recent poll in which I asked people to give their primary reason behind the Jeremy Lin hype, almost half of you said it's due to the underdog factor. Here are the final results:

The "underdog" factor: 46%
His talent: 26%
His race: 20%
The fact that he plays in New York: 6%

Although I think Lin's race is the primary factor for the hype, I don't feel it's by an overwhelming margin.  If I had to break down the reasons behind Lin hype percentage-wise, I'd say it was 35% race, 30% each talent and the "underdog" factor, and 5% because he plays in NY.

I look forward to the day when seeing Asian stars in the NBA is a common occurrence. In addition to Jeremy Lin's success possibly being a gateway for more Asian players into the NBA, I think it'll also cause coaches to look a little closer at the end of their respective benches. For all they know, the next Jeremy Lin (regardless of race) could be riding the pine just waiting for a chance to shine.

Below are the results for the second poll in which I asked for your thoughts on ESPN's disciplanary actions against Anthony Federico and Max Bretos for their use of the term "chink in the armor" (on ESPN's mobile website and ESPNews, respectively):

Federico deserved to be fired:	57%
Federico should have been suspended:	0%
Bretos deserved to be suspended:	14%
Bretos should have been fired:	0%
No action should have been taken against Federico	:  28%
No action should have been taken against Bretos:	28%

I wavered on the Federico portion of this poll. Although part of me thinks he deserved to be fired, I wouldn't have been up in arms if ESPN had just suspended him. On the one hand, Federico's actions could have been intentional. However, it's also possible that this was a simple case of ignorance.

As for Bretos, I think he got caught in the crosshairs of ESPN not wanting this to spiral out of control. Since he was speaking on live TV about a legitimate question regarding Lin's play, I think ESPN should have cut him a bit more slack. Bretos only has about a week left on his suspension. Best wishes to him for when he does return to the airwaves.

Thanks to all of you who participated in and commented on these polls.

Please Take A Moment To Vote In the Two Jeremy Lin Polls ... Thank You

Please note that this post is "future dated" because it's poll-related. For posts which were written after this one, but have their actual date attached to them, please scroll down. Thank you.

Ever since "Linsanity" took the world by storm, I've been planning on writing a post about the man who inspired the term... New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin. As of this writing, the New York Knicks are 8-1 since February 4 (the date Lin began playing substantial minutes for them). The superb numbers Lin has put up in his first eight NBA starts had the crew on NBA Sunday comparing his stats to the first 8 pro starts of Hall of Fame point guards Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Isiah Thomas, and John Stockton.

Lin's success hasn't gone unnoticed by the non-sports media either, receiving coverage on regular newscasts, inspiring jokes by late night TV hosts, as well as a skit on the 2/18 edition of SNL. The meteoric rise of Jeremy Lin and the way his success has captured the imagination of sports fans and non-fans alike is a combination we don't see too often in sports. The other similar instances in my lifetime that come to mind are Mark "The Bird" Fidrych and William "The Refrigerator" Perry.

Jeremy Lin's "out-of-nowhere" success is all the more amazing given his previous "underdog" status:

• Despite being named first-team All-State and Northern California Division II Player of the Year during his senior year in high school, Lin failed to receive any college athletic scholarship offers. He wound up attending Harvard (which like other Ivy League schools, does not offer athletic scholarships)

• Although he had a successful hoops career at Harvard, Lin was undrafted in the 2010 NBA Draft

• After his first year, he was waived by the Golden State Warriors and the Houston Rockets in the preseason before joining the Knicks early in the 2011-2012 season. 

• The Knicks considered releasing Lin before his contract became guaranteed on February 10 so they could sign a new player.

Because Lin is one of the few Asian Americans in NBA history, his phenomenal success has brought the often uncomfortable subject of race into the conversation. On Lin's Wikipedia page, there already is a section on the racial issues that have come up before and after Lin's rise to prominence in the NBA.

Two of the stories which have arisen in the wake of "Linsanity" are the subject of the two poll questions I've posted. One involves whether or not the Jeremy Lin hype is caused by race. The question first arose after heavyweight boxer Floyd Mayweather wrote the following on his Twitter page, "Jeremy Lin is a good player but all the hype is because he's Asian. Black players do what he does every night and don't get the same praise."

The other poll deals with ESPN firing one employee and suspending another over the use of the term "chink in the armor" in relation to Lin.  On the night of February 18, Anthony Federico posted the following headline on ESPN’s mobile website: "Chink in the Armor: Jeremy Lin's 9 Turnovers Cost Knicks in Streak-Snapping Loss to Hornets." By Sunday afternoon, Federico was cut loose by ESPN. Also on 2/18, ESPNews television personality Max Bretos posed the following question about Lin live on the air: "If there is a chink in the armor, where can he improve his game?" As a result, Bretos was given a 30-day suspension.

After voting in the polls, please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section of this post. In the clip below, the panel of ESPN First Take discuss the role that race plays in the Jeremy Lin hype.

Documentary On the Fab Five Airs On ESPN

From left to right: Ray Jackson, Chris Webber, Juwan Howard, Jalen Rose, and Jimmy King

On Sunday March 13 at 9 pm EST, "The Fab Five" premieres on ESPN. Billed as "warts and all", the 100 minute documentary tells the story of the University of Michigan’s 1991 men’s basketball recruiting class of Chris Webber, Juwan Howard, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson. The documentary features interviews by many of the key players in the Fab Five saga.  The glaring holdout is star forward Chris Webber who after much prodding, declined to participate.

With their baggy shorts, black socks (with shoes to match), and trash talk, the Fab Five revolutionized basketball by bringing a hip-hop flavor to the game. This didn't sit well with many as the documentary displays racist letters sent to U of M and its players at that time. Among the racist letter writers were alums from the school who actually signed their name and year of graduation! The documentary also details how the Fab Five felt about their nemeses Duke and its recruiting practices when it came to black players.

The Fab Five never won an NCAA title during their two years at the University of Michigan (losing in the championship games in 1992 and 1993 to Duke and the University of North Carolina, respectively). However, they remain one of the most talked about stories in college hoops history. 

Below is a clip of Ray Jackson, Jimmy King, and Jalen Rose during an appearance on ESPN First Take in which they discuss the documentary. For more on The Fab Five and the accompanying documentary, click here for an article by Detroit Free Press sports writer Mark Snyder.

Martin Luther What?!

On the Monday January 18th (MLK Day) edition of the ESPN Radio program Mike and Mike in the Morning, co-host Mike Greenberg had a controversial slip of the tongue in which he said "Martin Luther Coon".



As you may know, this is a racist term used by some when they refer to the iconic civil rights leader. As you can hear from the audio clip, Greenberg quickly corrected himself. He also later issued the following statement:

I just came home from the Knicks game and found out about the mess that was created by my garbling a sentence on our show this morning; I apologize for not addressing it sooner.

And I'm sorry that my talking too fast - and slurring my words - might have given people who don't know our show the wrong impression about us, and about me.

I feel horrible about that, because nothing could be further away from who I am and what our show is about.

I would never say anything like that, not in public, or in private, or in the silence of my own mind, and neither would anyone associated with our show, and I'm very sorry that my stumble this morning gave so many people the opposite impression.

Some feel an apology isn't enough and that Greenberg should face suspension or be fired. Because we can only speculate as to what might be in Greenberg's heart when it comes to race, I'm giving him a pass. Maybe I am more willing to give Greenberg the benefit of a doubt because I know how it is to talk live on the air and get my words tangled. Although I've never used a derogatory term on the air when I've garbled words, I can see how it could happen. For example, ABC news personality Elizabeth Vargas is known in circles by the derisive nickname "Elizabitch". Someone could have knowledge of this and mistakenly slip and say on the air "Elizabitch Vargas". It doesn't mean they are sexist or even think that Ms. Vargas is a bitch. All it shows is that at the very least, they have knowledge of the nickname. My feeling is that Mike Greenberg is aware of the term "Martin Luther Coon" and had a brain cramp on live radio.

Although I'm giving Mike Greenberg a pass on this one, I've got my eyyees on him!

Does Mike Greenberg get the benefit of the doubt from you?