“We pretty much scour the earth, and we do our best to find players that have professional ability,” Blake says. “We definitely don’t ignore [his success], but it’s not in terms of ‘now we have to go scout the Ivy League,’ because we already cover it. “

Penn senior guard Zack Rosen—the 2012 Ivy League Player of the Year—agrees with Mangano that Lin’s success certainly can’t hurt his chances.

“It decreases the inhibitions of the people who say, ‘Ivy League, smart kids, not really capable of playing in the league, period,’” Rosen says. “What it does is it introduces the fact that that guy can play and get it done at the next level. For me, obviously, it’s a great time because he’s done a lot. He’s been through the Ivy League. A lot of people told him no, he kept telling himself yes, and that’s a good example for anyone.”

TRAILBLAZER

While his Ivy League education is undoubtedly a significant layer to Lin’s story, there is another, deeper layer to his journey to NBA success: his Asian-American heritage.

“I think that he happens to be in the NBA and is an Asian-American,” Amaker says. “That’s another layer because it’s different. He’s a trailblazer in a lot of ways.”

The son of Taiwanese immigrants, Lin’s basketball career has been undeniably linked to his Asian-American roots from the start. Race has appeared to be an obstacle for Lin at several points in his career.

As a high school senior, Lin led his Palo Alto High School Vikings to a 32-1 record and a CIF Division II championship date with perennial California basketball powerhouse Mater Dei. Lin carried his Vikings to a 51-47 upset, shocking a Monarchs team that had eight players who went on to Division I basketball programs.

While Lin sent his resume and recruiting information to Cal, Stanford, UCLA, and all the Ivy League schools, only Harvard and Brown offered him guaranteed spots while the Pac-12 schools asked Lin to walk on.

At Harvard, Lin again faced pressure from opposing fans, who would hurl derogatory racial insults, and jeers during games. Lin’s focus and perseverance in such an environment has been inspirational to both Asians and non-Asians alike.

“He’s providing inspiration, and he’s providing living proof that if these kids work hard and keep at it, that opportunities will be there,” says Robert Nakamae, president of the San Jose Ninjas, an Asian basketball organization from the Bay Area. “I think a lot of the kids, especially the Asian-American kids, look up to him as an example of what hard work and perseverance can do for them. It doesn’t have to be in basketball or sports, but if they can follow his example and apply it to whatever it is they are doing, especially in school or their jobs, hopefully they can find the same kind of success that Jeremy has found in their own respect.”

Nakamae finds that he can use Lin’s story to inspire and excite children not just about basketball but also about the values of hard work, persistence, and relentlessness.

“My daughter plays [basketball], and we have told her that Jeremy was not an overnight success,” Nakamae says. “Before this season with the Knicks, he spent a lot of time in the offseason conditioning and then working on his shot with Doc Scheppler from Pinewood, [Calif.]. It didn’t just come naturally to him. He put a lot of work, a lot of time into developing himself into a better basketball player. That’s really the message we try and give our kids too: you have to put time into this, whatever it is, basketball, baseball, or school.”

Harvard junior Uggi Lee seems to agree.

“I think his real impact really comes at the younger level for kids who look up to him and are able to see that professional sports is something they can aspire to,” Lee says. “I think it’s incredible the kind of energy it has created in the Asian-American community, and I hope that it’s something that can be followed up on by other Asian-American athletes.”