Lin can't wait for Tebow-mania

If anybody knows sports hysteria it's Jeremy Lin.  The man who kicked off Linsanity in a New York Knicks uniform is thrilled that Tim Tebow is coming to town.

"It's awesome.  I'm just excited for him and to see what he does," said the Knicks point guard.

"We'll see what happens next year, but I'm excited obviously that he's going to be in New York," said Lin after dumping 16 fourth quarter points on the Philadelphia 76ers in last night night's 82-79 win.

Lin's rise to worldwide celebrity didn't come with the baggage Tebow-mania lugs into New York.  The journeyman NBA player was an anonymous benchwarmer crashing on his brother's couch when his star rose.

Tebow just doesn't want to end up being a couch— Tim Couch that is.

The expectations and questions surrounding Tebow's role as New York Jet are a lot more complicated than Lin's magical turn and the New York media is ready to pounce.

Tebow had his shining moments last season but now comes in with a $2.5 million, two second-round draft picks price tag.

Tebow-mania in Denver is being Cinderella — Tebow-mania in New York is the clock striking twelve.

Lin dealt handily with the few weeks of Linsanity and had some tips for the incoming quarterback/tight end/fullback/fill-in-the-blank to help cope with the distractions in his new city.

"Everyone gave me some advice— they said, 'Make sure not to read the papers,'" Lin joked with reporters.  "But I don't want to offend you guys.  But that's what I've been told.  I don't really read anything.  I think it helps me."

Lin said he did not talk with Tebow— who's #15 Jets jersey will soon replace Lin's as NYC's best seller— yesterday during the wild trade-talk frenzy between the Denver Broncos and Jets, but said he'd like to catch a few Jets games this season.

Both athletes are deeply religious men, and Lin revealed that he has never Tebowed with his fellow Christian.  That could all change once Tebow gets into the Jets dysfunctional locker room.

"I've only talked to him like once," said Lin. "But he's a great guy from everything I hear, and the conversation I had with him was great as well."

After Tebow meets Gang Green and the hungry media, he might want to keep a Bible handy and his phone's speed dial set to Linsanity.

Knicks fly Air LIN-gus to win over Pacers

Just when you thought Linsanity was over, the NBA craze pulls you back in.  Saturday night, inside Banker's Life Fieldhouse, Jeremy Lin once again showed everyone what all the hubbub was once all about.

Sporting their St. Patrick's Day green uniforms, the New York Knicks coasted to a 102-88 victory over the Indiana Pacers and won their third straight game under interim coach Mike Woodson.

The Knicks are back in eighth place in the Eastern  Conference and Lin is looking like the flashy point guard former head coach Mike D'Antoni unleashed before his abrupt retirement last week.

Lin finished the game with 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists and only two turnovers.




The Knicks turnaround since D'Antoni's departure has been amazing.  Last night, the team even played defense and held the Pacers to 14 points in the fourth quarter.

Lin was all over the place and sliced and diced Indiana's defense like the J-Lin of old— well...  three weeks ago.  He slashed his way to the basket and dished passes in traffic even when the Pacers were knocking him around.

On one play before the half, Lin raced down the lane for a tear-drop off the glass, but fell hard to the floor.  He seemed light-headed after the play but on the next possession went full-court for another lay-up.

"I'm learning to play in a less spread offense," Lin said.  "A lot of stuff is still the same.  But there are times when I won't have as many opportunities.  I just need to be select about when to go.  I think tonight was a big step."

After the 2-and-8 slump before the Knicks' coaching change, the team is 3-0 and play watchable basketball once again.

The retailers better stock the shelves with plenty of green #17 jerseys— Linsanity is back.

Lin says he owes D'Antoni "a lot" for starting Linsanity

No one was more stunned about New York Knicks head coach Mike D'Antoni's resignation than the man at the center of all of the Linsanity— Jeremy Lin, himself.

"I was surprised," Lin said of D'Antoni's departure.  "I know some people were talking about it and what-not, but I didn't know the reality of it.  I figured after the shoot-around he's definitely be here."

"What he did for my career, I'm not going to forget what he did for me personally," Lin said.  "It's very emotional.  I'm sad to see him go and I owe a lot to him."

Lin has many reasons to be thankful for D'Antoni.

The Knicks coach took a chance on the little used and oft-travelled point guard— who was bunking on his brother's couch— when he got the chance to show his skills.  Putting Lin in the starting lineup turned New York and the NBA upside-down.

Lin thrived under D'Antoni's fast-paced system and turned the Knicks from a plodding, boring team into a winning sensation.  The team was 8-1 after Lin was given the chance to take over on Feb. 4 and brought roaring crowds back to Madison Square Garden.

Interim coach Mike Woodson— a defensive coach— indicated he will make changes to the Knicks lineup and style of play, but after one game, the most noticeable difference was a lull in Lin's game.  He finished last night's 121-79 rout of Portland with un-Lin-teresting numbers (six points, six assists and six turnovers).

Whether or not it was Carmelo Anthony's return or if D'Antoni lost control of the team as the reasons for the end of Linsanity, it's a moot point now.  D"Antoni is gone and Linsanity has subsided.

Lin, on the other hand, will continue to take the changes in stride.

"It's going to be, including the D-league, like my sixth or seventh system in the last year and a half.  It'll be all right," Lin said with a smile after last night's game.  "We're not going to change everything.  Some things will be the same."

One thing that won't ever be the same is the few weeks of optimism that thing called Linsanity brought to the Garden.

Knicks better get out the Lin-iment

Jeremy Lin has been getting all the calls since his phenomenal run of Linsanity started but, last night, he got a taste of what life in the NBA might hold after Linsanity.

Jason Kidd smashed a forearm across the New York Knicks sensation in what looked like a flagrant foul  to everyone by the Dallas Mavericks point guard as Lin rose for a lay-up.  That is everyone except the officials.

Lin's knockdown wasn't the worst part of last night's 95-85 loss to the Mavericks.  It was how the defending champions have figured out the point guard's game since getting beat by the Knicks two weeks ago and how the officials looked the other way when Lin got battered by a veteran player.

Expect other teams and officials to follow the lead.

"They trapped him more," said Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni about the Mav's strategy.  "He did OK."

Lin had a good game (14 points, 7 assists and only 2 turnovers) but it was only half of the output in their first meeting (28 points, 14 assists).

There are many more questions surrounding Kidd's "hard-nosed" play.  Where were the rest of the Knicks while Lin was crumbled on the floor?

Did they have his back or were they just showing respect to Kidd— one of the toughest and most respected players in the NBA?

It was the Knicks fifth loss in the last eight games and the end of Linsanity is looming.

It looks like there won't be any more free passes for the Knicks best passer.  They  better do something before he ends up in a s-LIN-g.

Obama: I knew about Lin before everyone else

You can agree or disagree that President Barack Obama knows more than most people when it comes to foreign policies or national budgets and will probably be the first person alerted to a nuclear attack but— on a podcast recorded earlier this week —the country's number one basket fan said he he knew about about Jeremy Lin long before Linsanity struck.

In an interview with ESPN's Bill Simmons, the President told him he knew Lin would become a star.

"I knew about Jeremy before you did, or anyone else did, because Arne Duncan, my Secretary of Education, was captain of the Harvard team," Obama said.  "And so way back when, Arne and I were playing and he said, 'I'm telling you, we've got this terrific guard named Jeremy Lin at Harvard.'  And then one of my best friends, his son is a freshman at Harvard, and so when he went for a recruiting trip he saw Lin in action.  So I've been on the Jeremy Lin bandwagon for a while."

Suddenly, Obama sounds less like the Leader of the Free World and more like Cliff— the know-it-all mailman— on "Cheers."

Duncan does know the game and was the MVP in last week's Celebrity Game at the NBA All-Star weekend in Orlando.

"What's interesting is the fact somehow folks were missing it in practice," said the Harvard-grad Obama about Lin.  "It's a terrific story.  He's seems like a wonderful young man.  And, look, it elevates this great game all around the world."

The President also revealed that he, and former top-aide Reggie Love, a former-Duke player, used to pass notes to his daughter's basketball coach during games— until she finally let them run practice.

Call it bi-partisan coaching.




"You want them to win so bad," he said.  "And when they run a play and it works— you're just ecstatic.  And a couple of heartbreaking losses and you're just feeling terrible.  But they're wonderful."

Kind of like The House and Senate voting on his health plan.

Obama said he is such a huge basketball fan, NBA League Pass is on his iPad.

The President also keeps his eye on college basketball.  Obama's annual tradition of picking the NCAA brackets live on ESPN is anticipated almost as much as his State of the Union addresses— without all of the hand-clapping.

If the President falls short of being re-elected in 2012, he shouldn't sweat.   I'm sure there will be a few NBA teams who could use a scout who was the first guy to spot Lin's talent.

VIDEO OF INTERVIEW

Graffiti artists give Linsanity a tribute

Jeremy Lin has been painting the city of New York orange and blue for weeks and now— in their interpretation of Linsanity— a crew of graffiti artists have spray-painted a larger-than-life size image of the New York Knicks point guard on the brick wall outside an East Village building.

Who knew a religious, Harvard-educated out-of-towner could garner such street cred in New York.

The East Second Street mural is just a couple of stops on the F-line away from his brother's Lower East Side apartment where Lin famously crashed on a couch before his phenomenal rise to stardom and fame.

In a little over two hours, Wilfredo (Bio) Feliciano and three other members of his Bronx-based Tats Cru spray-painted the image of Lin holding up a big blue earth over his head with basketball seams sewn into the globe.  He looks like the mythic Atlas in a No. 17 Knicks uniform with three pigeons in astronaut helmets circling in the celestial background.

The graffiti crew went through a dozen cans of Rustoleum during the painting of the colorful tribute.  Passersby recognized the Knicks sensation and shouted "Linsanity!" as they walked by.

The artists used a photo of Lin shouting in celebration to capture the features of his face in their portrayal of the popular player.

The mural was commissioned by online culture magazine Animalnewyork for several thousand dollars and will be up for at least a month.

"We figured Atlas was the perfect kind of symbol for this myth," said an editor at Animalnewyork.  "We've tasked him with not only carrying the Knicks, but New York City too."

Knicks fans are hoping Lin's heroics last longer than the mural.

Is Jolie'ing the new Tebowing?

A couple of days after the Oscars and people aren't talking about "The Artist," Billy Crystal's comeback or how another Billy Beane project didn't win the big one.  No way.  The talk is about Angelina Jolie's leg.

When the star stuck her leg through the slit of her gown, she got more than some hearts going, she set off the the latest stampede of photo bombing and posing in... well... weeks.

The latest craze is called Jolie'ing.

Jolie's sexy red carpet stance has the Internet lighting up with people imitating (mocking?) her pose in everything from gowns to bed sheets.

Jolie'ing is carrying on the relatively new tradition of planking, Tebowing and all that stuff with Linsanity.

Just put your left hand on your hip, right hand slung down at your side and your right leg seductively thrust forward (preferably naked) and you are Jolie'ing.

Digitally altered Jolie leg-bombings of American icons like the Statue of Liberty, George Washington crossing the Delaware and Jeremy Lin are all the rage.

There is even a new website Angelina Jolie'ing where you can submit your own Jolie'ing shots.

The fad might have started when "The Descendants" co-writer Jim Rash got to the Oscar podium for his Academy Award and struck the Jolie pose.  I don't think Jolie was laughing.

Jolie's awkward stance has launched an lot of sites devoted to her right leg.  One Twitter handle — AngiesRightLeg— has almost 15,000 followers.

I don't know if Jolie'ing will catch on in sports like Tebowing— the thought of a Ray Lewis, head atilt, with a hand on his hip is a pretty scary image— for more than one reason.

Ben & Jerry's apologizes for using fortune cookies in 'Lin-Sanity' flavor

A Boston branch of Ben & Jerry's has apologized for offering a frozen yogurt flavor— that was inspired by NBA sensation Jeremy Lin and "listed fortune cookie pieces" as an ingredient— because there were a few complaints that it played on Asian stereotypes.

"Taste The Lin-Sanity"— a flavor offered for a limited time at the Vermont chain's Harvard Square location— replaced the fortune cookie bits with a waffle cookie served on the side after what the shop's general manager called "a bit of a backlash."

"On behalf of Ben & Jerry's Boston Scoop Shops, we offer a heartfelt apology if anyone was offended by our handmade Linsanity flavor that we offered at out Harvard Square location," the local company said yesterday on its @Ben.JerryBoston Twitter account.

The popular new flavor—which was only sold at the one location— sold out over the weekend.  Lin played his college ball at Harvard University.

"We are proud and honored to have Jeremy Lin hail from one of our fine, local universities and we are huge sports fans," said statement from the Ben & Jerry's Boston group.  "We were swept up in the nationwide Linsanity momentum.  Our intention was to create a flavor to honor Jeremy Lin's accomplishments and his meteoric rise in the NBA, and recognize that he was a local Harvard graduate.  We try to demonstrate our commitment as a Boston-based, value-led business & if we failed in this instance we offer our sincere apologies."

While everything from All-Star weekends to ice cream companies try to cash in on the Linsanity craze, it sounds like people are getting a little too sensitive about the Taiwanese-American's heritage.

The apology sounded awfully similar to the one made by ESPN after the network posted a headline and aired a word many consider offensive to Asians.  Those gaffes led to a suspension and a firing.

Funny thing is fortune cookies are rarely served in China and the after dinner treats are only mostly common in Chinese restaurants in the U.S..  They're as American as apple pie— or Jeremy Lin.

The politically-correct chain also said the pieces of cookie— mixed in with the frozen yogurt and lychee honey swirls— became soggy.

There was no exp-LIN-ation for that.

Spike and Mayweather hug it out courtside

Boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr.— who tweeted derogatory comments about New York Knicks phenom Jeremy Lin being over-hyped because he was Asian— was spotted courtside making nice with the team's No. 1 fan Spike Lee last night in Miami.

Mayweather approached the Knicks fanatic during New York's 102-88 loss to the Miami Heat and the two shook hands, chatted and appeared to bury the hatchet.

Lee held a grudge against Mayweather because earlier this month the welterweight champ criticized— via Twitter— all of the attention Lin was getting based solely on his race.

"Jeremy Lin is a good player, but all the hype is because he's Asian," tweeted Mayweather.  "Black players do what he does every night and don't get the same praise."

Lee took offense to the comment and immediately tweeted back .

"Floyd Mayweather I Hope You Watched Jeremy Hit The Gamewinning 3 Pointer With .005 Seconds Left.Our Guy Can BALL PLAIN AND SIMPLE.RECOGNIZE."

After last night's meeting, it looked like there was a truce.

"Floyd Mayweather And I Had A Great Conversation Courtside," Lee tweeted after the game.  "We're MAD COOL.ALL    LOVE.2Brotha's.YA-DIG."

Meanwhile, another huge Lin fan— and Mayweather's biggest rival— Manny Pacquiao was a little bummed out that he didn't get to see the Knicks player while he was in New York this week.

"It's too bad that I didn't get a chance to watch the game," said the welterweight at a press conference promoting his June 9 fight against Tim Bradley.  "He's a good basketball player.  I'm proud of him because he's from Asia."

Lin is actually from Palo Alto, Calif. but his parents are from Taiwan.

Pacquiao has also been the target of some of Mayweather's anti-Asian rants in the past.

Mayweather had the last laugh for now— after Lin was held to 1-of-11 shooting while turning the ball over eight times last night— but he will be headed to the cLINk in June for a domestic violence conviction.

Lin unlikely to make U.S. Olympic team; China is waiting

Will Jeremy Lin be playing on the U.S. Olympic basketball team in this summer's London Games?  Don't count on it.

Jerry Colangelo— the current director of USA Basketball— said Lin was "a great story for the NBA, for the Knicks, for this young man and what he's accomplished in such a short period of time."

The key word is "short."

The longtime sports executive also added," The players who already have time invested in the system have equity built up."

Could Colangelo be making the same mistake that big-time colleges and NBA teams did when they let Lin fly under their radar in the past?

In three weeks, Lin has made plenty of athletic directors, general mangers and coaches look back at how they missed out on giving the point guard his shot.




Lin has led the Knicks to victories over the Los Angeles Lakers and the defending champions the Dallas Mavericks by scoring 38 points and dishing out 14 assists— respectively.

Now, since Colangelo said he won't be swayed by Linsanity or the popular vote to put Lin on the Olympic squad, could the Chinese team come calling?

Xinhua, the state news agency of China, has already called on Lin to renounce his U.S. citizenship and suit up for the Chinese team.

Certainly, the U.S. would not want to see Lin playing for another country, but there is always that possibility.  Many U.S. baseball players have used dual citizenship to compete in the Olympics for their ancestral countries.  Why not Lin?

Lin's maternal grandmother is from mainland China and both of his parents were born in Taiwan and retain dual citizenship in Taiwan and the U.S..

Lin was born and raised in California, but has been offered dual citizenship in his parents homeland, according to his uncle Lin Chi Chung.

Taiwan did not qualify for the London Games.

J.R. Holder, a Pittsburgh native, played college basketball at Bucknell University and then the Russian National Team in the Beijing Olympics.  He wrote a memoir of his once-in-a-lifetime experience and thinks Lin should give playing for China some serious consideration.


"If I were Jeremy Lin, I'd go to China," he said.  "Take advantage of it."

Lin, with his humble, clean-cut ways would make a great ambassador for the U.S., more importantly, he may never get a chance to compete in the Olympics again.

Twenty potential members for the U.S. Olympic team were announced in January.  From that group, 18 players have won a gold medal at either the 2008 Olympics in China or the World Championships in 2010.  They have international playing experience— something the international phenomenon lacks.

Another problem for Lin is his position.

Olympic Coach Mike Kryzewski has noted that the position of point guard is deep with top-notch talent including Chicago's Derrick Rose, New Jersey's Deron Williams, The Clippers Chris Paul and Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook.

So deep, even when Chauncey Billups was removed from the potential Olympians list because of injury, officials decided not to fill in the roster spot at the point guard position.

No such problem for the Chinese team.  They haven't had a good point guard in years and, if they  capitalize on the U.S. diss of Lin, it would have Mao smiling in his tomb.

Colangelo has to be aware of the mistakes talent evaluators have made about Lin up until three weeks ago.

"There are players who have sat on the bench and come in and surprised people before,"  he said.  "But this is more than a surprise.  He shocked people.  It really makes you think about how many guys might be out there who can play but never get an opportunity."

Maybe Colangelo is just afraid of having the squad called the U.S. O-Lin-pic team.

Linsanity package up for auction; current bid is $31,388

Auction houses are cashing in on the rise of Jeremy Lin and today is the final day fans can place bids on a Linsane package deal which includes four tickets to Wednesday's game against the Atlanta Hawks, the jersey Lin wore when he scored 38 points as the Knicks beat the Lakers on Feb. 10 and a meet-and-greet with the NBA's newest star after the game.

Bidding at Madison Square Garden's charity operation, The Garden of Dreams Foundation, are up to $31,388, according to the New York Post.

No skinfLINts allowed.

It might prove to be a good Lin-vestment.  A five-day auction for tickets and a grip-and-grin with Lin last week went for a measly $5,700 and Lin's D-League Erie Bayhawks #17 jersey is selling for almost $4,000 on eBay.  Bidding started at $1,500.

Better hurry, the value of anything Lin are rising as fast as his stardom.

So come on down to Crazy Dolan's.  Our prices are Linsaaaane!

Rex Chapman makes racially-charged joke about Lin on Twitter

While some of the puns about Jeremy Lin are quite creative and pretty funny, some people still don't know when they cross the line.  A couple of ESPN employees learned that lesson the hard way over the weekend.

Now, former University of Kentucky star and NBA player Rex Chapman made what many would call a racially insensitive joke about the New York Knicks pickup of J.R. Smith being a good move because he "played in China."


According to the New York Daily News, Chapman— who played 12 years in the NBA with the Hornets, Bullets, Heat and Suns—shared his thoughts via Twitter on the Knicks acquisition of Smith— who played in China during the NBA lockout— and joined the Knicks for the first time yesterday:

"I say J.R. is such a great pick-up 4 the #Lins only because he's been playing the past six-mo's in China.  So easy now for him to recognize his PG."

Chapman made the comments after the Knicks 104-97 win over the defending NBA champs the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday.

Unless you have been living under a rock— or depended on the MSG Network for Knick games— Lin is Taiwanese-American and the first one to play in the NBA.

But Chapman didn't stop there, according to the Daily News.

User @Mars_Pow tweeted to Chapman, whose official account is @rexchapman, 'c'mon Rex, you know you are going to upset some people with that tweet.'

Chapman acted like it was no big deal.

He replied, "I'll let you know when I give a sh-t."

Lin's race has been publicly brought into the equation by a lot of people including boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. and numerous reporters.  Broadcasters are being spoofed on Saturday Night Life for using racially-insensitive material about the Knicks point guard.

Through it all, Lin— the national sensation— has been taking it all in stride.

"They've apologized and so from my end, I don't care anymore," said Lin about the ESPN gaffes.  "You have to learn to forgive, and I don't even think that was intentional."

There are more important things for Lin to worry about than comments from a faded NBA player like Chapman.

ESPN apologizes for racist Jeremy Lin headline

ESPN is apologizing for using what many consider a racist slur in a headline after Jeremy Lin and the New York Knicks had their seven game win streak ended by the New Orleans Hornets on Friday night.

The headline "Ch--k in the Armor" was posted for about 30 minutes on its mobile website before being pulled down by the network.  The headline was seen on phones and tablet computers a few hours after the loss.

A statement from ESPN today read: "Last night, ESPN.com's mobile web site posted an offensive headline referencing Jeremy Lin at 2:30 am ET.  The headline was removed at 3:03 am ET.  We are conducting a complete review of our cross-platform editorial procedures and are determining appropriate disciplinary action to ensure this does not happen again.  We regret and apologize for this mistake."

Lin is the NBA's first American of Chinese or Taiwanese descent and his mercurial rise— after an unheralded start to his pro career— has been the top sports story over the past two weeks.

The Knicks point guard's stellar play has sparked what has been called Linsanity.  His name has been used in numerous puns and fans have created websites devoted to making up new words using his surname.

It is not the first time ESPN has used the offensive term.  After the Knicks beat Sacramento on Wednesday, an anchor used the phrase to ask Walt Frazier if there was any signs of weakness in the point guard's game.

An ESPN spokesman said the network apologized on-air for the ESPN News faux pas. He said the network would not apologize  on air for the website headline, though they did apologize on their Twitter feed and through statement to the media.




The phrase even drew criticism form ESPN's staff.

"Thought I was annoyed when I was awakened from deep sleep," ESPN SportsCenter anchor Michael Kim tweeted.  "Then I checked text msgs/Twitter.  Unacceptable. Extremely disappointed."

ESPN.com editor in chief Rob King apologized on his Twitter account: "There's no defense for the indefensible.  All we can offer are our apologies, sincere though incalculably inadequate... [ESPN] was fixing the failed process and addressing discipline."

Looks like some one at ESPN better start checking its Lin-ks.

Pacquiao to meet J-Lin at Madison Square Garden

Plans are in the works for Manny Pacquiao and Jeremy Lin to meet up Wednesday in New York— a day before the boxer's press conference to announce his match against Timothy Bradley in Las Vegas on June 9.

Pacquiao— an unabashed basketball fan— is in the U.S. to fulfill a healthy dose of commitments but has found time to meet with Lin at Madison Square Garden before the Knicks game against the Atlanta Hawks.

Call it Pac-Mania meets Linsanity.

The WBO welterweight champ is a basketball fanatic and it comes as no surprise to know that Pacquiao and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. are in different corners when it comes to the Knicks phenom.

Mayweather said the Asian-American Lin is overhyped because of his race; while Pacquiao— a national treasure in the Philippines— considers Lin a hero and wants to shake his hand.




Pacquiao might feel a special kinship with Lin.

Like Lin, he was passed over for a long time before making a name for himself when he fought on the undercard of an Oscar De La Hoya-headliner in 2001.  It was never the same for Pac-Man since.

Pac-Man's promoter, Top Rank's Bob Arum, went the distance in arranging a meeting between—arguably— the world's best pound-for-pound fighter and the 23-year-old rising star.

Pacquiao owns a basketball team in the Philippines called the MP- Gensan Warriors which he regularly trains with.  He plays guard on the team and— coincidently— wears the same No. 17 as Lin.

"The only thing is when he is driving to the basket down the lane, the sea parts," said Top Rank spokesman Lee Samuels.

Linsane might be a good way to describe Pacquiao's upcoming itinerary.

His list of commitments to fulfill include having his deposition taken in relation with the defamation suit against Mayweather Jr., an endorsement gig with Nike, and holding press conferences in Beverly Hills and New York to promote his upcoming bout.

Something tells me that rubbing elbows with Lin might be a bigger thrill for the champ than the rest of his U.S. excursion.  And this is a guy who has met the likes of Kobe Bryant and hoards of Hollywood stars.

According to Samuels, when Pacquiao fought David Diaz in Chicago in 2008, one of the first things he wanted to do was see the statue of Michael Jordan outside the United Center.

"He just stared at it for the longest time," said Samuels. "He really loves basketball.  Wherever he is, he's always trying to get a pickup game."

Maybe we'll see a little one-on-one game between the two worldwide sensations.

Knicks still looking for more Linsanity puns

It looks like the New York Knicks are still looking for more clever Jeremy Lin puns to help milk the cash cow that has become known as Linsanity.

An ad running this week on Craigslist purports that the team still needs more Lin word-plays to put on tee-shirts, hats, sweatshirts and even bLINg— including keychains.

The headline at the top of the ad plainly says: "The New York Knicks need more Jeremy Lin puns."

The ad in part reads: "New York Knicks are seeking copywriter to provide as many Jeremy Lin-related puns as possible... Puns will be used on billboards and in-game Jumbotron."

Just keep those lame jokes rolLIN' in folks.

The Chinese-American point guard has led the Knicks to seven straight victories and has the city at a fever pitch.  Stores can't keep anything with the name Lin on it in stock.

According to the ad, a few of the Lin-associated words and phrases which already made the Madison Square Garden cut are Pure AdrenaLIN, I'm allLIN and Just ChilLIN.

I thought we reached the end of the line when David Letterman used LINtercourse in his Top Ten list the other night.

Now, even CLINt Eastwood and Bellybutton LINt have made it into the Lin vernacular.

It seems like every nickname and pun surrounding Lin has already been used and there is no end in sight for Linsanity.  Oh wait.  When does Carmelo Anthony come back?

The ad didn't specify if the words couldn't be biLINgual.  How about "Better than a bLINtz?"

Mike Tyson drops air bomb during halftime interview

It's not exactly the most shocking slip of the tongue in the history of celebrity interviews, but you might call Mike Tyson's on-air s---bomb during the New York Knicks halftime show a case of temporary Linsanity.

The former heavyweight champion was being interviewed by MSG Network's Jill Martin at the Knicks-Kings game when he let the four-letter word fly.

Asked by Martin what was the "dumbest money ever spent in his life," Tyson replied:  "Anything I ever had.  Anything I ever had was dumb," before laughing and blurting out "There was some dumb s---."

Tyson, who seemed to catch his verbal gaffe, sheepishly put his hand to the side of his head and moved on.

Other tidbits we found out about Tyson were that he is the proud owner of between 2,500-3,000 pigeons and thinks his hidden talent is singing but will only warble a tune for money.

One of the last questions Martin asked Iron Mike is if he had one life do-over what would it be?

"That ear thing was pretty heavy," he said referring to taking a bite out of Evander Holyfield's ear during their 1997 fight.  "I wish I could do that one over."

""You'd take that back?" asked Martin.

"Yeah," Tyson said.  "At least not his ear."

Knicks No. 17 jerseys not Lin-gering on store racks

As Linsanity continues to sweep New York— and drive up prices for New York Knicks tickets and Jeremy Lin jerseys— one woman spent $1,200 on 60 T-shirts with her favorite player's name emblazoned on the back to send back to friends in Taiwan.

A New York Post reporter caught up with Eva Kuo at a Times Square sporting goods store hoarding the valuable booty bearing the name Lin on the back.

Stores are reportedly so low on anything with Lin's name on it, they have resorted getting rush deliveries to stock their shelves.

"I love Jeremy Lin," Kuo said.

Wouldn't it be cheaper to have her friends just get them over in Taiwan?  That's where they are made anyway.

Jeter gets caught up in Knicks Linsanity

Derek Jeter is in Tampa busy with pre-spring training workouts and claims he hasn't watched the New York Knicks much lately except for "some highlights"— but even New York City's biggest sports icon over the past 15 years expressed amazement at the Jeremy Lin phenomenon sweeping the city and the NBA.

"I've seen some highlights," Jeter said yesterday at the Yankees minor league complex.  "It's always fun  anytime there is a new athlete, especially in New York, it's pretty exciting.  He brought some excitement to the Knicks."

Jeter must have been laughing on the inside after he was asked if he ever saw anything like the Knicks point guard sensation who—  a benchwarmer only two weeks ago— is now Madison Square Garden's Va-Lin-tine to Knicks fans.

The New York Yankees shortstop may not have ever crashed on a teammate's couch, but he's no stranger to media frenzies himself.  Jeter has been making highlight reels since 1996 and his quest for 3,000 hits last summer had the whole city watching his every move.

"There's a lot of excitement with that team, Carmelo [Anthony] coming over, now you have [Lin]," he said.  "I'm not a basketball expert but I do know he has added a lot of excitement to that team, which is good.  I think sports in general are a lot more fun when you have a team from New York that is doing well."

Derek Jeter should know.

Teammate tweets photo of J-Lin's famous couch for bidding

It's the sofa that launched the career of New York Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin and could be coming to a living room near you.

Lin's teammate Landry Fields tweeted a photo of the brown velour couch that the Knicks phenom started crashing on the night before he became a New York sports legend.

Fields tweeted a picture of the most famous sofa in the sports world and thinks it could be the ultimate accessory for any couch potato's man-cave.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the one and only couch made famous by @JLin7!," Fields tweeted Sunday afternoon.

"Let the bidding begin," he added.

Imagine hosting your friends on the couch and bragging "Jeremy Lin slept here" or " That spot on the cushion is J-Lin's drool."

The now legendary two-cushion sofa in Fields' Manhattan apartment was the resting place for Lin— the night before he jump-started the Knicks team and astounded the NBA— after he left the bench and torched the New Jersey Nets for 25 points on Feb. 4.

 Lin had been sleeping at the Lower East side apartment of his brother before being displaced and moving uptown to Fields' place.

Fields described the sled-style couch as "decent but not huge."

What is huge is Linsanity.

No. 17 has taken Madison Square Garden by storm.  The former-Harvard grad and NBA bench warmer has become a New York Knicks star by leading the team to five straight wins and playoff dreams. 

"Thank you to Landry for hosting me," Lin said after leading the Knicks— with a career-best performance— over the Nets on Saturday. "I think I might just move in with him."

I'm smelling a sit-com here.

Since getting a contract for the NBA minimum, Lin is now able to afford better digs.

The 6-foot-3 guard is shopping around for his own place and a real estate developer has even offered a one-bedroom apartment free until Lin can find a suitable place.

Knicks fans are hoping Lin buys instead of rents.  He's a free-agent after this season.

Jeremy Lin prefers planking over Tebowing

In less than a week, Jeremy Lin has gone from a little used NBA bench-warmer to the biggest story in the league.  Now everyone is comparing the Harvard-grad to the NFL's sweetheart Tim Tebow after Lin guided the New York Knicks to a three-game win streak.

Lin is a self-confessed planking fan so you're more likely to catch the Knicks point guard extending body across a stiff object than getting down on one knee in reflection ala Tebowing.

Lin has been bombarded with comparisons to Tebow and admitted the Denver Broncos quarterback has been a driving force:

"Actually lot of inspiration just because he's such a polarizing figure but I think the things he says in his interviews, his approach to the game is just unbelievable and I respect him so much.  I want to be able to do some of the things that he does in terms of the amount of charity work and the non-profit work, and the way he impacts people off the field.  I think that is what is most inspiring to me about him."

The comparisons between the two are inevitable and will probably continue as long as the economics-grad piles up numbers.

There is one thing most can agree— both are oddities in their desired arenas.

Lin, the rare Asian-American to play on an NBA court and Tebow the chaste athlete on a football field.

Lin, like Tebow, is a devout Christian and leaves all of life's ups and downs in the hands of God but— aside from their overwhelming wills to win— the paths to their respective pro careers took different courses.

The Knicks player wasn't drafted and received no offers as a recruit; while Tebow was a top high school prospect,  a Heisman Trophy winner and first-round pick.

Still, the point guard with a knack for the pick-and-roll has turned himself into a nationwide sensation— much like "Tebow Mania" did a couple of months ago

While thousands of Tebow jerseys sold out before the QB even won a game, the few No. 17 Knicks jerseys were already on the clearance rack just last week.

Now retailers are scrambling to stock their shelves after the sparse Lin jerseys were snatched up and had fans resorting to making their own.

So desirable are the No. 17 jerseys right now, they are selling for $54.95— $10 more than the jerseys of Knicks stars Amar'e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony.

"Linsanity" has taken over New York City.

Tickets for tonight's game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Madison Square Garden have doubled on StubHub if you can find a seat.

Lin's feel good story is still on the opening page of what would be a nice Hollywood script.

He still has a long way to go before anyone knows if he is the real deal or just another Ken Maas.  Remember him.  Maas— as a replacement for Don Mattingly— hit 10 home-runs in his first 72 at-bats for the New York Yankees in 1990 to set a major-league record— only to fade faster than Kris Humphries' marriage.

If Lin lives up to the hype, count on him to plank rather than Tebow.