Covering Jeremy Lin has been easy for Sports Illustrated.
The high-scoring Knicks newcomer is on the cover of SI for the second week in a row. He is the first New York-based team athlete to be given such treatment since the magazine started in 1954 — not even Mickey Mantle, Joe Namath or Eli Manning made two straight.
Lin became a global star after getting a chance to start for the Knicks. The unheralded point guard from Harvard is playing with a flair that has revitalized the team and the fans.
Lin is the 12th athlete to appear on the Sports Illustrated cover at least two weeks in a row since 1990. Dirk Nowitzki did it during last season’s NBA finals. Michael Jordan holds the Sports Illustrated cover record with three in row.
A book on Lin’s rise from basketball obscurity to the NBA’s newest sensation will hit bookstores in May.
Hachette Book Group announced on Wednesday that it was scheduled to release the book, titled Jeremy Lin: The Reason for the Linsanity, in May.
The book, authored by Timothy Dalrymple, will chronicle Lin’s high school, college and early career in the NBA, while highlighting the media explosion ignited by his stellar success as a starting guard with the Knicks.
Lin, a Harvard economics graduate, became a phenomenon after he led the bottom-feeding Knicks to a spate of victories since early this month. The first American-born NBA player of Taiwanese descent scored more points in his first five starts — 136 — than any other player since the NBA-ABA merger in 1976.
With his popularity through the roof and Knicks owner Madison Square Garden Co’s stock at an all-time high as a result of his play, many companies, including some from Taiwan and China, are offering to work out endorsement deals with him, said his agent, Roger Montgomery.
The New York Post quoted Montgomery as saying that he had received “over 1,000 e-mails” on such offers.
“There’s been so much interest, and so many people reaching out, it is overwhelming,” Montgomery said.
Lin has been hesitant to strike agreements, however. He has reportedly turned down offers from a wireless telephone company as well as a watchmaker — deals that would be worth “millions,” industry sources said.
“Every NBA player wants a contract with a luxury watch brand right now,” one branding guru said.
“LeBron James is Audemars Piguet, Dwyane Wade is Hublot ... but Jeremy is Harvard-educated, and he’s not going to do something flashy that’s just for the money,” the expert said.
Top seeds Alexander Zverev of Germany and American Coco Gauff on Tuesday advanced to the third round of the Canadian Open after both players were pushed hard by their opponents. World No. 3 Zverev, playing in his first match since his first-round loss at Wimbledon, was far from his best, but emerged with a 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 win over Adam Walton under the lights in Toronto. Momentum shifted firmly in Zverev’s favor when he won a 52-shot rally in the first set tiebreak and he sealed the win on a double fault by the Australian in the second set. “It was a very
Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko upset top-seeded Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 on Saturday night to reach the National Bank Open quarter-finals. “Your support was incredible,” Mboko told the crowd in French after a chorus of “Ole, Ole, Ole” chants echoed around the venue. “I’m really happy to win today ... It’s incredible. I’m so happy to beat such a great champion.” Gauff dropped to 2-3 since winning the French Open. She followed the major victory with opening losses in Berlin and Wimbledon, then overcame double-fault problems to win two three-set matches in Montreal. Gauff had five double-faults on Saturday after having 23 in
Taiwan’s top women’s badminton doubles duo, Hsieh Pei-shan (謝沛珊) and Hung En-tzu (洪恩慈), achieved a straight-sets victory over Japan’s Kaho Osawa and Mayui Tanabe at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Super 300 Macau Open on Sunday. The Taiwanese pair won the final 21-18, 21-12, marking the duo’s second title this year after their win at the BWF Super 300 Taipei Open in May. The match on Sunday was their first encounter with the Japanese duo, ranked No. 63 in the world. Hsieh and Hung, ranked No. 12, began the opening game well. Hung, who plays left-handed, performed strongly at both the net and the
Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen on Thursday said that he is staying with the Red Bull team next year, ending months of speculation over his future. “Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama, but, for me, it’s always been quite clear, and also for next year,” the four-time champion said ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix. “I’m discussing with the team already the plans — the things that we want to change for next year, so that means that I’m also staying with the team for next year,” he said. Verstappen has a contract with
RSS