Jeremy Lin Announces Retirement from Professional Basketball
jeremy-lin-retirement-announcement
NEW YORK — Former NBA guard Jeremy Lin, 37, revealed on Saturday via Instagram that he is stepping away from professional basketball, closing the book on a 15-year career that included nine NBA seasons and an NBA championship.
Instagram Farewell
In a written statement, Lin said the decision to retire was “the hardest” of his life, noting that every athlete knows the moment will eventually arrive. “It’s been the honor of a lifetime to compete against the fiercest competitors under the brightest lights,” he wrote, adding that he will “forever be the kid who felt fully alive every time I touched a basketball.”
Undrafted to Unexpected Star
After going undrafted out of Harvard in 2010, the 6-foot-3 guard signed with the Golden State Warriors but appeared in only 29 games as a rookie. Waived by both Golden State and the Houston Rockets, Lin caught on with the New York Knicks during the 2011-12 lockout-shortened season and became an overnight sensation.
From early February through late March 2012, he averaged 18.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 7.7 assists and 2.0 steals over 26 games, steering the Knicks to a 16-10 record after the team had started 8-15. The run, quickly labeled “Linsanity,” landed him on the covers of Time, GQ and consecutive issues of Sports Illustrated while sparking widespread pride in the Asian American community.
Journeyman Years and a Title
As a restricted free agent that summer, Lin accepted a four-year, $28.8 million offer sheet from Houston, which New York declined to match. He spent two seasons with the Rockets, then had stints with the Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte Hornets, Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks before joining the Toronto Raptors in 2019.
Lin earned his lone NBA championship ring with Toronto, contributing 7.0 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 23 regular-season games that year.
Career by the Numbers
Across 480 regular-season NBA contests, including 221 starts, Lin averaged 11.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.1 steals while shooting 43.3 percent from the field, 34.2 percent from three-point range and 80.9 percent at the free-throw line.
Final Chapters Overseas
Since 2019, Lin has played primarily in China and Taiwan, extending his professional tenure to 15 seasons before announcing his retirement this weekend.
Lin closed his message by thanking fans worldwide for supporting the journey that began on Bay Area playgrounds and reached the NBA’s grandest stages.
Source: Basketball Insiders
