Jeremy Lin: Ivy League Pedigree Driving Force Behind Knicks "Linsanity"

When Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin burst onto the scene a few short weeks ago, his play set the NBA ablaze. Lin was just what Mike D'Antoni seems to have been looking for in his reclamation project of the New York Knicks; a point guard who could do many of the things that Steve Nash did in running the pick-and-roll-heavy offensive system the coach is known for.

Before sports fans could blink, Lin had put up several high-scoring, high-assist and high-turnover games and the sports world went wild.

Other NBA players openly admitted to following Lin's exploits and being amazed at his accomplishments, and the sports media was also quick to take over the driving of the Lin bandwagon. ESPN routinely led episodes of SportsCenter with Lin highlights and his play was given serious coverage across the company's many "talking head" shows.

But in all of the coverage the media churned out, race suddenly became a primary storyline when discussing Lin's success. Suddenly, it was as if his Asian ancestry was more important than his game and was the most interesting angle to the story.

However, I tend not to see the racial angle as a major factor in what makes this story so interesting. For my money, the most interesting thing about the rise of Jeremy Lin is not his racial/ethnic heritage, but his basketball pedigree. Being from an Ivy League school is almost as rare in the modern NBA as an Asian-American.

Jeremy Lin is the first Ivy player to suit up for an NBA squad since the 2003 season, and the first player from Harvard since the 1940s! In the history of the Ivys, they have only produced 41 NBA players as a conference, with Lin's alma mater producing more United States Presidents (seven) than NBA players (four)! I mean, when you think of basketball, Harvard and Yale don't spring to mind!

So if there is something to be marveled at in the story of "Linsanity," this is what it is to me.

The NBA isn't like the NFL, MLB or NHL where sleepers are commonplace. In the league, to be considered for a roster spot, you almost have to be a known quantity from a "name" school, which is what makes Lin's story so remarkable to this basketball fan.

So as the story continues to unfold, take a moment to think of how far Lin has come in his basketball journey. It's not every day that you see a player make the leap from Harvard to the NBA, so enjoy it while it lasts!