Jeremy Lin CBA Arrival Sets High Expectations To Break Stephon Marbury Status

All eyes are on Jeremy Lin as he makes his debut for the Beijing Shougang Ducks at the Chinese Basketball Association. The former NBA champion’s first game will be on Nov. 3 at the Wukesong Arena facing the Tianjin Pioneers.

Taking the New York Knicks in a media frenzy back in 2011-2012 season, Jeremy Lin is expected to create a similar impact in the CBA. Back then, it was the birth of another Asian to make an impact in the NBA since Yao Ming.

The Chinese sports icon stood side-by-side with Lin upon his arrival and welcoming him as the new face of the CBA.

In an exhibition game against the Zhejiang Guangsha Lions, Jeremy Lin created waves with a 40-point performance but his Beijing Ducks took home the loss.

Despite not taking the victory, Lin drew comparisons to fellow former Knick, Stephon Marbury on how he will create impact, not just in the CBA, but in the entire country of China.

Like Marbury, Lin had some odds with the New York Knicks when they allowed him to walk away in free agency after ‘Linsanity’ happened in 2012. It was even reported that Carmelo Anthony, the team’s franchise player at that time, was jealous of his teammate and drove him out to sign with the Houston Rockets.

Stephon Marbury has since become a 3-time CBA champion and a statue was erected in honor of his achievements at the MasterCard Center in Wukesong Arena

The Knick point guard was at odds with the team’s head coach Larry Brown and General Manager Isiah Thomas. He played for one more year with the Boston Celtics in 2009 with Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen before becoming a Chinese basketball superstar.

Declining to sign a veteran minimum with the Celtics, Marbury opted to go take his chances in China and it became his best decision for his career. Retiring in 2018, he is now the head coach of the Beijing Royal Fighters.

Now that Jeremy Lin arrived in the CBA, with an Asian heritage and charisma, it will be a new era in Chinese basketball heading to the new decade. It now all starts on Nov. 3.