Almost everyone who follows basketball, and many more who don’t, have probably already heard of Jeremy Lin. For those not yet too familiar with all the hype, his play has helped the New York Knicks turn their season around with a new burst of optimism. So far, he has set stats comparable to the NBA Legends and has broken several records, all in a span of two weeks.
What makes his story even more unique is that he is one of the few Asian players in the league, he graduated from Harvard, had been cut from two other teams and was facing the same fate with the Knicks when desperation called Coach Mike D. ‘Antoni to give it a try; he exceeded expectations and the rest is, as they say, history!
What makes Jeremy Lin’s story more exciting is the fact that he, by all accounts, falls into the category of the underdog story. Not only is he an underdog, but he plays for a historically underdog team, the New York Knicks. The Knicks haven’t won a championship since the early 1970s. Although they have flirted with opportunities, they have been undermined by the likes of the Indianapolis Pacers, Miami Heat, Houston Rockets and, of course, most infamously, the Chicago Bulls.
Speaking of the Bulls, few remember that it took Michael Jordan eight years to win his first championship. He also started out as the unlikely underdog. The story of the underdogs goes something like this: Initially, no one knows who you are, ie “Jeremy Lin”. For some reason, he is given the chance to perform, meaning “despair”. At first no one believes in you, that is, “disbelief”. Then, after a few repeated shows of luck, you become, say, “interesting.” Interest becomes “curiosity.” That curiosity becomes “popularity.” Popularity coupled with continued success turns into hope, i.e. “maybe he really is that good”? That hope turns into optimism, meaning “he really is that good!” That optimism then turns into fantasy, meaning “can he even lose”? Fantasy becomes ridiculous, meaning “maybe we’ll never lose again!” That ridiculousness becomes mania, that is, “Linsanity!”
Of course, at this juncture all reason has been thrown out the window and people stop using common sense to realize that no one can be at the top forever… not even Michael Jordan! After a few stumbles, the mania subsides and we return to a more practical assessment, ie “the boy has talent!” But what makes the story so compelling is that we all consider ourselves the “underdogs.” It’s the “you don’t know what it’s like to walk in my shoes” attitude. No matter where you were born in life or under what circumstances, even if you had silver spoons in your mouth, we all feel that no one knows my pain! That’s why we identify with the underdogs and want to see them win.
The irony, though, is that if the underdogs just stayed underdogs, we’d just call them “losers.” If the loser does in fact stay on top and continues to be successful, then we call them “winners.” The point is that the underdog story is only compelling because of the journey. Everyone wants to see the underdog beat! If, in fact, the underdog wins and is still the “champ”, then we quickly get bored and want to see the next underdog dethrone them… that is, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls! Once the champion retires, loses, or fades, we honor their successes and memories by turning them into legend, folklore, or myth.
This is the cycle of life… We all desperately want to be successful in whatever area of life we pursue. But we must realize that “success is failure in reverse.” Losers become champions… champions become losers and the cycle repeats itself. We all aspire; We all get over it, but we don’t always do it in the public eye, but the underdog in all of us wants to win! Greetings to all the underdogs… keep up the good work!