Jeremy Lin (right) posted this photo on social media when he made his Aug. 27 announcement, with brother Joseph of the Fubon Braves of the Super Basketball League in Taiwan.
Jeremy Lin announced on social media on Aug. 27 that he will play for the Beijing Shougang Ducks of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) for the 2019-20 season.
The former Knicks and Nets guard posted a message on Twitter, writing “Beijing, I’m coming!” He posted a picture of himself in a Beijing jersey. He also posted a message on his Instagram account.
“All I can say is THANK YOU to the NBA, my family, inner circle, every fan who came to watch or rooted for me during these 9 years!” Lin wrote. “The journey and privilege to rep Asians at the NBA level has been amazing and Im [sic] overwhelmed with gratitude for each person who has been with me each step of the way.
“Equally excited for this next step with the Beijing Ducks! I always knew my path would go through the CBA solely bc [sic] I knew how much of an honor it would be to hoop in front of all my Chinese fans. Im [sic] here now and there is more history to be made!”
Lin, 31, said in an emotional interview in Taiwan in July that he had hit rock bottom and that “free agency has been tough.”
Lin also said that “in some ways the NBA’s kind of given up on me.”
He spent last season with the Atlanta Hawks and Toronto Raptors. He was part of the Raptors team that beat the Golden State Warriors in June to win the franchise’s first NBA title. But Lin did not garner much interest in NBA free agency.
Lin was an undrafted point guard out of Harvard but made his NBA debut with the Warriors in 2010, becoming the first Chinese American to make the league.
“Linsanity” was born during a 35-game stretch with the Knicks, who signed Lin in 2011.
But Lin’s stay in New York was short. He signed with the Houston Rockets in free agency in 2012. He played for the Rockets, Lakers, and Charlotte Hornets before signing a multi-year contract with the Nets in free agency in 2016. Injuries limited Lin to just 37 games with the Nets, and he was traded to the Hawks in 2018.