Linsanity, MD, PhD...NBA.

We are always looking for a hero - someone to inspire us. We all have aspirations to be great, to do something great. We dream of being great.

For most Asians, that dream is to go to an Ivy League school and become a doctor. If you don't have a passion for medicine, or suck at Chemistry like myself, you work hard to become a successful engineer. It's not a false stereotype. It is as calculated as every Asian's near, if not perfect, math score. Arts and athletics are frivolous talents that look good on your application, if there is room. They are most definitely not things you make a living out of. It was unheard of to play it off as more than a pasttime, until Jeremy Lin came along.

Linsanity became such a phenomenon. I recently got to watch the film that documented this phenomenon. You can only imagine the crowd it drew at the theater - the parking lot was full of every Honda imagineable and the entrance full of young Asian Americans seemingly loitering.

The film began by introducing family and the importance of Jeremy's family during his childhood. The supportive mother, the father that shared the love of the sport, and the indescribable bond between the brothers. Jeremy had a dominating high school senior year that disappointingly left him without offers from schools. Patience and faith landed him at Harvard, where he flourished. Halfway through the film you could sense that everyone in the theater was living vicariously through the then 18 year old.

The hardships then set in. Jeremy's faith was tested as he bounced from team to team, NBA to Developmental League. He continued to train and play hard until his opportunity arose. It was the moment everyone remembers...the beginning of Linsanity.

In February of 2012, Lin made his first start as a New York Knick against the Jazz. With Stoudemire and Anthony out, Lin led the team to a win streak of seven. I swear when they showed the 3-point buzzer beater against the Raptors, the entire theater erupted. Two ladies behind me were cheering like they were at the game, witnessing the amazing play for the very first time. A feel good feeling filled the theater. Everyone was wide-eyed and beaming with admiration. Every woman was smiling ear to ear as if they were watching their own son's success.

Linsanity was, and is, a huge part of Asian American culture. We were all witnesses. The life it brought to entire families is immeasurable. Hope, faith, and the overall entertainment value of sports was taken to a whole new level for a demographic mainly concerned with success in academics and one's career, not sports. Jeremy Lin may be coming off the bench this year, but his accomplishments have far exceeded anyone's expectations. Awareness has been brought and will hopefully continue to inspire those who have dreams of being something other than a doctor, lawyer, or engineer.


-bObD

Code (True) Blue.

Fanship is a tricky thing. You have your Homer Fans, the ones that love their hometown team. Whether it is the hometown they grew up in or the present day hometown. Then there is the Family Fan. Mom and Dad are Patriots fans, daughter grows up adoring Tom Brady. But really, who doesn't adore Brady? There will always be Bandwagon Fans. Those who are in it just for the wins - the least loyal of all fans.

Being from Texas, no one understands why I am a Titans fan, myself included. I became a fan when the team became the Tennessee Titans, post Houston Oilers. Something about McNair's sexy, big chest in the revamped Titans blue and Eddie George running with the Titans logo. I'm enamored by their logo - if I wasn't the mature, grown fan that I am, I would have my room wall-to-wall with "flaming thumbtack" Fatheads. With no ties to Tennessee at the time, my fandom was as random as the reintroduction of POG-playing days in the early 90's.

Last weekend, I went to my first Titans game at LP Stadium. It was refreshing and a lot of fun! The 49ers were the obvious favorites going into the game, but with Locker returning from injury and the 49ers offense showing recent weakness, it had the potential to be a good game. Too bad that wasn't the case.

The game was pretty much over by the end of the 3rd quarter, with a score of 24-0, San Francisco. Had it been a Dallas Cowboys game at the Deathstar, the fans would have been out the door and in their cars by the middle of the 3rd. The random lots around the stadium make a killing off of parking, especially for blowout games. But these Titans fans remained loyal in their seats, cheering on their team with beer(s) in hand. The stadium erupted at the beginning of the 4th quarter when the first Titans points were scored. A field goal by Bironas! You couldn't help but cheer and enjoy what was left of the game.

It was refreshing to look around and see people appreciate the game and the players, despite the imminent loss. No boo-ing or taunting. Just the love of the game being shared by a stadium full of fans. My team lost but I still walked out of the stadium a winner. At least Miller and Bud had me thinking I was a winner... GO TITANS!



-bObD

Monta Ball

Monta Ellis is a Dallas Maverick. I've been intrigued by Ellis ever since he came into the league in '05. I remember watching him put a ton of points up on some poor school on ESPN his senior year. The kid was so fast and athletic with very deep range on his jumper. Of course, I thought to myself that it was really dumb when he declared. I just thought that he was too slight to survive, but the prevailing thought I had was that he was a pure scorer. Pure scorers are born. They are not made. Monta Ellis was put on this earth to throw a round leather ball through an iron hoop.....

Last week at media day for the Mavs, Ellis gave a qoute that a lot of people found very interesting. What he said was, "I'm going to play Monta Basketball" , "If ya'll want to criticize, criticize". Well then.....Hmmmm? Reporters, Bloggers, and Fans alike are always attempting to play shrinks when it comes to athletes. What did he REALLY mean by that? This type of question doesn't matter when you really think about it deeper. We can make this really simple. Monta is going to take a lot of shots. Monta is going to make a lot of shots. Carlisle is going to try to find a way to help Monta become more efficient. I, for one, think that it will work.....offensively, that it is. Calderon will help, as will Dirty and the Matrix. He will, I repeat, WILL be more efficient than last year. He will attack the basketball more, and he will be happier because he will win more. He actually has people on his team who understand offensive tactics.

MFFL's should just embrace "Monta Ball". It's what we have bean yearning for, for a while now. It's finally here. You can't beg for a nice pair of jeans for Christmas and open the gift and it's True Religion, but you mad cause you ain't get Tom Ford. Come on man. Monta will be Monta, let's revel in it. He's ours now. We are working on a "Monta Ball" tshirt right now!



-tshurn