Chiang Ying-ying/Associated Press
Former NBA and current G League guard Jeremy Lin released a statement Saturday on Twitter on the heels of his allegation that he was called “coronavirus” during a game this season.
According to ESPN, Lin wrote Thursday in a Facebook post, “Being a 9 year NBA veteran doesn’t protect me from being called ‘coronavirus’ on the court.”
A league official told ESPN’s Marc J. Spears on Friday the G League is investigating Lin’s allegation.
Part of Lin’s statement Saturday read: “Fighting ignorance with ignorance will get us nowhere. Sharing our own pain by painting another group of people with stereotypes is NOT the way.”
The 32-year-old Lin spent nine seasons with the Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte Hornets, Brooklyn Nets, Atlanta Hawks and Toronto Raptors from 2010 through 2019.
He averaged 11.6 points, 4.3 assists and 2.8 rebounds in 480 regular-season games and won an NBA title with Toronto in 2019.
After Lin went unsigned in free agency in 2019, he spent last season in the Chinese Basketball Association, but he returned stateside for the 2020-21 campaign with the G League’s Santa Cruz Warriors.
In five games, Lin is averaging 19.6 points, 7.2 assists, 2.8 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 3.0 three-pointers while shooting 48.3 percent from the field and 48.4 percent from beyond the arc.
Lin has long proved he is good enough to play in the NBA, and he could join a roster this season if he keeps playing at this level.
Lin is performing on a much smaller stage than he has in his career, but his thoughts on social issues continue to carry weight given his experiences as an Asian American and the popularity he has cultivated.
