Jeremy Lin is one of the most compelling stories in professional sports, occupying a unique place in the public consciousness. The Los Angeles Lakers guard is just 26, yet the level of his fame makes it seem like his name has been around much longer than a couple of years. (It was only 2012 when he played his dazzling Linsanity games in New York.) Lin rejected many of the business opportunities that were offered to him after his dramatic flare into fame. Think about it: Lin was the first Chinese (or Taiwanese) American to play in the NBA, he went to Harvard and he chose New York City to burst out in. Myriad companies wanted Lin to represent their brands. He’s global, smart, upstanding and athletic–what brand doesn’t want those associations? As Lin told Bloomberg, “If I had accepted everything, I don’t know the exact number, but I would have been making way more off the court than on the court.” For a guy making $15 million this year, that’s saying something.
But he didn’t do it. He tread carefully, modestly–focusing on his game and getting better. “We’ve turned away almost everything, just because I do think my purpose is to play basketball, play well, and play for the glory of God,” Lin told Bloomberg in an interview. Lin’s recent partnership with Whistle Network Sports will help Lin manage his YouTube channel, where he does some pretty funny stuff. While lots of players have Instagram and Twitter accounts, Lin is one of the few with an active YouTube channel. Hey especially now that he’s in LA–it’s only natural that film is his medium. He’s got so many fans all over the world that it’s a natural format for him–he can speak directly in a way those other technologies don’t allow. Lin’s YouTube channel already has nearly 400,000 followers.
