Yang Hansen, the 7-foot-1 rookie out of China, made his first NBA start in a game Sunday against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Hansen, picked 16th in last summer's draft, moved into the starting lineup after the Portland Trail Blazers primary centers -- Donovan Clingan and Robert Williams III
-- missed the game. Williams was a late scratch due to an illness, and
Clingan missed his second straight contest with a left lower-leg
contusion [...]
Yang entered the game averaging 2.5 points and 1.5 rebounds. He had a season-high nine points in a 127-110 home loss to the Phoenix Suns on Nov. 18.
He
finished Sunday night's game with four points on 2-of-5 shooting and
five rebounds in slightly more than 19 minutes. His four points came in
the third quarter, which included a spin move and a dunk over 7-foot-3 Zach Edey.
I know I know but this popped up in my feed again and I thought, I was going to post something up before the finals, and then I was watching the finals, and then...well now we have this. If they make it back next year I'll do a much longer post and more in-depth...but you gotta get to another finals SGA!
From NBC: "But Parker's ancestry -- his mother is from the Polynesian island of Tonga -- also makes him the highest-ranked Asian-Pacific Islander ever to be drafted by the NBA."
From PhilStar: "Filipino-American player Jordan Clarkson has been acquired by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2014 NBA Draft on Friday morning [...] Clarkson, a shooting guard from the Missouri Tigers, has a Filipino mother."
There're just too many levels to this whole thing and I can't really decide what I'd like to see.
So here's my list of things I'd like (in a perfect set of multiverses).
1. Donald Sterling Gets Castration + Dick Chopping On Pay Per View. Sure, I don't want to see those nasty looking old whitey ballsacks, but I'd still pay per view it just to know it happened.
2. Clippers Do A Walkout For One Or More Games. I know there would be penalties and contract issues and I wouldn't want to see any of the Clipper players lose any money that they can take away from Sterling, but the other side is simply - who wants to take money from a racist boss? Money aside - I'd love to see that playoff series stop because of this and then let all hell break loose - because then you have take some drastic measures - and sure there would be an asterisk next to the final winner - if they can figure that out anyway - but it's not like the Spurs don't have one either...
3. Clippers Win The Championship. Sterling Gets Fined $100 Million And Loses Franchise. Nothing more on this one.
4. All Of The Above. Hear me out and just remember it's my multiverses and I can still have contradictions. Clippers walkout for one game. Series stops. They go back and decide to finish it out, move on, and win the championship. Sterling loses the franchise, goes completely broke, but gets an offer to make $1 million dollars by getting castrated + his dick chopped on PPV. Broke, shitting himself, and in dire need of anyone to touch his balls, decides to do it where after "the big night" gets a letter from the IRS saying that he owes them a million. Mmmmm...smells like chopped dick and justice.
Sure, some might say that being an NBA cheerleader doesn't promote the cause of strong API women and only serves to keep the fetish alive and well for the non API masses.
Others might say that if you equate being a cheeleader to a sexual toy this might be your own insecurities and projections on sex.
Still others like myself might just say you can catch a full feature down at Asiance Magazine if you're interested.
Jeremy Lin's story is a great lesson for kids everywhere because it debunks and defangs so many of the prejudices and stereotypes that unfairly hold children back. He's dispelled the idea that Asian-American guards somehow couldn't hack it in the NBA — and that being a world-class athlete on the court is somehow at odds with being an excellent student off the court. Contrary to what you might read, Jeremy, 23, is no overnight sensation. In fact, he achieved success the old-fashioned way: he earned it. He worked hard and stayed humble. He lives the right way; he plays the right way.
I haven't really posted much on Jeremy Lin - just watching and listening to a lot of other people smarter than me put out the good word on all that's surrounding him including everything from R to IST.
But I do wonder - what if Linsanity was a little more Bad Boy? What if he was tatted from head to toe and had an entourage and had some off the court drama even in the short time he was in the spotlight? Would people stay he was still breaking stereotypes? Or does the fact that he is humble, was good off the court - personally and academically - also still fall in line with what people think about Asian Americans? What if next year after he signs a decent contract he goes out and gets a tattoo on his neck and gets some funky ass green hair?
If you haven't gotten a chance to sit down and read this article yet on Linsanity by Hyphen Blog Editor Erin Khue Ninh - grab a chair, get a drink, and definitely take it all in.
Have there been famous Asian Americans before Lin? Of course. In sports, even. But Michael Chang inspired other Asian kids to play tennis; he didn't inspire all manner of Americans to sport his face. As for skater Michelle Kwan, the infamous MSNBC headline about her Olympic loss says it all: "American beats out Kwan." The difference between his predecessors and Lin is the difference between tolerance and identification -- between being a "them" that's allowed to hang around, and being "us."
More than an expansion of politically correct speech, this is about how America sees itself when it looks in the mirror. We do this thing when we watch Daniel Craig in a Bond film or Michael Jordan in a commercial, when our superheroes leap tall buildings in a single bound: We identify. They become our Ideal-I, our more capable and smarter and faster selves. And even if we look nothing like them and can do nothing like them, even if any resemblance is imaginary, that misrecognized self becomes a part of who we are.
Sure, Tim Legler doesn't think Lin will be able to keep it up at "this level" - but that's okay - sometimes we really are the sleeping giants - and no, that wasn't an allusion to anything that you might be thinking, and yes - you know as well as I do that sometimes we chinky MF's just don't get the credit we deserve (and yes, I did use that phrase in that way for all the reasons you can probably guess, but if you can't, there's not much I can do for you).
Before the game was over, the Madison Square Garden fans were openly cheering "M-V-P!" for Jeremy Lin.
Lin signed with the New York Knicks two days after Christmas and saw little playing time in his first month. However, on Jan. 28, he played 20 minutes and racked up six assists. This Saturday, he played 35 minutes and scored 25 points against the New Jersey Nets. By Monday, he was the starting point guard, putting up career-highs with 28 points, eight assists and eight turnovers to lead the Knicks over the Jazz, 99-88, without either Carmelo Anthony (left in the first quarter with a groin strain) or Amare Stoudmire (mourning the loss of his brother).
One thing that separates Lin from the other point guards on the Knicks' roster is his passing ability, especially in the pick-and-roll. Against the Utah Jazz, Lin repeatedly gave Tyson Chandler and Jared Jeffries the ball in good position to score. The two forwards combined for 23 points, mostly because of Lin's ability to find the dive man.
"I wish him luck," Misaka said Tuesday from his home in Salt Lake City, Utah. "I don't know exactly what kind of player he is, except for what I've read about him. I sure hope that he can stick. New York could be a great place for him, although Oakland would've been great too with all of the Chinese people that are in California. I think it was one of the reasons why they drafted him. He should have a big following [in New York] if he gets a chance to play."
And just in case you were wondering, in the first five games that Lin has been on the roster with the Knicks, he's played in 1 game (against Detroit), playing 4 minutes with 4 points and one turnover.
Since the NBA is in lockout mode (and congratulations to the World Champion Lynx) and no one else has anything to really say - they're talking about whether or not you're going to get your contract extension, and I just wanted to let you know that melding talent together isn't easy - I mean hey - look at me - I have tons of talent (not for anything useful but that's beside the point...) and it's hard enough just getting my one and only ass out the door on time and not getting lost on my way to work after I miss my exit because I spilled coffee on myself.
I can't even being to imagine the pressure on you and trying to coach a team to an NBA championship with so many different personalities.
But don't worry.
No te preocupes ban toi.
If you don't get that extension and you find yourself jobless - I know one career you can completely go into.
Porn.
Seriously - people would love to see you in your own personal sex tape shaking that Fil Am ass like you're going for the slam dunk ready to get hardcore on a bevy of beautiful porn vixens.
I've been so far out of the news-o-sphere that while you may have known this - well - I just found out:
A large scroll behind the player who brought China to the NBA and the NBA to China summed up the occasion.
"Ming xie," it said in large Chinese characters that, loosely translated, mean "Yao Ming, thanks, the end."
Yao, with teary eyes at times and dressed in an equally somber black suit, closed the book Wednesday on his eight-year career with the Houston Rockets, conceding that injuries finally got the best of him.
5-on-5: Sizing Up Yao
How does Yao Ming measure up as his career comes to an end? The 5-on-5 crew explores his legacy -- and what might have been if not for injuries. Story • Yao vs. NBA's greatest Insider • Yao leaves hole in Rockets' D Insider
"My past six months were an agonizing wait. I had been thinking (about my future) over and over," the 30-year-old Yao said in comments translated into English. "Today I am announcing a personal decision: ending my career as a basketball player and officially retire. But one door is closing and another one is opening."
Yao said he would return to work with his former Chinese team, the Shanghai Sharks, with the possibility of becoming general manager. He already owns the club and wants to contribute more.
"My playing career started with the club. I hope I can do something for it," Yao said.
Yao's wife, Ye Li, and their 14-month-old daughter, Yao Qinlei, and Yao's parents, Yao Zhiyuan and Fang Fengdi, were in the room. Qinlei was dressed in a red qipao, a traditional Chinese dress.
He later appeared with his family on the stage to the applause and cheers of the crowd.
I'm not sure sure who's going to win this game but I'm thinking you might want to be there watch it.
Join the Golden State Warriors for Asian Heritage Night - an evening of fun and exciting Warriors basketball at Oracle Arena! A portion of each ticket will benefit local Asian community organizations, including San Francisco Hep B Free and the AsianWeek Foundation!
See Stephen Curry, Monta Ellis, David Lee, Jeremy Lin and the new-look Warriors take on Baron Davis and the Clippers. Enjoy cultural performances and group seating in our special Asian Heritage sections, plus an exclusive post-game Q&A with Warriors guard Jeremy Lin!
Additional discounts are available for groups of 15-or-more by contacting Troy Corti at (510) 986-5408 or tacorti@gs-warriors.com.
The slantyapolis/seftre blog has served millions of views trying to help in its own way, to give voice to the Asian and Asian American community, as well as document it, over the last 18 years. Sometimes op-ed, sometimes straight news, sometimes off the beaten path--the continued impetus remains that there's power in sharing voices and in sharing your own voice and reflecting that back into the communities you belong to.
If you're looking for the 2008 In Review Posts, the link list has been moved out, but you can still get to them all by following this link which pulls them up by label (they'll be in reverse so go to the oldest post to read them in order).
2007 In Review Posts
If you're looking for the 2007 In Review Posts, the link list has been moved out, but you can still get to them all by following this link which pulls them up by label (they'll be in reverse so go to the oldest post to read them in order).
