Jeremy Lin Mourns The Death Of Best Friend Godfrey Gao, Wore Personalised Sneakers To Honor Him

Prior to the game against the Bayi Rockets, Jeremy Lin received bad news about the passing of his best friend Godfrey Gao. As a tribute, the NBA champion brought his memory both on the floor and on his social media accounts to celebrate the life of his pal.

After their game against the Rockets, Lin posted a short but heartfelt tribute to the Taiwanese-Canadian actor. It displays the basketball shoes that he wore with a black-and-white image resembling one of their photos together as a way to commemorate his long-time friend.

He also revealed some facts about their friendship that started from playing pick-up basketball and being on his side as he was rehabbing the “worst” injury he suffered. He also thanked him for being part of his celebrity games and providing free suits for his entire team.

Looking more at the shoe details, a Twitter used @PopoChung7 shared a closer look at the shoes that were customized to honor the actor and model. Each side showed separate messages – the left in Chinese which roughly translates to “Always be my brother” and the words “RIP Godfrey” on the right shoe.

After the game, he gave out the pair to his friend who was part of the crowd who went to the Wukesong Arena to witness Lin’s return to action after missing the last one due to back spasms. Lin is giving out his game-worn shoes after each game for this season.

The 31-year old guard also brought his tribute for his fallen friend to Weibo, sharing the same message.

Gao passed away due to cardiac arrest during the shooting of an episode of a Chinese sports reality show “Chase Me” per Yahoo Sports. The 35-year old model fell while running and was rushed to the hospital but was pronounced dead after three hours of medical efforts.

He is popularly known as the first-ever Asian face of Louis Vuitton, a luxury and fashion company based in France. He is a huge basketball fan, naming NBA greats Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant as his favorites in an interview with Men’s Folio posted on the obituary website Legacy. He also took part in all three of Jeremy Lin’s Celebrity Charity games to help underprivileged kids.