NBA Rumors: Linsanity Officially Takes Act To China

Jeremy Lin is officially going back to the Chinese Basketball Association. With no interest coming from several NBA teams, the 30-year-old one-time NBA champion has reportedly agreed to play for the Beijing Shougang Ducks.

According to the South China Morning Post, the deal had been already reported to local media and that an official announcement was expected to follow. Aside from that, there were several photos posted on social media showing Linsanity being welcomed to the team.

“Beijing, I’m here,” Lin says in Mandarin in the video.

The latest move is hardly surprising since his move to the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) seemed imminent. He joins a multi-titled team that won the CBA title three times (2012, 2014 and 2015). Former NBA star Stephon Marbury was part of those championship squads before parting ways in 2017. Lin will now try to help the Ducks win its fourth and possibly more titles, depending on how long he stays with the ballclub.

Details of Lin's deal with the Ducks have yet to come out in the open. However, there was word that the Harvard graduate would be getting more than $3 million per year. Lin had previously said that he was open to playing in China but only if expectations were met, the South China Morning Post bared in a separate report.

“Of course I am thinking about the CBA,” Lin told media in Guangzhou.

It will be Lin's second coming to the CBA. He previously played for the Dongguan Leopards in 2011 before joining the New York Knicks afterward. It was that move which helped catapult his name in the NBA.

Looking ahead, it will be interesting if Lin will get another shot at the NBA. He was part of the 2018-19 NBA Champion team Toronto Raptors. After being bought out by the Atlanta Hawks, Linsanity was picked up the eventual champions to serve as one of their backup guards.

Lin hardly got to see action for the Raptors from there. The American-Asian initially questioned his contributions to the team's title-run until he eventually realized he did contribute in some capacity. Now he hopes to rebuild himself and hopefully capture the eye of some NBA team moving forward.

Linsanity joins former New Jersey Nets player Justin Hamilton and Ekpe Udoh, formerly of the Utah Jazz, at Wukesong Arena.