Real men don't use exclamation points. That was a lesson I was taught many years ago. However, I'm using one today. I don't care what you say.
I hate the NBA. I'm proud to say I've never watched an entire game on TV. In fact, it's been years since I've even watched 30 seconds of a game. I've got a lot of reasons for feeling this way but the primary ones are that NBA teams don't play defense, the continuation rule is ridiculous, and players are allowed to blatantly carry the basketball. NBA basketball just isn't a sport -- it's pure entertainment. I don't have time for it.
As if I needed another reason to hate the NBA, let's talk about Kobe Bryant. You know him. He's the guy who's always on SportsCenter with the permanent scowl and the "woe-is-me" attitude. Give it up, Kobe. You went to Lower Merion High School. Your father was a professional basketball player. You are not downtrodden and you never were.
With all that said, why did I find myself standing at attention at 5:15AM this morning in front of the TV, anxiously checking the scroll at the bottom of SportsCenter for NBA scores? Simple. I needed to see if the Knicks won last night. Why? Because I've gone Linsane.
It all started last Saturday morning at 4:40AM. I'd been awake for over an hour. I knew there was no chance of getting back to sleep so I finally gave up trying and decided to turn on the TV. After cycling through all the channels, I realized that there weren't many options. ESPN was showing a repeat of the Friday night game between the Knicks and the Lakers. I'd heard all the growing hoopla about Jeremy Lin and I was mildly intrigued. There were about 5 minutes of game time left so I took a deep breath and decided to see what all the excitement was about. Twenty minutes later, I was hooked. This Jeremy Lin guy was the real deal. He had the crowd at Madison Square Garden standing and cheering. Even I pumped a fist when he made a reverse lay-up with about 90 seconds to go, icing the game.
Ever since, I've been captivated. I love that Jeremy Lin and his Knicks beat Kobe and the Lakers. I love that he's a Harvard grad. I love how he calmly hit that three-pointer with 0.5 seconds left last night to beat Toronto. And, I love that Lin is doing all this with the Knicks' big gun, Carmelo Anthony, sitting on the bench in street clothes.
But, you know what I love most? It's the fact that, at dinner tonight, even Kim was talking about "Linderalla." You read that right. Kim has caught the fever.
The Knicks play again tonight. As usual, I won't be watching the game. I haven't gone that "Linsane." But, I know that I'll be in front of the TV as soon as I wake up in the morning, looking to find out what my man Jeremy Lin did tonight against the Kings.
