Lin OK being role model but not a phenomenon

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4:52 PM ET

NEW YORK — Brooklyn Nets point guard Jeremy Lin has embraced becoming a role model in the years following “Linsanity,” but he doesn’t want to be simply referred to as a phenomenon.

“Everything happened overnight,” Lin said Wednesday at a news conference. “When [Linsanity] first started, I am not going to lie, it was cool. Then it became a burden because I didn’t know what I had gotten myself into. I didn’t know how big things had become. One, two, three years removed, every year I embrace it more, every year I am more appreciative, every year I love it more and that is where I am right now.”

Lin, who signed a three-year, $36 million contract to play in Brooklyn and reunite with former coach Kenny Atkinson, had his stunning 11-game run of dominance with New York in 2012 after being on the verge of getting released. During that stretch, he averaged nearly 24 points to go along with nine assists.

Jeremy Lin had an 11-game run of dominance in New York with the Knicks in 2012 after being on the verge of getting released. During that stretch, he averaged nearly 24 points and nine assists. Ohm Youngmisuk/ESPN

“I’m in a much, much different place mentally as a person than I was when I was with the Knicks,” Lin said. “So when you talk about that platform, I want to embrace it. I am not just saying Asians. If you look at what is going on in the world and a lot of violence that is going on in the world in terms of the justice system and all of these different things that is real life. That is so much bigger than basketball. I have a voice because of basketball to be able to talk and influence [people] and do things that are related to things that are affecting people’s lives and things every day. That is a very unique situation.”

Asked specifically if Linsanity …

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