Jeremy Lin Calls Season With Lakers One of the Toughest of Career After Being Benched
Jeremy Lin has lost his starting point guard position on the Los Angeles Lakers and admits the season is one of the toughest he has played in his career.
Lin, the 26-year-old Los Angeles Lakers guard, was recently benched by Lakers coach Byron Scott in favor of guard Ronnie Price. The Christian athlete spoke to ESPN senior writer Ramona Shelbourne about the tough time that has resulted in a 5-16 record for the team.
Lin responded to losing his starting spot by saying it was "one of the toughest situations I've ever been in ever since I've started playing the game of basketball."
"Spiritually, I've really been challenged to seek humility even more each day. When life is tough, it forces me to re-evaluate everything and learn to depend on God more than I initially think I need to," Lin wrote on his personal website. "God continually stretches me and challenges me through basketball, and I'm just trying to live each day pleasing Him."
Lin said he was leaning on the verse John 3:30 to help him through the pain of losing this
season.
"One verse that has really spoke to me recently is John 3:30: He must increase but I must decrease," Lin wrote. "This is counterintuitive to everything society preaches, but more of God and less of me is always the best formula!"
Last October, the NBA star revealed that he would begin a prayer group that fans can be involved in, while encouraging people to submit their prayer requests. In his previous blog post last month, Lin shared another scripture that was helping him through the 2014-2015 NBA season.
"Also a verse that I think God has put on my heart for this season is Ephesians 3:20 — Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than we all ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us," he wrote.