Jeremy Lin Named NBA TV's First Ever 'Social Breakout Player of the Year'
Jeremy Lin has managed to break another record in the NBA after recently being named NBA TV's "Social Breakout Player of the Year."
Lin, the New York Knicks starting point guard who had to end his season early due to a knee injury that required surgery, was given the honor for the first time in NBA TV history after showcasing increased popularity on Twitter and Facebook through the course of the 2011-2012 season. Lin, who was dubbed "Linsanity" after becoming the first player to score 20 points with seven assists in his first five NBA starts back in February, managed to lead the league in Twitter mentions this past season.
During the first week of "Linsanity" when the guard helped his team gain a winning streak from Feb. 4 to 9, Lin had 189,004 Twitter mentions. The Miami Heat's forward Lebron James followed closely behind the Knicks guard with 185,847 mentions on the social networking website, while Los Angeles Clippers' Blake Griffin had 19,964 Twitter mentions.
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However, Lin put up even more impressive numbers during the height of "Linsanity" when 1,643,284 tweets spoke about his performance, and his Twitter followers increased from 20,000 to 30,000. Lin also proved his international appeal on Sina, the Chinese version of Twitter, where his 190,000 fans increased to 250,000.
The honor will not be the first time Lin's talents will be recognized this season. Although he was forced to leave the Knicks after a regular season-ending knee injury, Lin was selected as a divisional winner of the NBA Sportsmanship Award.
The NBA Sportsmanship Award honors players who represent sportsmanship during the season. The Asian-American guard was also named in Time magazine's "The 100 Most Influential People in the World."
Lin will officially be honored for his latest accomplishment at the inaugural Social Media Awards which will be broadcast on NBA TV Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET.
