Who knew the underdog story of a star basketball player in America would parallel political strife in the Far East? And that he would become yet another point of disagreement between a world power and a fledgling separatist state?

Jeremy Lin is the feel good story for the NBA and America at large. The underdog story of a Taiwanese-American and Harvard graduate who had no D-1 offers and went undrafted is dominating sports media right now.

Lin had 38 points versus Kobe Bryant and the New York Knicks. The legend grew. Then he hit a buzzer-beating, game winning three-pointer versus the Toronto Raptors last night. With Tuesday’s 90-87 win over Toronto, the Knicks are now 7-0 in the Lin era. In just a week and change, the Knicks have gone from coach-on-the-seat to playoff position.

His exploits have caught world media attention, and made him a huge star in Taiwan, an obscure island state (recognized as a nation by just 23 countries, considered part of China by the rest) with a population of 23 million. The Taiwanese are currently celebrating Lin as one of their own countrymen.

However the Chinese have sovereignty of Taiwan, and therefore the Chinese believe Lin is one of theirs.

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Jeremy Lin is the feel good story for the NBA and America at large. The underdog story of a Taiwanese-American and Harvard graduate who had no D-1 offers and went undrafted is dominating sports media right now.

Lin had 38 points versus Kobe Bryant and the New York Knicks. The legend grew. Then he hit a buzzer-beating, game winning three-pointer versus the Toronto Raptors last night. With Tuesday’s 90-87 win over Toronto, the Knicks are now 7-0 in the Lin era. In just a week and change, the Knicks have gone from coach-on-the-seat to playoff position.

His exploits have caught world media attention, and made him a huge star in Taiwan, an obscure island state (recognized as a nation by just 23 countries, considered part of China by the rest) with a population of 23 million.

From the AP:

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