If you haven't heard of Jeremy Lin, you must be living under a rock with no access to modern day media. He has taken the sports world by storm, from New York Knicks bench warmer about to be cut from the team to starting point guard. Oh, and the Knicks had lost 7 in a row pre-Lin and has won 9 of 11 with him in the starting lineup. Coincidence? Not at all!
Lin is handling the pressure of being an NBA starter and delivering on the biggest stage, New York City! So the million (most likely several millions) question is... Should brands be jumping on the "Lin-sanity" bandwagon?
"We're talking a little bit of everything," Roger Montgomery, president of Montgomery Sports Group and Mr. Lin's agent, told CNBC last week. "A variety of categories. All the big ones, small, intermediate ... everybody is interested in Jeremy Lin." Are brands jumping the gun by trying to sign Lin now? What happens when the "Lin-sanity" dies down, will he still be a good pitch person? What if he leaves the Knicks next year for another team? What happens when NBA teams make adjustments and his off the chart numbers come back down to reality?
It is difficult to gauge the shelf life of NBA players, not including superstars like Kobe Bryant and Lebron James. What we do know about Lin is that the kid can play---in the NBA! Will he be able to keep up his averages of 24 points and 9 assists? Probably not. Is Lin a sure bet as a brand spokesperson? At the moment (and in the foreseeable future), the answer is a resounding yes!
Lin is handling the pressure of being an NBA starter and delivering on the biggest stage, New York City! So the million (most likely several millions) question is... Should brands be jumping on the "Lin-sanity" bandwagon?
"We're talking a little bit of everything," Roger Montgomery, president of Montgomery Sports Group and Mr. Lin's agent, told CNBC last week. "A variety of categories. All the big ones, small, intermediate ... everybody is interested in Jeremy Lin." Are brands jumping the gun by trying to sign Lin now? What happens when the "Lin-sanity" dies down, will he still be a good pitch person? What if he leaves the Knicks next year for another team? What happens when NBA teams make adjustments and his off the chart numbers come back down to reality?
It is difficult to gauge the shelf life of NBA players, not including superstars like Kobe Bryant and Lebron James. What we do know about Lin is that the kid can play---in the NBA! Will he be able to keep up his averages of 24 points and 9 assists? Probably not. Is Lin a sure bet as a brand spokesperson? At the moment (and in the foreseeable future), the answer is a resounding yes!
