UPDATE: Warrior Jeremy Lin Will Not ID Source Of On-Court 'Coronavirus' Taunt
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- NBA veteran Jeremy Lin, who is attempting to resurrect his career by playing with the Golden State Warriors G League team, has taken to social media complaining that he has been called 'coronavirus' on court.
But in a followup post on Saturday, Lin said he will not be identifying the source of the racist taunt.
"I know this will come as a disappointment to some of you but I'm not naming or shaming anyone," he tweeted. "What good does it do in this situation for someone to be torn down. It doesn't make my community safer or solve any of our long-term problems with racism."
— Jeremy Lin (@JLin7) February 27, 2021
The NBA said it will be launching an investigation into the claims. The G League is playing in a bubble in Orlando with no fans allowed at the game.
Lin, an Asian-American Bay Area native who starred at Harvard and played for several NBA teams and the Beijing Ducks last season, currently is averaging 19.6 points and 7.2 assists a game for Santa Cruz.
He is best known for a run of outstanding play as a member of the New York Knicks during the 2011–12 season, generating a cultural phenomenon known as "Linsanity".
Head coach Steve Kerr was asked about Lin's social media post.
"Really powerful. I applaud Jeremy for his words and echo his sentiments regarding racism against the Asian-American community," Kerr said before Golden State hosted Charlotte at Chase Center. "It's just so ridiculous and obviously spawned by many people, including our former president, as it relates to the coronavirus originating in China. It's just shocking. I can't wrap my head around any of it, but I can't wrap my head around racism in general.
"We're all just flesh and blood. We're all just people. As (Gregg) Pop (Popovich) once said to me, `We're all accidents of birth. We're born. We come out the way we are. We don't have a say in it. What we do have a say in is how we treat people.′ It's shocking to me that we can treat each other so poorly based on the color of skin or whatever it is. So I applaud Jeremy for speaking up."
Lin's racially motivated taunting claims came in a post on Instagram where he condemned the wave of violence against Asian-Americans.
"Something is changing in this generation of Asian Americans," he posted. "We are tired of being told that we don't experience racism, we are tired of being told to keep our heads down and not make trouble. We are tired of Asian American kids growing up and being asked where they're REALLY from, of having our eyes mocked, of being objectified as exotic or being told we're inherently unattractive."
"We are tired of the stereotypes in Hollywood affecting our psyche and limiting who we think we can be. We are tired of being invisible, of being mistaken for our colleague or told our struggles aren't as real.
"I want better for my elders who worked so hard and sacrificed so much to make a life for themselves here. I want better for my niece and nephew and future kids. I want better for the next generation of Asian American athletes than to have to work so hard to just be "deceptively athletic."
Being an Asian American doesn't mean we don't experience poverty and racism. Being a 9-year NBA veteran doesn't protect me from being called "coronavirus" on the court. Being a man of faith doesn't mean I don't fight for justice, for myself and for others. So here we are again, sharing how we feel. IS ANYONE LISTENING??"