In their first season playing together, Jeremy and Joseph Lin's first crack at a basketball championship as brothers and teammates will come via the East Asia Super League in Lapu-Lapu City.
LAPU-LAPU CITY — When Jeremy Lin chose to sign with the P.LEAGUE+’s New Taipei Kings, a move that allowed him to finally pair up with his younger brother Joseph for a pro team, “dream come true” was a central part of his announcement to mark the significant occasion.
“This is a dream come true, a dream [Joseph} and I have dreamt about our whole lives,” the former NBA sensation wrote.
Some six months later, “dream come true” remains the key theme for brothers Jeremy and Joseph, as they navigate their first season as teammates.
Even amidst nagging injuries for both, their first run in Taiwan currently has them sitting as the no. 2 seed in the P.LEAGUE+.
Overseas, the Lin brothers and their New Taipei Kings will see action in the Final Four of the East Asia Super League at the Hoops Dome here.
“This is the first time that we’re on the professional stage together, so it’s definitely very exciting,” Joseph said.
“Our goal this year is to definitely win two championships, hopefully. That will be a dream come true for us,” he added.
The goal of winning a championship (or two) definitely adds fuel to the fire for the Lin brothers.
Joseph missed out on a personal three-peat in the P.LEAGUE+ last season, losing to his former team in the Taipei Fubon Braves. Jeremy has been chasing the championship feeling again after being part of the historic Toronto Raptors title team in the NBA in 2019.
The 2024 EASL Final Four weekend is their first crack to crossing out a huge bucket list entry together as brothers and teammates.
“Yeah, in the very beginning of the season coach gave us two big goals. A lot of small goals, but two big goals,” Jeremy said.
“This [EASL] was one of them. Without a doubt, I don’t think either of us [Joe] joined New Taipei Kings to try and get second in anything really,” he added.
The dream is not one to come without a challenge though.
While Jeremy has been quite impressive for the Kings in the EASL, with averages of 18.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists, and already a couple of clutch performances to channel some Linsanity magic, he has been limited as of late with a plantar fascia injury.
Joseph was dealing with his own ankle problems earlier in the P.LEAGUE+ and EASL season, but is the more fit Lin brother for the Final Four weekend and will enter the EASL playoffs with averages of 10.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game.
“It’s been a work in progress. It’s something that we talked so much about and we just really haven’t had enough time [together],” Jeremy said.
“In the beginning he was hurt, and then in the middle I was hurt. And so really, it’s been sporadic. I think for us, we both acknowledge that there’s a lot of room for improvement, but we’ve known the ceiling is pretty high when we figure it out,” he added.
“Dream come true” extends beyond the Lin brothers finally playing on the same team together.
For Jeremy, whose decorated career somehow includes no national team appearances, playing for a team that represents his heritage in an international setting is as close as it could get to fulfilling national team duties… for now.
“It’s been difficult, through the course of my career not being able to represent a national team,” he said.
“Obviously, that’s something that I think every player takes a lot of pride in. But I just treat it, the EASL like that. So it’s been a lot of fun so far and I’ve definitely enjoyed competing internationally for sure,” Lin added.