Jeremy Lin Leaves NBA, Returns to Beijing Ducks

In 2020 Jeremy Lin announced his departure from the Chinese Basketball Association, in order to pursue his career in the NBA. A less-than-ideal placement in the Association’s G-League ended with Lin among the season’s top players, but ultimately without a contract offer from any NBA team.

Now, Lin has announced his return to the Beijing Ducks. The star is far from crestfallen, though — he’s approaching his new chapter with excitement (as he once told us, this was always part of the plan).

No regrets about the past, excited for the future. Still got a lot of basketball left in me and we’ll see where this road goes. Beijing Ducks, excited to be back! Thank you all for going on this journey with me #NeverDone pic.twitter.com/axfivntlCO — Jeremy Lin (@JLin7) June 11, 2021

Almost a decade removed from the days of “Linsanity” in the NBA’s 2012-13 season, Lin has done a lot, taking on more than just a player role. He’s kept busy judging basketball reality shows in China, as well as checking in on his two charity foundations.

On the tail end of his breakout season, Lin founded both the Jeremy Lin Foundation in the US and the Jeremy Lin-LiQun Sports Foundation in China. Both organizations work to in youth education and basketball; the US organization leans into Lin’s Christian faith, while the China-based operation aims to expand the sport’s popularity and equip communities with the gift of basketball.

“I’ve always known that my journey in some ways would end in China, that I would come back here and take the experiences that I had growing up in America in that immigrant life that I was able to experience… I want to be able to help as many kids as I can in China.”

In his 2019-20 CBA season, Lin was able to lead the Beijing Ducks to the final four teams, ultimately being knocked out in a close match to eventual champions the Guangdong Southern Tigers. In his return, Lin seeks to outdo that performance, and focus in on the Chinese side of the sport.