What a difference a few days makes.
Just a week ago, Palo Alto-native and pro-basketball hopeful Jeremy Lin was known to his family, his friends from Palo Alto High School and those who follow Harvard basketball.
Today, he is signing an NBA contract with the team he routed for as a kid, the Golden State Warriors.
NBC Bay Area was first to break the news of the Warriors deal Tuesday night. The team and Lin will hold a joint press conference Wednesday for the proverbial photo of Lin holding a team jersey. After that comes a very nice paycheck.
The Golden State Warriors needed some depth at point guard and Lin fit that bill. Out of Harvard Lin went undrafted, but last week he grabbed the attention of scouts across the league with a strong showing at the NBA Summer League while playing with the Dallas Mavericks.
That showing had several teams looking to sign the peninsula native including the Mavs, the Lakers and the Wizards. In the end, the Warriors won.
Golden State had a spot at the point after trading C.J. Watson to the Chicago Bulls.
Lin will become one of just a handful of Asian Americans to play in the NBA. Wataru Misaka is believed to be the first. He was drafted by the Knicks and played a few games for New York in 1947.
University of San Francisco head coach Rex Walters, who played high school basketball in San Jose, and like Misaka is also Japanese American, played in the NBA from 1993 to 2000.
