AP Photo/Chris Szagola
- The Toronto Raptors defeated the Golden State Warriors 114-110 on Thursday night to win their first NBA championship in franchise history.
- While Kawhi Leonard was named NBA Finals MVP in a near-unanimous vote, on Twitter, fans instead celebrated NBA journeyman Jeremy Lin for getting his first championship ring.
- Lin’s status in NBA mythos was already sealed forever thanks to his days in New York, but after Thursday, he’s also a champion for life.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
The Toronto Raptors defeated the Golden State Warriors 114-110 on Thursday night to win their first NBA championship in franchise history.
While Kawhi Leonard was named NBA Finals MVP in a near-unanimous vote, on Twitter, fans instead celebrated a player that barely took the court for the Raptors this postseason — Jeremy Lin.
Read more: Toronto Raptors beat the Golden State Warriors to win their first championship in franchise history
After going undrafted in 2010, Lin briefly became an NBA sensation in 2012, when he became the unlikely hero of the New York Knicks and introduced the world to "Linsanity."
Since then, Lin has stayed in the league as a journeyman, spending time with the Rockets, Lakers, Hornets, Nets, and Hawks, before joining the Raptors bench in February 2019.
Lin played just 27 minutes this postseason for the Raptors, but when the final buzzer sounded on Thursday night, he became a champion. On Twitter, fans celebrated his success with praise, love, and some jokes at the expense of other players around the league.
Lin’s status in NBA mythos was already sealed forever thanks to his days in New York, but after Thursday, he’s also a champion for life.
- Read more from Tyler Lauletta:
Raptors fans are raising money for Kevin Durant’s charity after some cheered his injury
Kawhi Leonard struggled to understand why his teammates weren’t as good as him in college
NOW WATCH: New York City is getting even more infested with rats. Here’s why cities can’t get rid of them.
See Also:
- An obscure NBA rule that is only 2 years old led to the Raptors’ controversial timeout in NBA Finals loss
- Nick Nurse called a bizarre timeout late in the fourth quarter that killed the Raptors momentum and sent the Warriors on their game-winning hot streak
- Raptors players told their fans to stop heckling Kevin Durant after he re-injured his calf and it ended in a standing ovation for the Warriors superstar
Source: Business Insider – feedback@businessinsider.com (Tyler Lauletta)