It seems Jeremy Lin can't get a break in the NBA even after being the focus of a fan-made video highlighting the alleged lack of response from the league and referees regarding some of the hard hits he took while on the court. NBA officials have already seen the clip but maintained that they are not biased against the Charlotte Hornets guard.
The focus of the clip, which was uploaded by user Hsiu-Chen Kuei on YouTube basically focused on why flagrant fouls were not issued on other players despite their obvious aggressive actions on Lin during games.
The clip demonstrated this by first showing players issued flagrant fouls after hitting players from another team. But, for Lin, it seems the case is a bit different. In one of the scenes in the video, Lin was seen jumping to make a shot when he was suddenly clotheslined by Kobe Bryant.
The hit on his neck caused by Bryant's arm, which commentators likened to a decapitation, caused Lin to fall hard against the call. But, despite the seriousness of the act, only a common foul was given to the Lakers star.
In another scene, Lin was driving the ball when he gets slapped in the face by Wesley Johnson, which immediately caused his nose to bleed. This time, however, not even a common foul was issued to Johnson. Kuei said that the referees didn't even bother to review the replay to see the hit.
Then, in a different game, Carmelo Anthony game Lin a bicep uppercut in the face. Again, no foul was called during the game.
The video was then picked up by the New York Times which then helped in boosting the viral nature of the video. Eventually, reports about the video and the clip itself managed to reach the NBA, prompting the professional basketball league to respond with a statement.
According to the league, after going through its officiating database, it ruled that the fouls committed against Lin were not flagrant.
"After reviewing our extensive database, we have found no data that suggests Jeremy Lin is disadvantaged by out officiating staff," NBA said in a statement. "NBA referees use a set of criteria provided by the league office in determining whether a foul should be called flagrant."
"Furthermore, given the infrequency of flagrant fouls (roughly 1 per 500 foul calls), it is not statistically significant that none of Mr. Lin's 814 fouls drawn were deemed flagrant."
