Let's flash back quickly to February, when Jeremy Lin started making notable appearances on the court for the Knicks:

For a few days, the stock experienced slow, steady gains. And then, as Lin started performing, the rest of the world —(and the markets) took notice:

$MSG stock began to experience spikes and swells, and continued to rally. Despite Lin's injury in March that took him off the court for the rest of the season, there was little speculation that he'd be traded. In May, after the Knicks were ousted from the playoffs, talk of Lin's contract began with a dispute over the nature of his free agency, and whether or not the Knicks could exceed the salary cap in attempting to resign him. In recent weeks, it was made clear that Lin would be talking to other teams. And in recent days, it was made clear that Lin was taking some of these talks seriously.

But at the end of June, the question of how much the Knicks could pay Lin was resolved in their favor. For a moment, things looked up.

And then...

"Lin Withdraws From U.S. Select Team, Citing Free-Agent Status" - New York Times, July 3, 2012

"Knicks Get Kidd and Make Plans to Keep Lin" - New York Times, July 5, 2012

Lin stayed out of the Olympics to deal with his contract negotiation (and not run the risk of injuring himself further, so he could still court offers). Lin also signed a term sheet with Houston that the Knicks would have to begrudgingly match.

Which is when this happened:

Retuers reports:

"I think the gain in MSG shares earlier in the year as well as the Jason Kidd incident/potential Lin loss that hit the shares yesterday and today has already efficiently been reflected in the stock movement," said Miller Tabak analyst David Joyce.

What's perceived by many to be the legendary mismanagement of the New York Knicks by ownership (and is generally reflected in their winning percentage from the last few seasons) proved a decent map to see where this was headed: Regardless of Lin's ability as a player, he is a global fan phenomenon—for nerds, for Christians, for Asian-Americans—especially in New York City. Lin piqued the interest of those who had no interest in basketball prior to his rise. Lin was essentially responsible for ending one of the most bitter cable carrier disputes in recent history.

And yet: An investment in a consistent, larger fanbase, let alone the potential for Lin's play on the court to elevate the team notwithstanding (which, to an extent, was arguably proven) didn't prove enough for the brass at The Garden to resign Lin. Whether or not it was a good play or not has yet to be seen; given the track record at hand for the team, however, the very least that could be said about the move was that it's not unexpected. Not necessarily because Jeremy Lin wants to make as much money as he possibly can so much as that the Knicks seem to do whatever will further alienate fans and spectators as a matter of course.

Or as New York Post columnist Mike Vaccaro:

If the Knicks themselves asked you to look at [Jeremy Lin's numbers, comparable to his inflated asking price], you might wonder where the catch was. The Tappan Zee Bridge couldn’t span that credibility gap. And somewhere in the murky waters below rests the Knicks’ benefit of the doubt. Even if they happen to be right.

It looks like that credibility gap might extend to the fleeting glory of a high-tide share price as well.

fkamer@observer.com | @weareyourfek

A new Christian in focus.

What’s the saying? March goes in like a lion, out like a lamb? Whoever coined that turn of phrase must have been talking about frozen mutton: we’ll be leaving March in some of the coldest weather we’ve felt all year.

Still, we can almost taste summer on our tongue—or is that the waft of “Linsanity” still lingering over the West Coast, where several medical marijuana dispensaries have been forced to rebrand their newest strain of weed named after the Knicks’ point guard? (People in California care about the Knicks?)

Of course, Jeremy Lin (despite his recent lins—er, wins—oh, forget it) might be last week’s news in the face of the Jets’ new acquisition, Tim Tebow. We’re not sure how New Yorkers will react to having a religious moment every time he feels the spirit, but let’s be honest: for the Jets, Mr. Tebow is a gift from heaven. General manager Mike Tannenbaum would have designed the “t” to look like Christ on the cross if that’s what it took to get the 250-pound devotee over to Manhattan. Well, to New Jersey. Meanwhile, Mayor Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly may be praying for this cold weather to continue. At least it could keep Occupy Wall Street demonstrators from marching around the city. Zuccotti Park, Union Square, 42nd Street ... the protesters have shown up in full-force in the past two weeks, newly galvanized by the tragic death of Trayvon Martin, the Florida teen who was shot for the preposterous reason that he was purportedly looking suspicious by virtue of wearing a hoodie. (If that’s all it takes, look out, Mark Zuckerberg.) America is outraged, and if there’s one good thing to take away from this (no, it’s not popularity and unbiquitousness of hoodies, Mr. Charney), it’s that the issue of racial profiling is re-emerging at the forefront of American politics. Six Democratic senators from New York showed up to work wearing hoodies in protest.

While the Republican majority have yet to comment on this act, at least we know where Geraldo Rivera stands—in the dummy corner, after reinforcing on Fox News the idiotic notion that Trayvon Martin was killed because the way he was dressed legitimately provoked suspicion. Maybe someone should tell Mr. Rivera that his mustache is just asking for trouble. Eventually, someone is going to confuse him for a creepy, overly touchy bad uncle. Really, what did he expect, running around in public with that ’stash? The whole thing just leaves us, well, cold.

image via USA Today

The Statue of Liberty is Tebowing on the back cover of today's New York Daily News.

The tabloid has swiftly transferred its hype-mongering efforts from Knicks phenomenon Jeremy Lin to the newest New York Jet, Tim Tebow, promising "Timsanity."

Yesterday's trade of the Denver Broncos quarterback was also splashed on The News' front cover, as well as that of  rival New York Post. The News went with a simple "Amen," while The Post has Mr. Tebow taking a knee in Times Square.

The Post headline is "God Him!"--an apparent reference to the "Got Him!" cover the paper published the morning after Osama bin Laden was killed.

We'll call the curious equation of these two events "Osama Binsanity."

A few weeks ago we took note of Steinbrenner Syndrome, wherein a New York City sports player or team is only as loved as their last great performance. It's the disease embedded in the genetic code of New York City's sports media and fans. Now, as far as Linsanity's concerned, we can consider ourselves relapsed.

In today's New York Times, Howard Beck lays it bare in his headline: "Linsanity Has Left The Building," and who notes in his second paragraph that it's "the end of Linsanity as we know it." The primary case concerns the resignation of coach Mike D’Antoni, and his replacement, Mike Woodson, whose style of coaching (veterans over rookies, isolation play) doesn't favor Jeremy Lin (a rookie who thrives on the pick-and-roll offense). All this, even as Beck admits:

Despite his recent struggles, Lin remains wildly popular at the Garden, and with fans around the world, who were captivated by his incredible, come-from-nowhere rise. Lin is beloved by most of his teammates, who appreciate him for reviving their season with a seven-game winning streak and what seemed like a million uncanny clutch plays. But circumstances have changed, and Woodson cannot afford to be sentimental.

Beck, a revered sportswriter, is probably correct in his predictions. That doesn't make the headline any less sensational, nor the case of Steinbrenner Syndrome any less prevalent.

Mind you, a brief timeline of Linsanity:

Feb. 7th: The Times' first mention of "Linsanity," as written by Howard Beck.

Feb. 15th: The Times declares in a photo essay that Linsanity has "returned" to the Garden. Where did it go? Away games, obviously.

Feb. 16th: The Times goes to Harlem to ask people in Harlem about Linsanity. Elsewhere in the Times, "Knicks Win Again, Yawn" goes one blog headline. By our count, there are twelve separate articles published by the Times on the 16th with a mention of "Linsanity."

Feb. 18th: The Times notes Linsanity as "in full force" at the Garden.

Feb. 23rd: Linsanity, according to the Times, may be "peaking."

March 1st to March 7th: 0.71 seperate mentions of Linsanity over a one-week period. Compare this to February 10th - February 16th, when the Times averaged 5.571 separate articles per day with mentions of Linsanity. In New York City, Linsanity literally disappeared from the Google Trends chart at the end of February.

Compare that to Taiwan, where it hung on at a higher rate for a longer period:

And there might be a case to be made. But the fact is, Jeremy Lin is still filling seats at the Garden, because of Jeremy Lin fans (Knicks fans, less so). Linsanity is a wider phenomenon than New York and New York Knicks fans. The New York Times, while not normally prone to such pronouncements—unlike, say, the New York Post, the New York Daily News, and occasionally, ourselves—is as criminal in perpetrating a nuance-lacking hype-cycle as anyone else, and like anyone else in the hype-cycle perpetrating game, is bent on controlling it by making grand pronouncements concerning it. After all, if their most revered sportswriters aren't immune to taking part in it, who in New York's media isn't?

Howard Beck's concern is to be taken seriously in one regard: If Knicks owner James Dolan's replacement for D'Antoni does, in fact, decide to diminish the spotlight of Jeremy Lin—the most exciting thing to happen to the Knicks in ages—paired with the bi-polar nature of Knicks media and fans (who have apparently all but abandoned him), the fact is that Lin's fanbase will exist wherever he goes. And he might already be scouting new places to take it. Or as we explained a few weeks ago:

The fact is, New York City is a fair-weather town. Lin has a one-year contract with the New York Knicks. If he continues to be a sensation, he’ll soon have plenty of options deciding where to play. But will Lin flee the hot zone, and find a home free of that malady of the spoiled sports fan?

[Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images]

fkamer@observer.com | @weareyourfek

If you thought the Linsanity merchandising gravy chain had slowed down, think again.

Former correctional officer, narrative genius, luxury car hobbyist, and "Stay Schemin" poet Rick Ross—who, as it happens, is performing in New York this Tuesday night—Tweeted an Instagram'd picture a few moments ago, detailing the recent shopping excursion he took a colleague on:

The fruits borne by this trip? They are, technically, herbs:

Yes, Jeremy Lin now has a marijuana strain named after him, one that appears to be sold in an undisclosed (but fairly reputable-looking, judging by the handiwork on the label) marijuana dispensary. Wonder if he's going to file for trademark infringement?

Either way, the Jeremy Lin/Linsanity gravy train continues to ride strong, if not, now, slightly hungrier for something to eat, possibly covered in actual gravy. Or some movie popcorn. Either/or.

fkamer@observer.com | @weareyourfek

In all actuality, the increase doesn't look so bad on paper compared to the one New York Rangers fans are going to get hit with. Either way, not fun. Via the Knicks Zone blog, the press release issued from MSG:

For the 2012-13 season, Knicks season ticket prices will increase an average of 4.9%, and Rangers will increase an average of 9.5%. Price increases are primarily focused on upper bowl seats, reflecting the new amenities and improved sightlines in the upper bowl.

Much of the focus of the increased ticket pricing is related to said upper bowl seating:

When fans return to The Garden for the 2012-13 seasons, the seating configuration in the upper bowl of the Arena will be completely transformed. The upper bowl will offer larger, more comfortable seating and significantly improved sightlines as the incline for the upper bowl will increase 17 degrees, moving fans seven to 10 feet, or nearly three rows, closer to the action. Season ticket holders will be relocated to new seats accordingly.

Jeremy Lin isn't, for what it's worth, absolutely guaranteed to be with the New York Knicks next season. Jeremy Lin, in the second year of a two-year deal (that didn't start with the Knicks). Chances are—if he's chasing the money, at least—he'll end up in New York. But, as Brian Cronin at Knickerblogger explains, it's not a lock:

Both Fields and Lin are technically restricted free agents. However, due to the so-called “Gilbert Arenas provision,” other teams are limited in what they can offer Fields and Lin. They can only offer them up to the full mid-level. In the case of Fields, they Knicks would be able to match any offer and not have to touch their own mid-level exception (since they have Early Bird Rights on Fields). With Lin, though, they’d have to dip into their mid-level exception.

Odds are that the Knicks won't have a problem selling to season ticket holders, even with the increase. Anybody in those seats (or anybody with them, rather) just saw their team become one of the most exciting and watched sports franchises in the world. Still: If anything makes one conscious of just how worthy an investment is—maybe, in this case—it's the price one pays to keep their cash in the game. Literally.

fkamer@observer.com | @weareyourfek

Foamposite Galaxy (via Trendhunter.com)

At last report most consumers have been waiting peacefully for Nike's new limited-release Foamposite Galaxy basketball shoe, camping out on sidewalks in tents and sleeping bags. MyFoxPhilly reports someone wanted the $220 glow-in-the-dark shoes badly enough to offer to trade their 16-year-old Chevy Cavalier on Craigslist, which is kind of crazy, but not frightening.

However, according to multiple accounts on social media, the scrum for the Galaxy at Florida Mall in Orlando has been anything but peaceful:

Disturbance at The Florida Mall. Send us your photos, and we want to talk to you. Send with #osphoto

— Orlando Sentinel (@orlandosentinel) February 24, 2012

We've got reports of police in riot gear out at Florida Mall. Story to come......

— Orlando Sentinel (@orlandosentinel) February 24, 2012

Florida mall is crazy right now. Cops on horses, swat team, tear gas #scaredformylife — Keonee Adams(@astoldbykeonee) February 24, 2012

Crowds rushing Florida Mall in Orlando (Twitpic/Flawdazfinest86)

The Orlando Sentinel also reported confirmation of the ongoing disturbance from the Orange County Sheriff's Office but further details were not available.

Linsanity may converge with Foamposite Galaxy insanity. RollingOut.com reports Knicks breakout superstar Jeremy Lin could be sporting a pair while playing in the NBA All-Star Rookie Challenge this weekend. Perhaps the All-Star weekend is a small factor influencing the craziness at the Florida Mall--the event also takes place in Orlando and is hosted by the Orlando Magic.

The Knicks are Lin-ning! (Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

With a couple of heavy-handed losses and a recent Saturday Night Live sketch addressing the inherent racism in jokes about a certain Chinese (and Taiwanese)-American basketball player, we had hoped that the month of terrible Jeremy Lin puns were over. Yet the New York Post started out the week stronger than ever, with a cover exclaiming “Lin-phomania!” The sexual Lin-nuendo of a headline was an even more troubling evolution of Linsanity, given his Tebow-esque devotion to Christianity. We almost wish that the Knicks point guard loses even more games, so his rise to fame isn’t the Lin-ch pin for more horrific puns. (Oh god, we can’t help it, either! Someone make it stop!)

Not that we’re the only ones with our eye on Number 17: Jay-Z and Beyonce made a rare public appearance last week to a Knicks game, despite the fact that Sean Carter had previously announced a change in his allegiances to the New Jersey Nets (soon to be Brooklyn Nets), of which he is part owner along with Mikhail Prokhorov and Bruce Ratner. He’s already told Knicks fans to start trading in their hats and turn their attention to worshiping Kris Humphries but maybe that doesn’t officially kick in until next season. (Then again, Mr. Humphries and his team did defeat the Knicks in a shocking Madison Square Garden game earlier this week, leading to many a “too much MSG” joke. Too many, perhaps?) “Humphries” isn’t nearly as punny as “Lin” but we’ll give him this: whatever Kim Kardashian did to him, it seems to have improved his game.

New York royalty Jay-Z and Beyonce weren’t the only superstars in the audience for New York’s newly hot-again basketball team: Mark Zuckerberg, whose company Facebook recently filed for an IPO, was also seen attending a sports game. If that $100 billion value projection is correct, the be-hooded wunderkind could be scouting out a team to buy himself. (By the way, you know what’s cooler than one hundred million dollars? Of course you do; we all saw The Social Network.)

Orange and blue aren’t the only colors that have caught the eye of New Yorks this week. There’s also red … like the color of newly-appointed Catholic cardinal Timothy Dolan’s new uniform, who was elevated to the position of cardinal on Saturday. He’s already laid out his four big priorities for his new role: two of them involve fundraising, one involves outreach, and the last involves convincing heterosexual Catholics to stop divorcing each other. (Homosexual Catholics, keep doing whatever you want; you’re going to hell anyway.) Last week Cardinal Dolan was leading the crusade with Congressional Republicans against President Obama’s reproductive rights ruling, which would have forced religious employers to pay for health insurance that includes access to contraceptives. Now the White House has compromised with a plan that requires health insurance companies to pay for the care, but neither group is placated. And now a certain presidential candidate is suggesting that use of birth control is morally wrong, which, if you count Mr. Santorum’s kids and assume no use of contraception, probably tells you something about his sex life.  But the posturing and disingenuousness in the so-called debate has been completely Lin-sane... Ahem. Insane. In-sane.

You know what? We give up. We don’t have the Lin-ergy to keep this up. Gooooooo Knickerbockers.

Yahoo Sports' The Dish rounds up some of the reaction to the above image, broadcast after last night's Knicks game, which started flying around the internet after CNBC's Darren Rovell noted that the network was "walking a fine line" with it. The Sporting News called it "questionable." News networks and other newspapers, picking up on the outrage—exaggerated, realistic, or potential for it—are also chiming in with their own segments.

One blogger notes: "Hey MSG, he’s a person. He’s a real human with feelings. Maybe next time a little more discretion with your graphics, ok?" He then asks readers to buy his shirt advertising "THE YELLOW MAMBA."

Most of the posts fault MSG for creating the graphic. For their part, they note that they didn't actually make the graphic, a common misconception among reports:

Given that's the only output from them on the matter (no press releases, either), This probably won't sate anybody.

The only take The Observer has found worthwhile in this instance, however, comes from Alexander Chee at The Classical, who registers his "shocked silence" at the graphic, but turns it around on a positive note towards the end:

There’s a light coming off that giant horrible Fortune Cookie, and in it, you can see there are two games Lin is playing and winning—one is basketball, the other is the game the American media complex plays in making you think X about Asians. Winning one wins the other—he makes changing the world look as easy as playing ball. All that sad bullshit coming after him, the Jason Whitlock jokes, the “he’s just getting attention because he’s Asian” stuff, the Fortune Cookie graphics, it’s all an attempt to put him back in his place, back behind the curtain, to make sure he doesn’t really appear. And it’s too late. Many people were making money off of the way things used to be—now they are making money off of the new way. Something in the power of his game has tipped the balance and the kid is money now, literally—he has the ratings on his side, the web traffic, the new army of fans, his team. This isn’t an equal opportunity hire, no one at the Knicks did this to be nice to Asian people—the fortune cookie proves that. No, the people in the Skybox are getting paid. Lin has managed to make something bigger than their bullshit and he’s riding it out from behind the stage.

fkamer@observer.com | @weareyourfek

Here's the thing about New York City and Linsanity: We can feel it. We know it's there. But we can't see it. Since the beginning of the year, subscribers of Time-Warner Cable—New York City's largest cable provider—have been blacked out of watching a majority of the New York Knicks games. The reason? A licensing fee dispute between TWC and Madison Square Garden Entertainment, the company that owns the Knicks and the channel they're on, The MSG Network.

Before, New Yorkers were pissed. Now that their home team stumbled upon the NBA's largest sensation since the professional debut of LeBron James, they're furious, because as of today, the blackout is still ongoing.

These are the numbers behind it:

DAYS GO BY

• Days that Time-Warner Cable Subscribers Have Been Without MSG Channel: 47 days.
• Days since Jeremy Lin's first star-making Knicks game on Feb. 4: 12 days.
• Games since Jeremy Lin's first star-making Knicks game on Feb. 4: 7 games.

 
ON THE OUTS

• Estimated number of New York City's TWC subscribers: 2.8 Million subscribers.
• Number of Knicks games TWC subscribers will have missed in February without Time Warner Cable: 11 Knicks games.
• Number of Knicks games TWC subscribers can see if February without Time Warner Cable: 4 Knicks games.
• Number of New York Knicks, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, and New York Rangers games missed by Time-Warner Subscribers as of today: 147 Knicks, Devils, Islanders, and Rangers games.

 
THE DISPUTE

• Subscription fee increase Time-Warner Cable claims MSG initially agreed on: 6.5% fee increase
• Subscription fee increase Time-Warner Cable claims MSG ended up asking for: 53% fee increase.
• Subscription fee increase ESPN asked for in 2011: 7.88% (or $5.06) fee increase.

 
THE APOLOGIES?

• Number of Days since city comptroller Jonathan Liu lobbied for a reimbursement for TWC customers: 44 Days.
• TWC customer reimbursement fee city comptroller Jonathan Liu lobbied for: $5.95.
• TWC customer reimbursements TWC customers have actually seen: $0.00.
• Value of two-month "sports package" TWC gave customers after MSG outage: $5.95/Month, for two months.
• Amount one guy who complained to Time-Warner Cable enough got reimbursed for the Knicks outage: $2.60/Month, for two months.

 
SCALPER'S DELIGHT

• Percentage of New York Knicks ticket price increase in weeks following Carmello Anthony's 2011 trade to team: 25% ticket price increase.
• Percentage of New York Knicks ticket price increase in weeks following Jeremy Lin's breakout game: 33% ticket price increase.

 
$MSG's WINNING STREAK

• Stock movement of $MSG since TWC-MSG outage started: 11.59% stock increase.
• Stock movement of $MSG since Jeremy Lin's breakout game: 3.36% stock increase*.

 
$TWC's WINNING STREAK

• Stock movement of $TWC since TWC-MSG outage started: 20.53% stock increase.
• Stock movement of $MSG since Jeremy Lin's breakout game: 11.18% stock increase*.
• Estimated stock gains* Charles Dolan—MSG's largest shareholder—has made since Jeremy Lin's breakout game: $19.78 Million in Stock Gains.

 
WHAT'S LIN GOT TO DO WITH IT?

• Number of points Jeremy Lin has scored for New York Knicks in first five starts: 136 Points (or the most by any player since the ABA and NBA merged in 1976).
• How much Jeremy Lin is getting paid: $762,195, or the minimum for an NBA player in his second year.

 
[*As of 02/15/2012, with data provided by Standard & Poor's Capital IQ. Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images.]

fkamer@observer.com | @weareyourfek