Six Perfect Similarities Between Lin and Cruz
Jeremy Lin. Linsanity. Linspiration. The Most Linteresting Man in the World. All he does is Lin.
I could go on, but I won’t. It’s been too much already.
As Jeremy Lin frenzy sweeps the nation, so do the comparisons between Lin and Tim Tebow, America’s previous 24/7 sports story obsession.
However, comparing Lin to Tebow doesn’t really equate. If you’re desperate to compare Lin to anybody in the NFL, you don’t even need to change cities. The perfect comparison for Jeremy Lin isn’t Tim Tebow, it’s Victor Cruz.
Here are 6 ways in which Jeremy Lin and Victor Cruz are eerily similar to one another, and nothing like Tim Tebow.
College & Draft
Jeremy Lin went undrafted, and played his college hoops in the Ivy League at Harvard, not quite a traditional basketball powerhouse.
Victor Cruz went undrafted and played college football in Division I-AA at UMass. The school will debut in Division I in 2012.
Tim Tebow was a 5-star recruit who played at the University of Florida, won two national championships and a Heisman Trophy, and was chosen in the 1st round of the NFL draft.
Season 2 Splash
In his rookie season, Jeremy Lin went unnoticed, logging 9.8 minutes per game in 29 appearances. He debuted with the Knicks in his second professional season.
Victor Cruz missed all of his rookie year with an injury, and didn’t play in a regular season game for the Giants until his second professional season.
Tebow also made a splash in season two, but started three games in his rookie season as well, and was a known commodity and hot topic throughout the year.
Legit Record Breaking, Star Performances
Jeremy Lin scored more points in his first four starts than any NBA player since the merger, and has been the catalyst for a six-game winning streak. During that span, he has been shooting 49% from the field, and averaging 23.3 points per game and 7.4 assists per game.
Victor Cruz set a Giants single season franchise record with 1,536 yards receiving. He averaged 18.7 yards per reception, better than anybody in the league in the top 35 in receiving yards, and was an integral part of the team’s Super Bowl XLVI victory.
While the Tebow magic carpet ride in 2011 was special, culminating in a overtime playoff victory against the Steelers, his stats and performance as a quarterback are at best inconsistent, and at worst, extremely subpar. He finished the year with a 46.5% completion percentage and a 72.9 quarterback rating.
Needs a Raise
Both Jeremy Lin and Victor Cruz deserve a big-time raise, and a long-term extension. Lin is earning a partially unguaranteed $800,000 this year, and will be a free agent after the season is done. Cruz earned just over $400,000 for the past season, and has one more year left on his two-year rookie contract.
Tim Tebow earned $4.1 million including bonuses in 2011 as part of his five-year deal, which includes a total of $8.7 million in guaranteed money.
The Big Apple
Both Lin and Cruz play for big market New York teams, of course. It’s just make sense to compare two New York players to one another.
and finally…
Media Signature
Nonstop puns on Lin’s name and nonstop salsa dancing lessons from Cruz are just better than Tebowing ever was, period.
This article was first published on Yahoo! Sports on February 15, 2012