It is one of the busiest weeks at the semi-refurbished Madison Square Garden. Hockey led to Gymnastics which led to hockey which led to tennis which led to a week of Big East and the Knicks and then the WWE, all in a nine day stretch. However while the Knicks and Rangers are away, the sales folks are busy, rightfully so, pushing the Linsanity angle if the bubble bursts.
Make no mistake about it, Jeremy Lin, if he does nothing else, has already saved the Knicks season. Even with many subpar opponents, he helped lead them to wins they would probably not have gotten, and bridged a return to get Baron Davis healthy and Carmelo Anthony back in the lineup that gave New York a chance to be competitive the rest of the winter and into the spring. Without him, the Knicks are lottery fodder, probably with a new coach at this point.
So while his agent talks about looking at long term deals and thousands of offers, the Knicks have moved very quickly to maximize sales efforts, which is the smartest of moves in a league where every day weaknesses can be exploited and good teams adjust to the new, previously unknown star. As fast as Jeremy Lin’s star rose, a few weeks of lackluster play and losses could return him to earth, and Linsanity could fade into a deep afterthought. So while his agent looks for long term plans, the Knicks went out and became all things Korean…nailing a new tire sponsor, Maxxis International, selling ads on radio for Korean tourism and reaching out like never before to the Asian community for ticket sales, sponsored viewing parties and apparel sales. The targeting is smart for New York…whether it translates into more people flying to Korea for a spring vacation or buying Maxxis vs. the more popular and better leveraged Hankook brand remains to be seen. The association to the Knicks is great, but the picture won’t be complete until Lin and his popularity also chooses some partners to leverage with. The ethnic spend is much more about Lin than the Knicks for a Korean community…they like the Knicks, but they love their guy…so until he joins a brand the spend is very much a hedge.
For the Knicks, the short term value of Lin will turn into long term gain as well. This week they announced ticket increases for next year that will go into effect despite the fact that the team is still not assured a playoff spot with a tough schedule ahead of them. They struck while the iron is hot, knowing that a turned ankle of their new face can turn the fickle fortunes of New York very quickly, especially with the Yankees now revving their marketing engines as well.
Gotham is all about today, and today Jeremy Lin and the Knicks remain hot. Savvy move to grab all the dollars today Knickerbockers, one never knows what the future holds.
