Obama on Lin-sanity: ‘I’ve Been on the Jeremy Lin Bandwagon for a While’ - East Idaho News
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Obama on Lin-sanity: ‘I’ve Been on the Jeremy Lin Bandwagon for a While’

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Getty P 110111 ObamaBasketball?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1330608072668Pete Souza/White House via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — President Obama says he was ahead of the curve when it comes to New York Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin.

“I’ve been on the Jeremy Lin bandwagon for a while,” the president told ESPN’s Bill Simmons on Wednesday.  “I knew about Jeremy before you did, before everybody else did.”

Education Secretary Arne Duncan, who often plays basketball with the president, first drew his attention to the breakout star.

“Arne and I were playing and he said, ‘I’m telling you, we’ve got this terrific guard named Jeremy Lin at Harvard,’” Obama said.

Duncan, who played professional basketball in Australia before turning to politics, is a former captain of the Harvard team, Lin’s alma mater.

Asked jokingly by Simmons if he was taking credit for Lin-sanity, the president said, “I can’t take credit for it.  But I’m just saying, I was there early.”

In a wide-ranging interview, the sports-fan-in-chief revealed how he stays up-to-date with professional sports despite his demanding day job.

When he and his wife Michelle Obama work out together in the morning they always watch ESPN’s SportsCenter, Obama explained.

“The only thing that she allows me to control … is SportsCenter,” the president quipped.

Obama, a self-professed “night guy,” also admitted he sometimes sneaks in a ball game while he’s up late at night reading his briefings.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

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