Jeremy Lin’s career as a starting NBA point guard is merely four games old, but the mass hysteria that has overcome New York City over the past ten days could be confused with an epidemic. The 23-year-old Harvard graduate has taken the world’s hardest to please city by storm and has Knicks fans in a frenzy.

Tonight, our neighbors to the north get their first glimpse at what the masses are referring to as “Linsanity.” The anointed one is bringing his game above the border, and over 75 members of the media have followed as “Linsanity” continues to become a worldwide sensation. So far I still think it is too early to tell whether or not he has the longevity and talent to warrant the savior praise he’s received thus far, but there is no doubt he is a potential marketing gold mine.

Yenchin Chang, a 35-year-old Alhambra, California, resident, was the first of two people to file a trademark application for the term “Linsanity,” which is being used to describe the frenzy surrounding New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin.

Chang, who like Lin is of Taiwanese descent, said he isn’t affiliated with the 23-year-old, Harvard University-educated player who has guided the Knicks to a five-game winning streak after being released by the Golden State Warriors.

“I wanted to be a part of the excitement,” Chang, who attended East Los Angeles College and who works in the import/export business, said in a telephone interview. “I’m very proud of Jeremy.”

Milord A. Keshishian, an attorney with Milord & Associates, a patent, trademark and copyright firm in Los Angeles, said in a telephone interview that the law “doesn’t bode well” for anyone trying to make money through a Linsanity trademark.

Since Lin exploded on the scene on during the Feb. 4 game against the New Jersey Nets his jersey has been the No. 1 seller in the NBA. So it shouldn’t surprise anyone that it didn’t take long for people to try to take advantage of the Jeremy Lin sensation, but that is to be expected, because what would America be if we weren’t financially gaining off others’ hard work?

[Bloomberg]