New York, NY

When point guard Jeremy Lin electrified Madison Garden with his historic basketball run, business surrounding him was good.

MSG's stock gained after Lin dropped serious points on the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks. Wherever Lin played, arenas were sold out. His jerseys flew off the shelves faster than LeBron James and Derrick Rose's. And his rookie card sold for a whopping amount of $20,000 on eBay.

An entire economy grew out of the Jeremy Lin phenomenon. His marketability is an asset for whatever team he plays for, which makes the Knicks' decision not to bring him back head scratching. The Knicks opted not to match Lin's offer sheet from the Houston Rockets. The Knicks had two days to match but decided to end the Linsanity era in New York.

If the Knicks chose to keep Lin, the team would've had to shell out an estimated $60 million in the last season of a three-year deal – NBA luxury tax of $45 million and $14.8 million in Lin's salary. Knicks owner James Dolan felt that Lin wasn't worth $60 million even with his popularity and the revenue he can potentially bring in.

Many fans were disappointed with Lin's unexpected move to Houston. New York merchandisers carrying Lin's New York t-shirts and jerseys now have to slash their prices just so they can get rid of it. T-shirts bearing the star's name and number normally sell for $20. With Lin out of town, the price drops to $5. Replica Knicks jerseys with Lin's name sold for $60; now they sell for $40.

CEO of Modell's Sporting Goods Chain, Mitch Modell told the Daily News, "We've got 40,000 (Lin apparel) units that we're going to wait until Wednesday morning to decide what to do with, but it's going to be a major fire sale.

It's a tremendous impact. I know how much the ratings went up (with Lin playing), but at the end of the day, the Knicks have to do what's right for them from the financial (standpoint)," Modell added.

Given Lin's immense fan base, it doesn't matter where he goes. Business surrounding Lin will thrive.

In Houston, the Taiwanese-Chinese Lin already has an established Asian-American fan base because global Chinese superstar Yao Ming played there for nine years.

Jeremy Lin is leaving New York and taking Linsanity to Houston. New York Knicks fans around the city reacted to the news

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