On August 27, 2019, Lin signed with the Beijing Ducks of the CBA for a reported US$3 million per year. He also had offers to play in Russia, Israel and the EuroLeague. The Ducks scheduled for Lin to sit out the month of January in an arrangement agreed upon before the season with their other overseas players, Ekpe Udoh and Justin Hamilton. In his regular season debut on November 3, Lin led the Ducks to a 103–81 win over the Tianjin Gold Lions with 25 points, 9 assists and 6 rebounds. Lin was named a starter for the North in the CBA All-Star Game after receiving the most votes on his squad and the second most overall behind the South's Yi Jianlian. Lin scored a game-high 41 points in the contest, which the South won 167–166. On February 1, 2020, the CBA postponed the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The league restarted on Jun 20. In addition to being a U.S. citizen, Lin is by descent through his parents a national of Taiwan; he would qualify for a Taiwan passport, although there is no record of him having obtained one. In June 2011, Lin was included in the Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) national team's preliminary squad of 24 players for the 2011 FIBA Asia Championship. However, the Chinese Taipei Basketball Association (CTBA) announced that he would not be included on their roster due to a knee injury. Lin was named to the USA Basketball Men's Select Team to scrimmage against the 2012 USA Olympic team candidates, but he did not participate due to his restricted free agent status with the Knicks. Apart from being a capable passer, Lin established himself as a strong, fast-paced offensive player who attacks the basket and excels at the pick-and-roll. He improved his outside shooting during his career and became a threat from three-point range. He has been considered difficult to defend because of his ability to draw fouls. An admitted risk taker, Lin has been criticized for his tendency to commit turnovers and his perceived lack of effectiveness on defense. Following his star turn for the Knicks in 2012, Lin battled inconsistency and injuries. During his basketball career, Lin has encountered racial slurs relating to his Asian ancestry. While playing for Harvard, he regularly heard bigoted jeers such as "Wonton soup", "Sweet and sour pork", "Open your eyes!", "Go back to China", "Orchestra is on the other side of campus," or pseudo-Chinese gibberish.