Jeremy Lin, the first Asian-American to win an NBA championship, will suit up for the China Basketball Association's Beijing Shougang Ducks next season.

News of Lin's signing instantly went viral on Chinese social media after the Ducks made the announcement on Tuesday afternoon. Within an hour, related topics had been viewed over 70 million times on Weibo.

Posting "Beijing, I'm here!" on his own Weibo account that has over six million followers, the 31-year-old guard indicated he can't wait to launch a new chapter in his career by joining the three-time CBA champion Ducks.

"We are all just people, and no one is perfect," said Lin, who celebrated his birthday last week. "We're all still fighting and chasing our dreams."

Though he was born in Los Angeles, California, Lin has family ties to China and is very popular with Chinese fans. During a visit to Shanghai last month he said that playing in the CBA would rate second only to a return to the NBA in terms of career fulfillment.

For the Ducks, the arrival of the Harvard graduate, who speaks fluent Mandarin, is certain to translate into a higher profile for the team－on and off the court.