It must have seemed like a good idea at the time.

MSG Network is facing some serious heat after the New York Knicks TV broadcast partner flashed a tone-deaf graphic of the franchise's Asian-American star.

Following the Knicks' seventh straight win on Wednesday night, MSG showed viewers an image featuring guard Jeremy Lin's head in between ends of a broken fortune cookie with the sentence "The Knicks' Good Fortune" on a piece of paper.

CNBC's Darren Rovell was the first to post the image on Twitter, pointing out that MSG was "walking a fine line" with the offensive image. Lin is the NBA's first American-born player of Taiwanese or Chinese descent.

Reaction was less measured in the New York minutes that followed. Some on Twitter said the graphic was "a tad on the racist side". Others called it "accidental racism."

The fortune cookie is actually an American invention by most accounts; it dates back to San Francisco in the late 1890's to early 1900's, and is based on a Japanese cracker. Fortune cookies are not served in China.

ThePostGame brings you the most interesting sports stories on the web. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to read them first!

Other popular content on Yahoo! Sports:

• What makes a nightmare sports parent? What makes a great one?

• YouTube clip lands 3-year-old a baseball movie role

• Legendary MLB broadcaster to retire after 70 years

• Fan's epic good deed: Super Bowl camera mystery solved

• America's most glamorous golf course: Riviera Country Club