Yi Jianlian, the 7 foot (2.11 m) young basketball player from Guangdong Hongyuan team of Chinese Basketball Association is in the scout draft for the upcoming NBA 2007 Draft now.
He has been regarded as China's most promising prospect since Yao Ming. Since Yi Jianlian can score out of the paint, his style of play is widely compared to that of Kevin Garnett. His outstanding athleticism allows him to finish above the rim with relative ease and consistency. During the 2004-2005 CBA season, Yi recorded more dunks than any other Chinese players. Yi Won 3 CBA champions in a row with Guangdong Tigers, and won the CBA Finals MVP in 2005-06 season. Yi averaged 13.5 points and 8 rebounds per game against the USA in two games in 2006 FIBA World Championship with the Chinese national basketball team.
But for Yi himself, "I'm still very young and thin," he said. Only playing one season in the league, and spending most of his time on the substitute bench, Yi knows that he has a long way to go. However the last game in the regular season really surprised the audience and made people believe Yi had a bright future. When the game entered overtime, Yi finally got the chance to substitute and grabbed 13 points in five minutes which ensured a victory for his team and the No.1 place in the league. Although his performance in the final was rather conservative, Yi did contribute the best moment in the season: stealing the ball in the last several seconds, running, and leaving others behind him, finishing with a monster dunk.
When will Yi Jianlian access NBA? It depends on the most mysterious thing about Yi: his age. The coach of Chinese National Junior Team said Yi was born on Oct 27, 1987, which means he is only 16 and has to wait till 2009 to be qualified for entering the NBA draft. While some Chinese experts hold that Yi is 19 or 20 years old now. Whether the information of his age is true won't affect Nike's interest towards Yi. The company has defeated other business rivals and signed a six-year contract with Yi. The value of the contract is more expensive than the salary he gets now. It even surpasses the contract that Nike signed with Yao Ming at first. Today, Yi Jianlian has attracted the attention of people on both sides of the ocean. Will he become the genuine successor of Yao Ming and start a whole new Chinese fervor in the NBA? Let's just wait and see...
When will Yi Jianlian access NBA? It depends on the most mysterious thing about Yi: his age. The coach of Chinese National Junior Team said Yi was born on Oct 27, 1987, which means he is only 16 and has to wait till 2009 to be qualified for entering the NBA draft. While some Chinese experts hold that Yi is 19 or 20 years old now. Whether the information of his age is true won't affect Nike's interest towards Yi. The company has defeated other business rivals and signed a six-year contract with Yi. The value of the contract is more expensive than the salary he gets now. It even surpasses the contract that Nike signed with Yao Ming at first. Today, Yi Jianlian has attracted the attention of people on both sides of the ocean. Will he become the genuine successor of Yao Ming and start a whole new Chinese fervor in the NBA? Let's just wait and see...
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