After watching Yi Jian Lian absolutely light it up against Spain for most of the game to the tune of 30/12 and displaying his ability to rebound, stretch the floor, and attack the basket, I was more than a little stumped. How does this guy go from a basically 12th man to dominating in a game where he was basically the only offensive threat? Remember this was against top NBA caliber big men- Serge Ibaka, Marc and Paul Gasol. Although his defense was still lacking, he did exceptionally well on offense. Any chance YJL will make a comeback in the NBA? Any chance that the Rockets should think about taking a flier out on this guy? Obviously its only one game, but it has to make you wonder what he can do when he isn't buried at the end of the bench and has the support of a coach like McHale to refine his game.
If you watched the game, Ibaka shut him down in the second half. He just had one good game, most of his damage was done against the slower Marc gasol. Spain didn't have the versatility outside of ibaka to guard him. Nba teams do have that versatility, so no, he won't make a comeback.
Yi Jianlian had plenty of time to prove himself in the nba. He is a rotation player at best. Also the dude is actually 27 or 28 not 24. Look it up he lied about his age.
Signing Yi will definitely help the Rockets in the Dwight Howard pursuit! Signed, Bill Ingram (Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm sorry. I turned this thread into Dwightmare, which everyone is tired of hearing about, blah blah blah. ) Spoiler
It wouldnt be a comeback, he has been in the NBA. He played in 30 games last season for dallas. Most time spent in Dleague. Watched him play the Austin Toros once he he was clearly the best player on the floor. I even had a post two weeks ago or so saying we should bring him to Houston as well. If you look at his numbers when he gets the minutes he produces solid numbers. http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/3214/yi-jianlian
Still never figured out if was true or not. So unless you know him personally you have no clue. Ill stick with 24.
Yi Jian Lian is a pure scorer, and Rockets already have plenty of options in the offensive end: DMo, Lamb, Lin, Martin and Jones.
This might be why - he doesn't know how to be a good role player. Coupled with the increased physical demands in the NBA I can see how he can go from being a team's star to the 12th man on the Mavericks.
The fact that Ingram said it all but garuntees that it will not happen. I'm guessing Cubes and Fegan are probably not friends at all either.
It hasn't been made a big deal considering he's not that good of an NBA player right now, but by most accounts he's 27 turning 28 in October. http://www.chinasportsreview.com/2008/12/20/yi-jianlian-proved-to-be-3-years-older/
Comfort level is a big factor. Gregg Popovich once said that he wished Tony Parker played as well as he does with the French national team. Take the simplest analogy, imagine playing with your regular crew in pickup--those who know your strengths, weaknesses, and your sweet spots vs. playing with random people. It's not hard to fathom that you will play a whole lot better, particularly if you're more of a specialist player like Yi who needs to get the ball in certain areas to excel. If you watched the game, Yi was the focal point of the Chinese offense--getting the ball in the high post or the elbows. Combine that with a great shooting night, and it's no wonder that he got 32 points even playing against tough competition. There was a reason that he got drafted 6th overall...because he was a fantastic practice/workout player. But, when you put him in an NBA offense that has more talented options, he will struggle.
Read a while ago that he's lazy and still hadn't learned English. I'd give him a shot, though. You just don't get 7-footers off the street.
I think you're right. YJL was given a pretty poor beginning to his NBA career- lots of hype and pressure to succeed but without the environment and nurture to do so. If you put him in a situation where he gets to play with a lot of young and talented players, with a big man coach like McHale, and in a situation like this year where it's perfectly fine to jack up shots and make mistakes, YJL could potentially reach at least half of the expectations placed on him during the time he was drafted. I really think we should go after him. He's talented and mobile 7-footer and your prototypical low-risk/high-reward player. Dallas's asking price can't be all that high, and a combination of him and Jeremy Lin will absolutely be phenomenal for ticket sales haha.
I thought Yi is a FA now? I'd give him a chance on the Rocket team without win pressure. At least, there is some synergy effect for marketing in China with Lin/Yi on the same team and both producing.
