I don't get why people make these suggestions. Their rationale ALWAYS has something to do with, "Yao is Chinese, so we should get more Chinese players." The Rockets are a basketball team. We recruit players on talent, contribution, and whether or not they fit around our stars. Just because we have Yao doesn't mean we should go after every Chinese player available. Since we have Ryan Bowen, does that mean we should go after every Caucasian limb-flailing jumpshot-lacking player? We have Rafer Alston, so I suppose we should go after every legendary African-American streetballer with sick handles. If Yi Jianlin were a good fit for this team, then I'm all for drafting him, but he's another long-term project. There are many more NBA-ready power forwards available in the draft.
I doubt he's going to declare even if he is given permission. Let's wait until he officially declares. And I'm not nearly as high on him as I used to be. He hasn't improved his game much at all in the past two years. He'll be an okay pro (athletic 7 footers don't grow on trees). But I wouldn't take him with a top ten pick if I was the Rockets.
If he's the bpa when the rox pick, then go ahead and take him. But I think that is unlikely. I'd trade Alston or Howard for him.
If this kid is available in the second round I am all for it. Plus if he is ever going to amount to anything in the league Yao will definetly help him contribute sooner by being able to help his transition into the NBA in ways that Yao never was able to benefit from when he first came into the league.
Why do you all have to over-exaggerate the Chinese connection here? If he's available at the spot we pick, I think it's a great idea picking him up. Chinese or not Chinese, this guy has talent. From some clips I saw, he has the athleticism and skills to succeed in the NBA. I think his comparision in the NCAA is LaMarcus Aldridge --- very skilled, can jump out of the building, and tall. If Aldridge is available, we'd be ecstatic to pick him up, wouldn't we? Now, if Yi is available, I say go for it too. The same thing can be said about Andrea Bargnani. I really like his game. Unlike Skitishvili and Lampe, both Yi and Bargnani actually did succeed in foreign leagues before they came to the NBA.
I think it might have something to do with the fact that the thread starter said, "We'd have the only Chinese frontcourt in the league" and then making a post later suggesting we pick up Liu Wei and Sun Yue as well. Somehow I really doubt he suggested picking up an entire Chinese starting lineup based purely on talent. I'll agree with you here, but I also agree with what m_cable said. The clips I've seen of him from recent games are pretty much identical to those I've seen from years ago. He doesn't look like he's really developed his game at all. He's all about high-flying dunks and is still VERY raw. Moreover, even though he's put on some muscle recently, he's still too thin. Bottom line is, why would we go after another slightly undersized but freakishly athletic power forward with "potential" when we already have one named Swift. Besides, even if Yi realizes his potential and pans out to be a good player, the Rockets don't have that big of a window. We can't wait another 4 years for Yi to develop into a solid contributor when Yao and TMac are both more or less in their primes now.
Yi Jinlan lets bring over another chinese big man. http://nbadraft.net/draftbuzz054.asp seems that Yi is coming out. Think how much more fun this board will be, plus they can speak in code (chinese)
What make you think that we will win a NBA Championship before 2010? To me 2010 sounds just about right for Yao Ming to be starting his best years! Not that I am wanting us to draft Yi though!
Now if there's one Chinese player i'd like to pick-up it would be Sun Yue. That kid just knows how to ball. He's the proto-typical, all-purpose SF type, like a Shane Battier, Darius Miles, or a poor-man's AK-47. He's not coming out this year, but considering his US ties (his team played in the ABA this year) and US exposure, I bet he'll come out next year. If he's around late in the first round, the Rockets should really take a look.
They are different players. Yi plays more inside although he does have 3 point range. Bargnani plays more like SF, taking a lot of 3's and doesn't rebound much. Yi is definitely more athletic, probably longer too.
IMHO, he actually has added a lot of moves to his package, hook shot, turnaround fadeaway, baseline spin and dunk. And his touches around the rim are much better too -- he used to only have a longer range shot and dunks. Of course, that is not enough in many fans' eyes. I will add some gifs to show his moves,
He's going to declare: http://www.nbadraft.net/draftbuzz054.asp He may slide down to the 2nd round for obvious reasons, if he available then, Rockets should pick him up, no question about it. This boy has potential to be the complimentary PF to Yao, or at least a solid backup PF. Yao and Yi play great together in international play.
How can you compare him to Aldridge, Aldridge is like 2 inches shorter and 20 pounds heavier. Aldridge is a banger, the PF of our dreams. If Yi had developed his game in the last few years, he could have been as good as Pau Gasol, which would be great, but I don't see him being as NBA ready as Pau Gasol was. He reminds, right now, of Tskitishvili and that's based on how little he's developed from the age of 17 to 22.
Last time I saw how Aldridge played against LSU, he was certainly not a banger. Instead he was banged up. I think there is a knock on him being soft. Yi may be physically weaker than Aldridge at this point, but he doesn't back down from competitions or confrontations.
This could make out to be a very interesting draft after all. 20.5ppg 9.6rpg 1.3bpg 1.2apg 2.0spg, those are pretty good numbers even thought there just in the CBA.
If he's available in the 2nd Round, I don't see why we wouldn't take the chance, but I'm sure he'll be gone by then.
Aldridge is not a banger, he's a channing frye type of player. Yi looks terrible too, if someone drafts him that team's just trying to get more fans from China. We don't need that.
I agree, picking up Liu Wei is stupid. He just isn't a NBA talent. Sun Yue...? Who knows. I don't know much about this guy, but we need shooters more than a point guard. If we do pick anyone, it had better be for basketball purpose. Having a bunch of Chinese on your team just to have them is stupid. It's not like being Chinese gives you some special power to play basketball anyway. However, I don't think we can judge a player based on his highlight films. Highlight films are just what they are called --- highlights. In highlights, what do you expect to see? Rebounding? Boxing out? Midrange shots? Freethrows? Swingning the ball? Dribbling? Of course all you can see is high-flying dunks. They are exciting and that's why you put them in highlights. If you judge a guy to be raw from highlights, you can call Lebron James raw too. Yi is undersized? He's 6'11, and how tall do you want a normal-sized power forward to be? 7'3? 7'6? He might be thin, but he's not undersized. I used to believe our best pick is Corey Brewer. However, now our draft position has improved due to tanking, and Brewer wants to return to Florida for another year, Yi (if he indeed declares), Bargnani and Roy should be our top choices.
