可惜了，这么好的bucks球迷, I like this one :"big yuan"

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summer League Analysis: Yi Jianlian

Chinese may have players in the National Basketball Association, but they don’t have a team, so this recap had to be made separate. So for those who are Bucks’ fans, here is a little glimpse of China’s 50 Cent. Shouldn’t he have a nickname that fits the dollar scheme, like, “The Big Yuan?” That works. Yi “The Big Yuan” Jianlian. Help it stick. Come on, Fran Fraschilla’s street cred is riding on this. Please? You want me to get to the part where he plays basketball? Okay. Okay? Okay.

This will be a little different compared to the other analysis of the games. This one will first talk about his first game, then his second, then overview his overall play.

Yi Jianlian had an up-and-down game against Memphis. First, the positives. Yi looked like a legitimate NBA prospect. His size and foot speed are unmatched for anyone his size. I could care less if he’s 19 or 22; he played like he was both during the game. Yi has a very nice handle for any power forward, let alone small forward. His outside game has textbook instilled in his approach to the hole and has a jump shot to keep any defender on their heels. Yi has the tools to dominate and he displayed them in this game against Memphis.

While Yi isn’t a strong defender, he’s surprisingly strong. Every time Alexander Johnson tried to knock him off the block, he would hold his position for the most past. Yi displayed nice touch from the post and has some moves that aren’t completed with the same athleticism Yi puts into his shot. He tried to finish any shot near the hoop with a dunk. He can get up for a guy his size.

On defense, Yi was usually in good position. When he was in the post, he would usually be in prime position to make a play on the ball. Unfortunately, those same spots resulted in him getting dunked on, at least four times. Yi had a stellar block on a floater, then came down the court, faked a lay-up and dunked it. It was that play that woke everyone up. He was a little sluggish in the first half, but played within his game and stood out as one of the best players on the court.

Although Yi has the athleticism and game of a small forward, he can do more than he showed against Memphis. When it comes to passing, Yi has a keen sense on where everyone’s at. There were some instances where, after passing it, he would get lost within the offense, but he made some spectacular plays. Overall, he is gifted when the ball is in his hands. He had a lot to take away from his play against Memphis. Sacramento has a couple of 7-footers in Justin Williams and Spencer Hawes, two bigs who could give Yi a lot of fits. If he steps up against them, he will show everyone that he can play against big athletes as well as small bruisers.

On that note, we come to his game against Sacramento. Umm…. Can I skip this part? Yi was not the Yi Jianlian who showed glimpses of his dominance against Memphis. He wasn’t the Big Yuan. He was a power forward who could not get anything going against Williams, Hawes and the rest of the Kings’ front court.

First, the positives. Yi was productive on the boards. He timed the ball off the glass better than he did in his first game. He got up for rebounds and made sure no one around him would be able to strip the ball away from him. He had a hard time establishing position against Williams and Darryl Watkins. When he got his position, he wouldn’t get the ball immediately, then, within the sound of a skip pass, he was back on the perimeter. When he got position and got the ball, he took some tough shots, but shots he would normally make. He hasn’t seen these types of big athletes often, so considering it was his first action against two guys wanting to make a name for themselves at the expense of Yi, he played fairly well.

He was passing the ball with crisp chest passes and right to the best places for his teammate to make a play. He didn’t finish with a lot of assists, so a lot of people will probably knock him for not racking up the stats. He’s not an assist machine. He makes the right pass. Sometimes, the pass will result in a guard cutting into the lane for a lay-up. Other times, it will result in the beginning of the ball swinging around the perimeter to the player in the corner for the 3-pointer. In China’s case, that player is their center, Wang Zhi Zhi. He’s an example because he’s so enamored with the 3-point line so far.

Now the bad. He is young, so I’m not taking anything away from him. China is not known for having quality play in the post, so Yi hasn’t gone up against players like Williams and Watkins. With that said, he was severely poor. His play was nowhere near his talent level. This kid has more talent than to let someone like Williams, an undrafted free agent, push him around. Maybe Yi will continuously be pushed around in the post until he figures it out. I’m not taking anything from Williams or Watkins. Both have potential to play for a little while in the NBA, especially Williams. The difference between them and Yi is natural talent. Yi should’ve figured out how to deal with their physicality throughout the game. He wasn’t able to.

On another sad note, Aran Smith reported in his LVSL coverage that, according to Yi’s agent, there was “no way” Yi will see action in a Bucks uniform. If this is so, how will Yi’s future as an NBA player look? He may be able to enter the draft next year, but it is truly sad to see business have this big of an impact on a kid’s playing life. His shelf life in the NBA will be one year shorter if he never dons a Bucks’ uniform. He’s a great fit in their offense, just as long as he, Charlie Villanueva and Andrew Bogut aren’t playing at the same time. For Milwaukee’s sake, he decides to play for the Bucks instead of his handler’s deciding what’s best for their own good.

Yi still showed glimpses of becoming “The Big Yuan,” but physicality was something he wasn’t used to in these two games. The kid never gave up and was aggressive despite being out-muscled in the post. He has a lot of grit to go along with his feather-soft touch from the perimeter and his Biggie-like flow with the ball. (Notorious B.I.G. for those who don’t know who Biggie is.) Can Yi become “The Big Yuan?” Yes, as long as he combats his poor play with the determination to play with even more gusto the next time he steps onto the court