GUANGDONG (CBA/NBA/2015 FIBA Asia Championship) - The footsteps that Yi Jianlian had to follow as a Chinese player in the NBA following his selection as the seventh pick in the 2007 NBA Draft could not have been any bigger.

Yao Ming, a 2.26m center, had entered the league five years earlier and not only become a success with the Houston Rockets, but an All-Star.

One of the most famous athletes in the world while an NBA player, both for his performances with Houston and with China's national team, Yao cast a giant shadow over not just other players from China but everyone in Asia.

Many people expected Yi to make it, but he did not.

After stints with the Bucks, New Jersey Nets and Washington Wizards, the 2.14m forward returned to China to dominate with the Guangdong Tigers.

Despite a short spell with the Dallas Mavericks in 2012, he failed to make the grade and returned to the CBA.

Now 27 and a CBA veteran, Yi's hopes of playing in the NBA would appear to be fading but that should not be the case according to one of his Guangdong teammates in China this season, Will Bynum.

A guard who recently signed a 10-day contract with the Washington Wizards, Bynum has told the Washington Post that Yi is a much better player now and should get another another shot in the NBA.

"Yi's [expletive] good," Bynum said.

"I played against him when he was here too, when he was in Milwaukee and Jersey.

"He got a whole lot better. He's physical now."

"He always could shoot the basketball."

When it comes to China's national team, there is no question that Yi is the go-to man, a high-scoring power forward who has the potential to be a game-winner against all the teams in Asia and some of those outside from other FIBA zones as well.

At the 2012 Olympics, though some of Yi's shortcomings on defense were exposed, he averaged almost 15 points and more than 10 rebounds per contest.

He's far more formidable in China's CBA.

Yi's tough, man - Bynum

The next big challenge for the China star will be with the national team.

Yi will be his country's leading man this summer when they host the FIBA Asia Championship in Changsha (23 September-3 October) and try to reach the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

At the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship in Manila, he averaged 17.4 points and 6.6 rebounds, but China lost in a major upset to Chinese Taipei in the Quarter-Finals.

Yi said in a recent interview with sports.people.com.cn that he will travel to the United States for some workouts but will return to China and link up with the national team with the aim "to lead young players and complete the national team goal this year of winning the Asian Championship to get a ticket for the Olympic Games."

 If they can make it to Rio, Yi will have a chance to play at a fourth straight Olympics.

And if that happens, who knows?

Maybe he'll be able to raise some eyebrows back in NBA.

Bynum certainly thinks he's got something to offer, even though he been excelling in a CBA league that isn't known for its defense.

"He's rolling," Bynum said.

"He's a matchup nightmare over there."

FIBA