CHN - Yi tipped for NBA stardom

BEIJING (NBA) - If Yi Jianlian is picked high in Thursday's NBA Draft it could be another significant step in the NBA's attempts to make inroads into China.

The 7ft power forward is expected to be picked in the top 10 of the Draft, and could be picked as high as number three, with Greg Oden and Kevin Durant expected to go at one and two.

With around 300 million people in China competing in the sport, another of their players in the NBA would only serve to bolster links and sell more jerseys.

The question remains whether he will make an immediate impact in the American league, and Beijing BTV's NBA analyst Xia Song believes he will take time to adjust.

He told the Tucson Citizen: "He's definitely a great athlete who can be an NBA project for any team.

"The draft is hard to predict unless you are a Yao Ming or LeBron James or Michael Jordan."

Yi is a China international, having played in the 2004 Olympics, and for the Guangdong Tigers this season he averaged 25 points and 12 rebounds.

Xia added: "Every international player - every Chinese player - is going to need time to adjust to the American culture, to the NBA, to the locker room.

"It is going to take time, but he's young. He's a very smart kid and he will be able to handle it very well."

David Broome
FIBA