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Last year Harris convinced Kohl to take Yi, and persuaded Kohl to help bring Yi to the Bucks. There has been grumblings all year that Yi's camp wasn't happy that he was on the Bucks despite given more mins then "the promise." Now that Hammond is here he might not want to deal with that circus anymore, and look to deal him.


Some questions:

Would Hammond cave to Yi's trade demands?
Should Hammond deny his trade requests?
What do you think Yi's trade value is right now? and how much would it be effected if he demanded a trade?
How well do you think Yi fits with Bogut and Skiles?

Send his ass out, and bring us a legitimate superstar by packaging him with Redd.

I don't think it will happen.

Yi got his ass handed to him by the men in the NBA the last four months of the season. They may grumble privately about a trade but not publicly IMO.

And Yi's now got four months where he has to be an ambassador of China to the world for the Olympics. He won't do anything to embarrass anyone.

I'd guess Hammond and Kohl have a deal in place where Yi stays another year at least.

1. I don't consider it caving if Hammond is able to turn Yi into a player or players who can make the Bucks better.

2. No. He should not close the door on trading any player who could bring back pieces that would improve the team.

3. It's hard to say what his value is. He didn't do anything to raise it with his play this season but it's only one season and if a team really liked him last season I'd have to think they'd still like him now. The question is - who are those teams?

4. Offensively he should fit in well with Bogut and Skiles. The question is how good will he be defensively? He showed some positive signs early in the season in my opinion but I still think the Bucks need a strong defender and rebounder to pair with Bogut. One thing Yi didn't show was a strong ability to board. So I think he has the potential to fit well but there are still a lot of unknowns with him.

One thing is for sure, it creates a losing mentality when a player is GIVEN minutes.

You have to earn minutes. I can't see Hammond telling any coach that Yi has to have X amount of minutes.

That's something losers do. Not winners.

Good point. I think the Yi minute guarantee/trade request situation perhaps caused more grumbling in that locker-room than anyone thought possible.

Well actually Yi did earn his minutes.

He clearly beat CV in camp and outperformed him for the 1st 1/4 of the season. CV later replaced him in the starting line up and played well, while Yi struggled and did lose PT.

As far as trading Yi? Trade request, demand or silence is all the same to me. I will trade a player (any player) if it makes us better and I would never ever cave into a trade demand.

Hopefully next season the Bucks have another option at PF who actually deserves to start should Yi still not be ready instead of someone who only thinks he should be starting.

paulpressey25 wrote:I don't think it will happen.

Yi got his ass handed to him by the men in the NBA the last four months of the season. They may grumble privately about a trade but not publicly IMO.

Eh. I don't think that would stop them. A variety of excuses could be thrown out there, and they could point out that he was the rookie of the month.

And Yi's now got four months where he has to be an ambassador of China to the world for the Olympics. He won't do anything to embarrass anyone.

Thats a good point. It is hard to picture Yi demanding a trade amidst all that. After the Oylimpics are done the off season will almost be over, and it would be harder to move him.

I never feared that Yi would bolt or not show last year, because we had the ultimate leverage (preparing Yi for the olympics). Everything else that was said and threatened loomed small in the shadow of China's fierce national pride and growing love of basketball. It was a forgone conlusion, that if we refused to trade him, that he would play happily for the Bucks.

Next season, we have no such chip. And if Yi (and or his representitives) seriously want him somewhere else, there is little we can do. I remember reading on this board from someone who claimed to be in the know, that Fegan had already demanded a trade after the olympics. I don't think any of us have any realistic guess as to the veracity of that claim. Though I have alwasy suspected such, even as the stalemate was being solved last summer.

I think Yi has more value than people here think. As a player, and as a gate attraction. I think Don Nelson would love to have Yi. I think the Rockets would love to pair him with Yao. I think the Spurs, the Suns, and the Kings are a few more teams that value a player with Yi's skillset tremendously. I have no doubt we could get a lottery pick for Yi (5 - 10 range) at the very least. Best case? No idea. But forgetting his second half nose dive last season, how many guys in the league can run and shoot like him that are 6'8 or taller? Then throw in that he is a legit 7' or 7'1, and is a very good help side shot blocker? That is crazy rare. Granted "hands" are not something that players typically develop, good hands are more something you have or don't. But Yi is also very smart, and a very hard worker. I think we can factor those in positively when estimating realistic improvement margins. Keep in mind, ball handling, post moves, and strength are all things that players can and typically do improve in.

Last but not least, I like to factor in something I call "the Bogut factor"... there is a certain type of player (the guy that thrives on making the extra pass, taking a charge, executing a coaches play, etc) that gets frustrated and kind of throws in the towel so to speak when surrounded by chuckers and stat-chasers. I saw a little of that in Yi last year. I would be very hesitant to trade him until I saw him in an environment where everyone was accountable, played team ball, and shared the basketball.

If Fegan did demand a trade, and staged a sit out after the olympics... I wouldn't want the headache and the continued stigma of guys dissing Milwaukee. But I wouldn't trade him for fifty sense on the dollar either. This kid could still be really special.

Yao felt respected and valued by the Rockets, and has remained extremely loyal. I am guessing, if Hammond approaches things the right way, that we could keep Yi in the fold too, despite what Fegan says.

europa wrote:Hopefully next season the Bucks have another option at PF who actually deserves to start should Yi still not be ready instead of someone who only thinks he should be starting.

Who thinks they should be starting? That wouldn't be Yi. CV now, I bet he thinks he should be starting.

Chapter29 wrote:-= original quote snipped =-



Who thinks they should be starting? That wouldn't be Yi. CV now, I bet he thinks he should be starting.

Chapter29 wrote:Well actually Yi did earn his minutes.

He clearly beat CV in camp and outperformed him for the 1st 1/4 of the season. CV later replaced him in the starting line up and played well, while Yi struggled and did lose PT.

Its hard to say if he actually beat him out since we couldn't watch training camp. Like Bogut, imo CV is a confidence player and could have lost a lot of it because feeling he was unfairly treated when the season started.

Midranger posted that insane stat that when CV gets 35 min he averages something like 25/11. Some players just need playing time and can't come off the bench.

Good point. I think the Yi minute guarantee/trade request situation perhaps caused more grumbling in that locker-room than anyone thought possible.

That certainly was a factor turning the locker room into a disaster. It could possibly be the first incident, and spiraled out of control after that.

I really dont think the Bucks would trade Yi. Just from a financial standpoint, it would hurt the Bucks immensly. If Yi turns out to be a quarter of what Yao is, the Bucks will make a ton of money from the Chinese market. While there might be good deals on the table, I would be surprised if Kohl would accept the trade.

Nowak008 wrote:Its hard to say if he actually beat him out since we couldn't watch training camp. Like Bogut, imo CV is a confidence player and could have lost a lot of it because feeling he was unfairly treated when the season started.

Midranger posted that insane stat that when CV gets 35 min he averages something like 25/11. Some players just need playing time and can't come off the bench.

Well I believe he very much beat him out.

Yes you are correct that CV seems to play better with more PT and is very much a confidence player. I agree he seemed to be one of those players where he struggled getting it "going" without starting.

With that said, sometimes its too dam bad, he didn't earn his PT, but once he got it, he certainly kept it by performing.

I'm not sure about the details of Elton Brand's contract, but it seems like it could be a move to be made by packaging Mo and Yi together for Brand. I certainly wouldn't give up any picks, but it's a deal I'd like the Bucks to attempt. I would only do this if Brand were truly 100% and willing to commit to Milwaukee.

Nowak008 wrote:Midranger posted that insane stat that when CV gets 35 min he averages something like 25/11.

I think the only way the CV got on the court for 35+ minutes last season was if his shot was falling. If CV got hot early in the game LK would give him the minutes because he was at least contributing on one side of the court.

The fact that CV couldn't get 35+ minutes without scoring at a high clip, just highlights how little he contributes when he's not shooting the ball well...

In my opinion, CV's game is centered around how he performs offensively. Am i the only one who noticed when CV's shot is falling, he's generally more energized, rebounds a lot better, and puts forth more effort D?

If his shot is not falling however, he plays like a sloth.

For the record, I still believe that Yi can be a franchise type player.

Bottom line, the kid has the length and mobility of Tyson Chandler (though admittedly not the hops), perfect form on his shot, high basketball IQ, and passion for the game. TELL ME ONE MOBILE SEVEN FOOTER WHO WAS SMART AND CARED ABOUT THE GAME AND COULD SHOOT WHO BUSTED? I mean, I watched most all the Bucks games, and I am first in line in realizing what this kid can't do. If I had a brick for every time he got stuffed on a dunk or layup attempt I could rebuild the great wall. But again, this kid just has too many freak gifts from the basketball gods to be a bust. It would be one thing if this was his fourth year in the league or something. But he still has so much to gain from a year of NBA weights, coaching, practice, and competition. We have only seen the surface, and even that was tremendously impressive at times.

Shoot him.

Will Perdude wrote:For the record, I still believe that Yi can be a franchise type player.

Bottom line, the kid has the length and mobility of Tyson Chandler (though admittedly not the hops), perfect form on his shot, high basketball IQ, and passion for the game. TELL ME ONE MOBILE SEVEN FOOTER WHO WAS SMART AND CARED ABOUT THE GAME AND COULD SHOOT WHO BUSTED? I mean, I watched most all the Bucks games, and I am first in line in realizing what this kid can't do. If I had a brick for every time he got stuffed on a dunk or layup attempt I could rebuild the great wall. But again, this kid just has too many freak gifts from the basketball gods to be a bust. It would be one thing if this was his fourth year in the league or something. But he still has so much to gain from a year of NBA weights, coaching, practice, and competition. We have only seen the surface, and even that was tremendously impressive at times.

I couldn't agree more.