The Official Yi Jianlian Shrine

[Dat2U]

The tide is turning.

No more reading all that Yi was a wasted pick up anymore.

Not calling him an All Star yet but the young man is looking pretty good.

Well worth EG bringing him here to take a look.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/players/p ... yerId=3214

Some interesting numbers from last year.

Yi is who I thought he was. He's what I thought he was. I seen him preseason. Who in hell takes two games in preseason seriously. Bullsh*t! I seen him play 3 years! Yi is who I thought he was!!! That's why I took the stance I took. If you wanna crown him, then crown his ass! But he who I thought he was! And now you wanna let him off the hook!!!

[Durant Durant]

^ wow too much emotion. haters gotta hate.

[Halcyon]

^ wow too much emotion. haters gotta hate.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_N1OjGhIFc[/youtube]

[nate33]

The tide is turning.

No more reading all that Yi was a wasted pick up anymore.

Not calling him an All Star yet but the young man is looking pretty good.

Well worth EG bringing him here to take a look.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/players/p ... yerId=3214

Some interesting numbers from last year.

Yi is who I thought he was. He's what I thought he was. I seen him preseason. Who in hell takes two games in preseason seriously. Bullsh*t! I seen him play 3 years! Yi is who I thought he was!!! That's why I took the stance I took. If you wanna crown him, then crown his ass! But he who I thought he was! And now you wanna let him off the hook!!!

You gotta admit Dat2U, Yi has looked a lot better so far than he did last year. It's not just the mediocre competition and effort of our opponents. Yi is actually mixing it up in the paint a bit more. He is posting up and drawing contact. And he's working hard on the glass. I think there's good reason to think that Yi will be an above-average backup PF.

If nothing else, it sure is nice to have some offensive aptitude in the 2nd unit. Last season, the only way the Wizards could score when Blatche sat was to go with a small ball lineup and put Thornton at the 4 and Singleton at the 5. This year, even if our very worst lineups, we should have at least two bonafide NBA scorers on the floor: Yi plus at least one of Young/Thornton.

[nate33]

Yi's per 36 numbers so far:

19 points
12 boards
3.5 assists
2.8 blocks
.579 TS%
+22 on/off differential per 48

[fishercob]

The tide is turning.

No more reading all that Yi was a wasted pick up anymore.

Not calling him an All Star yet but the young man is looking pretty good.

Well worth EG bringing him here to take a look.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/players/p ... yerId=3214

Some interesting numbers from last year.

Yi is who I thought he was. He's what I thought he was. I seen him preseason. Who in hell takes two games in preseason seriously. Bullsh*t! I seen him play 3 years! Yi is who I thought he was!!! That's why I took the stance I took. If you wanna crown him, then crown his ass! But he who I thought he was! And now you wanna let him off the hook!!!

You gotta admit Dat2U, Yi has looked a lot better so far than he did last year. It's not just the mediocre competition and effort of our opponents. Yi is actually mixing it up in the paint a bit more. He is posting up and drawing contact. And he's working hard on the glass. I think there's good reason to think that Yi will be an above-average backup PF.

If nothing else, it sure is nice to have some offensive aptitude in the 2nd unit. Last season, the only way the Wizards could score when Blatche sat was to go with a small ball lineup and put Thornton at the 4 and Singleton at the 5. This year, even if our very worst lineups, we should have at least two bonafide NBA scorers on the floor: Yi plus at least one of Young/Thornton.

I hated the acquisition, but do admit that between the WC's and so far in the pre-season I'm impressed. And that's the thing -- if we can get an early (to mid) twenties, above-average backup PF locked up long term for cheap, it will be a win. If his decent play continues, I would expect Ernie/Ted to lock him up long term with the new CBA -- and the opportunity for continuity and a consistent role -- as leverage. Maybe 5 years, $15-20M.

[nate33]

My guess is that Yi will cost more than his worth on the court. There will be a bidding war because owners know that Yi comes with a built-in market of 1 billion screaming Chinamen.

[bolokhan]

cool yourself, Grand Dragon. We aren't in the 50's anymore. Jesus Christ..

[bolokhan]

In any case, it's better than a crowd of screaming rednecks in America, that's for sure

[nate33]

cool yourself, Grand Dragon. We aren't in the 50's anymore. Jesus Christ..

Sorry, that was a reference to an 80's movie: Red Dawn. I don't normally refer to the Chinese as "screaming Chinamen". No offense intended.

[nate33]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIMH50X0F-4[/youtube]

[pineappleheadindc]

cool yourself, Grand Dragon. We aren't in the 50's anymore. Jesus Christ..

Welcome to the Wizards board. Hope you're here for the long term.

Just a quick note. I've known Nate in this virtual space for years. (Too many years as it makes me feel old). If his comments seemed inartful, it was only b/c he was quoting something else. In real life, you won't find a nicer gentleman - who's also quite a stat geek. I'm of Asian descent, and when I read Nate's post, I knew that he had no ill-intentions behind it because I know him. So let me vouch for him.

Again, bolokhan, welcome to the board. Am looking forward to getting to know you as well.

Pine

[Hoopalotta]

cool yourself, Grand Dragon. We aren't in the 50's anymore. Jesus Christ..

Sorry, that was a reference to an 80's movie: Red Dawn. I don't normally refer to the Chinese as "screaming Chinamen". No offense intended.

Wolverines!

[fishercob]

And look what Marc Stein just tweeted:

Amid Wall/Arenas focus, Yi Jianlian's solid start ignored. Heard this week extension for Yi by Nov. 1 deadline "under consideration" by Wiz

[JWizmentality]

cool yourself, Grand Dragon. We aren't in the 50's anymore. Jesus Christ..

In any case, it's better than a crowd of screaming rednecks in America, that's for sure

You can't claim to be the better man then fall to level you're chastising. It's like an argument I had with an older caucasian gentleman the other day...where he concluded "You're such a f**king racist! I can't stand you damn n*ggers!"

In any case, nate's not that kind of person.

Welcome to the board.

[TheGreatWall]

And look what Marc Stein just tweeted:

Amid Wall/Arenas focus, Yi Jianlian's solid start ignored. Heard this week extension for Yi by Nov. 1 deadline "under consideration" by Wiz

Uh...I like Yi's production so far as much as the next guy, but really? Unless it's a deal starting at about 1.5 a year, this doesn't make much sense.

[nate33]

Yi was a relatively high draft pick, so his qualifying offer is a rather high $5.4M. If the Wizards wish to retain restricted free agent rights on Yi, they need to offer him a one-year deal worth $5.4M. I don't see EG doing that.

I also doubt Yi would agree to any kind of lowball offer (say, 3 years, $10M) at this point in time. He'll be a backup in Washington. I'm sure he still believes that he can be a starter somewhere else and earn starter's money. He's better off playing a year and then entering the offseason next year as an unrestricted free agent.

I just don't see both sides agreeing to any kind of extension. There are too many uncertainties involved. I think the best scenario for us to reap value out of Yi would be for him to play well early this year, and then have EG trade him at the Trade Deadline to an over-the-cap team who needs Bird Rights to retain him next year.

[fishercob]

I dunno nate, I never would have thought Blatche's extension terms would be accepted either.

There seemed to be a great sense among Yi's people (I think David Thorpe wrote about this on ESPN) that Yi had finally ended up in the right situation for him after bad fits in MIL and NJ. If he makes a gajillion dollars in Chinese endorsements anyway, he may not quibble over $1-2M a year if he thinks he can blossom here.

[nate33]

I didn't think about the endorsement angle. That's food for thought.

That said, the Blatche situation was completely different. Effectively, Blatche was extended for 3 years, at $9M a year. That's a lot of money, but at least Blatche is slated to be a perennial starter and number one low post option for the foreseeable future. Yi is different. Coming off his FIBA performance and his preseason showing so far, my guess is that Yi thinks of himself as being nearly as good as Blatche - at least worthy of something in the $6-7M per year range. But for our purposes, does it make a lot of sense to commit that much money to him right now when, at best, he's a 25 min per game backup?

[JonathanJoseph]

I dunno nate, I never would have thought Blatche's extension terms would be accepted either.

There seemed to be a great sense among Yi's people (I think David Thorpe wrote about this on ESPN) that Yi had finally ended up in the right situation for him after bad fits in MIL and NJ. If he makes a gajillion dollars in Chinese endorsements anyway, he may not quibble over $1-2M a year if he thinks he can blossom here.

This.

Let's not underestimate the Wizards front office. Neither the Bucks nor the Nets of recent past would be considered model franchises, so I'm certain that a few months under Teddy L has been a breath of fresh air. And, yes, for someone who has been a bad fit elsewhere, finding a good fit (not to mention deciding to play with John Wall) would sound like an awfully enticing proposition to some.

Will be interesting to see if this pans out, but if Ernie gets this done at a reasonable price and Yi continues to show that this is not a fluke, EG will be the odds on favorite for Executive of the Year at the start of the season.