Yao, Yi and Sun face different pre-season challenges
Tuesday, 7th October 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
As the start of the NBA season gets closer, each of China's three NBA players--veteran Yao Ming, second-year player Yi Jianlian and rookie Sun Yue--is facing completely different challenges.Yao Ming, along with Tracy McGrady, is one of two leaders of a Houston Rockets team that's in the hunt for a long-awaited NBA title. He's also still working on completely healing from a foot fracture that ended his season 26 games early last year. A healthy and productive season for Yao is obviously a key ingredient to team success, and to his status as one of the league's premier big men.
Yi Jianlian is adjusting to his new team, the New Jersey Nets, and jetting to Paris and London for exhibition games against the Miami Heat. After getting his wish of moving to a larger market with a bigger Chinese-American population, the power forward is now vying for playing time with other talented front court players including Josh Boone, Stromile Swift, Eduardo Najera and Brook Lopez.
In Los Angeles, Lakers rookie Sun Yue is out indefinitely with mononucleosis. The illness should keep him off the court and out of the weight room for several weeks, not a good look for a player who needs some quick NBA grooming to establish himself as someone who is ready for the league.
Ironically, no Chinese nationals will be suiting up for the two pre-season games in Beijing later this month. The Golden State Warriors take on Yi's former team, the Milwaukee Bucks, in a pair of games October 15 and 18, in Guangzhou and Beijing.
Tags: Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks, NBA, New Jersey Nets, Sun Yue, Yao Ming, Yi Jianlian
Bucks and Warriors to play China in 2008
Thursday, 28th August 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
The NBA keeps doing its best to dominate the post-Olympic China sports news cycle. The latest: the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors will play a pair of preseason games in China in October. The first will be played in Guangzhou Gymnasium October 15; the second will take place at Beijing's Wukesong Arena October 18.The Milwaukee Bucks are featured in this game, despite trading Chinese forward Yi Jianlian (易建联) to the New Jersey Nets on the eve of the NBA draft. The Bucks do have a player with a China connection, rookie Joe Alexander, who spent his middle school and early high school years in Beijing.
As sports marketing consultant Xia Song told CST in June, "Milwaukee has become a popular team in China. Even without Yi, it's still going to be a popular team in China. And if they have a player with a connection to China, that player is going to get attention here."
Related:
How the NBA draft looks from China
Basketball's China game plan
Tags: basketball, Beijing, Golden State Warriors, Guangzhou, Milwaukee Bucks, NBA, Wukesong, Xia Song, Yi Jianlian
Yao carries Chinese basketball team into quarterfinals
Sunday, 17th August 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Liu Wei drives the lane against Spain.
China's 59-55 win over Germany last night puts the team into the quarterfinals of the Olympic tournament. With very little hope of medaling, securing a spot in the final eight was the goal the team had set for itself.
With wins over Germany and Angola and losses to Spain and the United States, China is tied for third with Greece, which lost to and beat the same teams as China. Even if Germany were to win its final game against the United States, and China lost to Greece, the two would still be in a tie, and China's victory in head-to-head competition would put them in the quarterfinals.
Yao Ming has been setting the pace, as expected, averaging just under 20 points per game. The team's next leading scorers are Liu Wei (刘炜), with 10.3, and Zhu Fangyu (朱芳雨), with 9.5 (CST would like to point out that we told you how important these two players—little known to fans outside of China—are to the team, in this post last week). Both players have gotten most of their points from long distance: Liu has knocked down 8 threes and Zhu, 10.
Yao's NBA colleague, Yi Jianlian, is averaging just 8 points a game but has been a strong defensive presence for China. Sun Yue (孙悦), who will join the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers for the 2008-2009 season, has also had a quiet performance offensively, averaging 6.5 points, but has come up with key steals and blocked shots.
China will play its last preliminary game Monday against Greece. The quarterfinals begin on Wednesday.
Related: Yes, China can beat the Dream Team
Image: Sports.nen.com
Tags: basketball, Beijing Olympics, Liu Wei, Olympics, Yao Ming, Yi Jianlian, Zhu Fangyu
Yes, China can beat the Dream Team
Sunday, 10th August 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
China Sports Today editor Maggie Rauch writes a biweekly column in Chinese for the 21st Century Business Herald. Below is a translation of her column from yesterday on today's men's basketball game between China and the USA.China plays the United States in men's basketball tonight at Wukesong Arena, in what is for Chinese fans one of the most anticipated events of this Olympics. Members of the USA's "Dream Team," or "Redeem Team," have been received like rock stars since they arrived in China two weeks ago.
I have been quoted (accurately) as saying that the home team has no chance tonight, but I regret saying that. Of course China has a chance. That's why we actually play the game. To atone for my sin against the beautiful unpredictability of sports, I am going to break down a few possibilities that could help tip the scales a little in China's favor.
The Yao that we know finally returns.
Yao has given China a boost since his post-injury debut, but not the heroic performances the team requires from him if it is to pull off any upsets. He will suit up to play the USA after a week of rest and he'll also be playing for bragging rights among his NBA buddies. There is every reason to believe that Yao's strongest Olympic performance will come against the USA.
Team USA assumes Wang Zhizhi and Sun Yue (孙悦) are China's third and fourth most important players.
Among American fans, the only known names besides Yao and Yi are Wang Zhizhi, who played five seasons in the NBA, and Sun Yue, who created a bit of a stir when he was drafted by the Lakers in 2007. Wang's minutes and production have declined as Yao's have gone up, and Sun has averaged just over 4 points over the last 8 games. Either of these guys could have some good games in the Olympics, but containing veteran point guard Liu Wei (刘炜) and shooting/slashing small forward Zhu Fangyu (朱芳雨), if they are both healthy, should be higher on the U.S.'s list of priorities. How dangerous is Zhu? Watch the below video of him (wearing number 8) scoring 13 points in 3:30 to bring the Guangdong Tigers back from a 15-point deficit in the 2005 CBA Finals (Yi Jianlian is also in the video).
Lebron, Kobe and Carmelo just don't care enough.
The guys have all been saying the right things about how much it means to them to win Olympic gold. But in America, boys who swim or do gymnastics grow up dreaming of winning a gold medal. Boys who play basketball grow up dreaming of an NBA championship. And should the American team lose a few games it is expected to win, its players all have multi-million dollar contracts to comfort them.
Coach K keeps Prince on the bench.
In recent FIBA competition, both Angola and Australia disrupted China's offense with strong perimeter defense. Angola's smart and quick players kept popping up in China's passing lanes, and Australia's big guards made it hard for China to get easy shots or advance the ball toward the basket. Long-armed and defensive-minded Team USA forward Tayshaun Prince, not likely to be a starter, could really help slow down shooters and keep the ball out of the key.
China's fans give the home team an even bigger lift than they gave the women's team in April.
The USA women were heavy favorites in the finals of the Good Luck Beijing women's basketball test event in April. But when the game tipped off, the American women looked like they were ready to board the plane, while China's women, in front of a packed house at home, played like it was the most important game of their lives. Ultimately, they avenged their 20-point rout by the U.S. two days before. The men will need a really strong crowd to get a similar boost at the Olympics.
China shoots the lights out.
Okay, it's obvious. If you make a lot of baskets, you win. That's why the game is called basketball. But China has some great shooters in Zhang Qingpeng, Li Nan (李楠) and Zhu Fangyu (朱芳雨). If two of them get really hot, the whole floor opens up for China.
Maybe none of these things will happen—although I expect a strong performance from Yao Ming—but if a few of them do, we've got ourselves a game on August 10. Whether you like Adidas ("Impossible is Nothing,") or Li-Ning ("Anything is Possible,") basketball is a great sport for upsets.
Image: Tuhuan.com
Tags: basketball, Beijing Olympics, Dream Team, Olympics, Sun Yue, Wang Zhizhi, Yao Ming, Yi Jianlian, Zhu Fangyu
China men's basketball beats Angola
Wednesday, 30th July 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Point guard Liu Wei
Liu Wei passed out six assists, grabbed five rebounds (the same number as Yao) and had 18 points, including a key three pointer to put China up by six with about three minutes left. Wang Shipeng （王仕鹏）was the team's next leading scorer with 13. China's other NBA player, Yi Jianlian（易建联), had just 11 points and 6 rebounds.
After a slow start that had them down 18-10 in the first quarter, China took the lead for the first time in the second half but didn't have the game in hand until the last minute. China still struggles with Angola's quick ball movement and an active defense that often makes it tough for China to pound the ball in to Yao and Yi. The teams are 1-1 in their two meetings this summer; they play again August 14, in a preliminary round game.
China plays Australia at 4:00 this afternoon.
Link: FIBA game report
Image: QQ.com
Tags: Angola, basketball, Liu Wei, Wang Shipeng, Yao Ming, Yi Jianlian
How the NBA Draft Looks From China
Friday, 27th June 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Memphis' Derrick Rose (r) was drafted first by the Chicago Bulls. (Image: ESPN)
The second off-season week was a big one in the NBA, and China, where basketball and the U.S. league are hugely popular, was watching. Hours before the draft began, Guangdong-born forward Yi Jianlian was traded to the New Jersey Nets in a deal that sends Richard Jefferson to Milwaukee.
The trade looks good for Yi—he never wanted to go to Milwaukee in the first place and though the official line was that he had settled in happily, rumor had it that the rookie never got very comfortable in Wisconsin. On the other end, the Nets' new general manager Kiki Vandeweghe has been a vocal Yi fan.
When he was drafted last year, Yi initially demanded a trade, citing the lack of a Chinese community in Milwaukee. The New Jersey Nets play in the shadow of New York City, and in two years, the team is scheduled to change its name and move into a new arena in Brooklyn. New York City as a whole is home to 374,321 Chinese-Americans and the Chinese population in Brooklyn alone is 100 times that of Milwaukee's. The Nets' new arena is an easy subway ride across the East River from a Chinatown that the city's government claims is the nation's biggest. There doesn't seem to be much for Yi to complain about this time around.
But Chinese NBA fans' interest extends beyond their countrymen. To get some answers about what the draft and the Team USA announcement mean here, China Sports Today caught up with Xia Song in Beijing. Xia Song is president of sports marketing firm Starway Sports, one-time agent to former NBA players Wang Zhizhi and Mengke Bateer, and a jack-of-all-trades veteran of the China basketball scene.
Xia Song (l) with retired NBA coach Del Harris
CST: Of this draft class, who do you think has good China marketing potential?
Xia: Because of the relationship between Memphis and China, Derrick Rose [number one pick from University of Memphis] can be big here right away. No doubt he is going to be a star. And he's going to the Chicago Bulls which was the team that lit up the way for the NBA into China 15-20 years ago.
Another kid in this lottery is Joe Alexander [Milwaukee Bucks, number eight pick from West Virginia University], who played in Beijing. I knew him back in '99 when he was 13. His team, the International School of Beijing, was invited by Nike to play in the Beijing High School league [sponsored by Nike]. He was not supposed to play because he was too young, but they made an exception for him.
Joe Alexander, selected eighth by the Bucks (Image: nbadraft.net)
Xia: As I remember, not bad. He was real smart and a real hard working kid.
CST: Given that he's going to a small market and now won't be playing with Yi, does that hurt his marketing prospects in China?
Xia: There's going to be an effect, but Milwaukee has become a popular team in China. Even without Yi, it's still going to be a popular team in China. And if they have a player with a connection to China, that player is going to get attention here.
CST: Without a lottery pick, what can the Houston Rockets do to improve the supporting cast around Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady?
Xia: I don't think there was a rookie who could really help them. I think the key is to find a player who really wants to play with them as a team to win a championship.
CST: Let's talk Olympics for a minute. Does the USA's selection of a smaller team improve China's chances against them? [China plays the United States in the first game of the Olympic tournament.]
Xia:All of the USA's opponents are going to take that advantage of that. I think the small lineup is better for China to play. In China's group, everybody has a chance to get to the second round. I don't think the USA has a clear advantage to win the gold.
CST: Can US players on the Olympic team up their China marketing value during the games?
Xia: No, not really. That's a USA team. If they want to build their image, people will watch their regular season and playoffs performances more than the Olympics.
Related:
Joe Alexander to Play With Yi?
Yi, Jay-Z and LeBron?
An NBA Draft Prospect out of China... Sort of
Tags: basketball, Chicago Bulls, Derrick Rose, Joe Alexander, marketing, Memphis, Milwaukee Bucks, New Jersey Nets, Team USA, Xia Song, Yi Jianlian
Yi, Jay-Z and Lebron?
Friday, 27th June 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Yi will finally get the big market and bigger Asian population that he wanted last year. He joins a Nets team that includes Devin Harris at point guard and Vince Carter at shooting guard. The trade will clear up some salary money for the much-rumored acquisition of Lebron James by the Nets in 2010. The Nets are owned by hip-hop mogul Jay-Z and scheduled to move to his native Brooklyn by the 2010-11 season.
Image: NBA.com
Tags: Joe Alexander, NBA, Yi Jianlian
Yao Back in Beijing, China Wins 8th Straight
Thursday, 26th June 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Yao Ming returned to Beijing Wednesday and will report to practice Friday, according to several media reports. The Chinese men's national team got its second win over a Lithuanian team (this BOCOG report calls them Lithuania's "C team") the day before. Yi Jianlian had 26 points and five rebounds in the 110-92 win in Shenzhen.It's China's eighth win in a row, but the last three came over Croatia's B team, and the three before that came against a University of Memphis team that was missing its top three players. China won the first game over Lithuania "C" by a score of 87-70. Wang Zhizhi, Li Nan and Zhang Qingpeng hit three three-pointers apiece.
China, coached by Lithuanian Jonas Kazlauskas, has not actually decided its roster for the Olympics.
Tags: basketball, Li Nan, national team, Wang Zhizhi, Yao Ming, Yi Jianlian, Zhang Qingpeng
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