NBA Draft
I realize that there’s little interest in this forum for the NBA, much less the draft - but I still offer two thoughts:
(1) Consensus seems to be consternation that the Bucks selected Yi Jianlian with the #6 pick overall. BSG points out that his first name is actually pronounced “E” - thereby making this pick E-6. Pretty funny. But I’m reading that Yi wanted to go somewhere that there’s a heavy Chinese population. Um, I realize Milwaukee is Algonquin for “the good land” - but I don’t think it’s Chinese for “the good land”. What are the odds this guy ever plays a game for the Bucks? Actually, what are the odds this guy ever plays a game in the NBA - since nobody really knows how good he is?
(2) Consensus seems to be that Danny Ainge got taken in his deal with Seattle - mostly cuz Ray Allen is too old. I dunno… I like the deal. I love Delonte West, but he’s no Chauncey Billups people. Wally World was a bust. Jeff Green may be a terrific pro, but I’m intrigued by Big Baby Davis. I’m willing to wait and see how this one plays out. I think it might not be such a bad deal, when history reviews it.
Thoughts?
July 1st, 2007 at 5:56 pm
Yi will play in Milwaukee. I am glad that the Bucks decided to take the best available player at #6 instead of being scared off by an agent. The draft is what it is… a draft. If Yi wants to play in the NBA, it will be with the Bucks. It isn’t like he can pull a JD Drew and play a year in the Independent League and then reenter the draft the following year. I am not sure that Houston has a huge Chinese population, and Yao has been plenty marketable playing there. Yi has come out and said he wants to play in the NBA, so I think the agent will have to agree to his wish.
The reporting by ESPN during the draft was laughable. They were very critical of Bucks GM Larry Harris because he had never seen Yi play. Since Harris’ dad, Del coached the Chinese team in the Olympics, they just assumed that Del was the main decision maker on the pick. Larry Harris has personally seen Yi play over 20 times in person. That is just ridiculous reporting, and another reason I hate ESPN.
July 2nd, 2007 at 2:16 pm
Speaking of hating ESPN - anyone catch Baseball Tonight? In talking about the rosters, they referenced how many foreign born players there are in the AL. In the NL, “there are more Americans, including Russell Martin.”
Well, part of that statement is true; he is from NORTH America. However, he was born in Canada, not the US.
Why would we expect ESPN to check their facts, though?