Yi to demand a trade?

[InfiniteBaskets]

I always thought that international players were 'automatically' allowed to be in the draft, when they've gotten over the age of 22. I always thought this was rather stupid, as in if players overseas don't want to play in the NBA but are a top ten pick and they will have to play in the NBA. Didn't Sabonis stay overseas for most of his prime until his 30s?



It's going to be easy firing the government

In one of loots' posts, it said Yi's agent's name was Dan Fegan I think. That doesn't sound very Chinese. I'm a bit confused on how Yi's management works... The Chinese govt are acting as his agents? That just doesn't seem to make sense.

I feel as though Yi's agent is an American who is familiar with bringing international players to the NBA and helping them make a transition. His agent knows USA pretty well, probably grew up here, and knows how to take advantage of a markatable player when he sees one. He sees alot of cash in bringing Yi to a metro city with high asian influence.

[InfiniteBaskets]

Who does this guy think he is. He'll be a poor man's Yao. Which is not saying much since Yao is mega overrated. The guy is getting killed on the boards by average PF's in the league.

C'mon now, let's not trash Yao. He never trash talks himself, nor whines about playing for Houston.

Oh yeah, and he was the leading scorer last season among centers, in fact he put up more ppg than McGrady did. And he was the only scorer among the top ten that shot over .500. His shoots free throws at 86 percent, better than alot of other centers, and was top 20 in rebounding and shot blocking. What more do you want from the guy? I'm not saying he's a super-star like Kobe or Garnett but the guy can play. Yi will be lucky if he can put up Yao like stats.

[TheOne]

I can't believe how dumb most of you are being about this. Well, yes I can, but anyway...

Milwaukee did the right thing here. The reason there is a draft in the NBA is so that the teams can pick the players that they want. No fan of parity in sports should want a system where sometimes the team picks the player, and in other cases the player picks the team. There are about 10 teams in the league that players would pick if they all got the choice.

This year Noah and Yi were both top-10 prospects and both said they don't want Milwaukee. What if Milwaukee listens to their requests and then next year half of the top ten picks decide that they'll do the same thing. Pretty soon you've got half of the players in the draft announcing lists of the teams they'll consider.

It is not the player's choice where they get to play. If you want to play in our league you gotta play by our rules. That's the deal. Don't like it, and want to play in a large city with a big asian population? Stay in Bejing, *******.

I'll certainly be sending Larry Harris an email congratulating him on showing the commies who really holds the cards here, and encouraging him to stick it out. If Yi doesn't want to play in the NBA, he doesn't have to. He can stay in China playing for peanuts, and we'll make the playoffs without him.

If Yi wants to play against the best players in the world, make millions of dollars, and live his dream of making the NBA, he can accept reality and do it in Milwaukee. If he'd rather stick to filming soap opera milk commercials in China and matching up against ZhiZhi ten times a year, that's his choice. I'll happily "waste" the draft pick before announcing to the league that now players and agents get to pick their own destinations. Fegan will represent plenty of rookies in the future if he gets his way here, and there's nothing to stop him from doing this over and over again.

And don't give me any bull**** about "employees should get to choose the city they work in." No employee in the world gets to make choices like that. You want a job, you show up to the office where it's located. If you don't like the location, start thinking about a new line of work. If he likes LA so much, maybe he can apply for a job at a movie theater there.

I agree. Yi should play for the Bucks. Get the playtime and dollar then screw them after rookie contract. Do it!

[ripthekik]

Bucks first-round draft pick Yi Jianlian did not travel to Milwaukee on Friday to be formally introduced to the fans and apparently has no plans to even visit the city that drafted him.

in ur face, bucks!

[FPower]

in ur face, bucks!

If he doesn't come over this year, the Bucks will have his rights whevener he does decide he wants to play in the NBA. Then he'll be forced to play on his rookie deal when he's in his prime.

The Bucks can play hardball with him, there's no reason to cave.

[Mathius]

woa woa woa.. he is an employee is he not?
like all of us, if your company asks you to move to some place u don't wanna go.. would u do it?

No he's not. He entered the draft, he did not sign a contract. The only affiliate he has with the NBA right now is that based on the league's rules, Stern won't allow anyone but Milwaukee to have him unless the rights are traded. Basically, the NBA is so arrogant, they they have claimed his ownership before they even have him under contract.

Then the Bucks make the playoffs without him, and he stays in China filming milk commercials with his sister. He needs the Bucks a hell of a lot more than they need him.

Doubtful. This guy is a Chinese hero. He has all of China backing him. Milwaukee is trying to play hardball with the government of China. How long do you think that will last before Stern steps in and forces something? Stern WANTS this guy to play.

Mathius

[Mathius]

Nobody held a gun to Yi's head and said, "YOU MUST ENTER THE NBA DRAFT."

Assuming you're speaking metaphorically and you're not stupid enough to think this is life or death, they basically did put a gun to his head.

The NBA says you cannot play in the NBA unless you enter the draft. So yes, basically, they did dictate that he had to enter the draft. Now he is dictating where he wants to go.
[/QUOTE]

And this completely destroys the integrity of the draft. Woohoo. Way to go.

I got news for you morons who keep saying this... the draft isn't that great a system to begin with.

anyone who refuses to play for team that drafted him is an *********. whetever his skin color or nationality is.

i'm sick of today's players acting like spoiled 12-year olds. being drafted, and being drafted that high is supposed to be a honor.

An honor? *laugh* Now you're cracking me up. Did Candy man, or Kwame Brown make that an honor?

It's about money, fool. Not honor.

Mathius

[Qwyjibo]

Doubtful. This guy is a Chinese hero. He has all of China backing him. Milwaukee is trying to play hardball with the government of China. How long do you think that will last before Stern steps in and forces something? Stern WANTS this guy to play.

What's he going to do? Circumvent the whole draft system and cause a HUGE controversy? He can't do anything... anything that is legal I think.

This was a risk Yi and his people should have known about upon entering the draft.

The NBA says you cannot play in the NBA unless you enter the draft. So yes, basically, they did dictate that he had to enter the draft. Now he is dictating where he wants to go.

And in the NBA he has no power with that. Once he entered the NBA draft he opened himself up to be part of ANY team whether he likes it or not. If he really wants to choose his pro team then he should pack his bags and look for a Euro league team.

[Mathius]

What's he going to do? Circumvent the whole draft system and cause a HUGE controversy? He can't do anything... anything that is legal I think.

This was a risk Yi and his people should have known about upon entering the draft.

If you don't think Stern will do something behind the scenes to make sure that Yi plays, then you don't know anything about the Toni Kukoc situation and how hard Stern worked in Croatia to make that happen.

And in the NBA he has no power with that. Once he entered the NBA draft he opened himself up to be part of ANY team whether he likes it or not. If he really wants to choose his pro team then he should pack his bags and look for a Euro league team.

Oh really? Seems to me we've said this whole thread that it's worked several times now for several people. Ferry, Kobe, Francis. Now Yi is holding out.

It's a universal law in life. You can do whatever you want to as long as you are willing to suffer the consequences of your actions. Remember it. It's an important life lesson. Write it down somewhere.

Mathius

[Sharas]

An honor? *laugh* Now you're cracking me up. Did Candy man, or Kwame Brown make that an honor?

It's about money, fool. Not honor.

Mathius

actually, i happen to know that. no need to call me a fool.

but do i think that's good? no.

and no matter how much of a busts these two were, they showed up for teams that chose them. as someone said, point of draft is that teams get to choose, not the players. you don't like it? don't enter the draft. simple as that. those are the rules. rules should be bent in some cases, but not for a rookie that hasn't proven anything. it's not like kevin garnett not wanting to go to boston.

again, do i think that bucks made a smart decision by drafting a guy that doesn't want to play for them? no.
but it's their legal right.

[Mathius]

actually, i happen to know that. no need to call me a fool.

but do i think that's good? no.

and no matter how much of a busts these two were, they showed up for teams that chose them. as someone said, point of draft is that teams get to choose, not the players. you don't like it? don't enter the draft. simple as that. those are the rules. rules should be bent in some cases, but not for a rookie that hasn't proven anything. it's not like kevin garnett not wanting to go to boston.

again, do i think that bucks made a smart decision by drafting a guy that doesn't want to play for them? no.
but it's their legal right.

Well then why don't all you guys stop spouting nonsense about how he's a "douche" and "he can't do that" and "that's not allowed", and just admit the real reason:

You don't like it.

Because obviously he CAN do it. He IS doing it, and it will probably even work out for him, unless Milwaukee is in a hurry to lose that draft pick by having him just go back overseas.

Once again, a guy doesn't conform to the NBA norm, or the celebrity norm, and you guys want to jump all over him for it.

He's doing what he thinks is best for him, and I'm ok with that. If I was in his position, I'd probably do the same thing.

What does he owe to the US fans? Not a damn thing, that's what. He's thinking of his country back home, and what are good markets for him back there.

Mathius

[ripthekik]

Well then why don't all you guys stop spouting nonsense about how he's a "douche" and "he can't do that" and "that's not allowed", and just admit the real reason:

You don't like it.

Because obviously he CAN do it. He IS doing it, and it will probably even work out for him, unless Milwaukee is in a hurry to lose that draft pick by having him just go back overseas.

Once again, a guy doesn't conform to the NBA norm, or the celebrity norm, and you guys want to jump all over him for it.

He's doing what he thinks is best for him, and I'm ok with that. If I was in his position, I'd probably do the same thing.

What does he owe to the US fans? Not a damn thing, that's what. He's thinking of his country back home, and what are good markets for him back there.

Mathius

i like.

[adamcz]

Doubtful. This guy is a Chinese hero. He has all of China backing him. Milwaukee is trying to play hardball with the government of China. How long do you think that will last before Stern steps in and forces something? Stern WANTS this guy to play.

Mathius

"All of China"? People in China don't give a rat's ass where Yi plays. If your favorite American player went to play for a Chinese team, would you care one bit if it was in Bejing or Hong Kong, or some other city you've never heard of? Why would anyone care about that? This is just about Fegan trying to increase his 20% endorsement take.

If Stern forced something here, it would be the last move he ever made as NBA commishioner. Stern only works as an employee of the NBA as long as the owners want him in that position. He doesn't own the league or whatever else you guys imagine about him.

But let's just pretend that Stern really wants to get behind the scenes and have Yi traded... I'm totally fine with that. He can have LA offer Kobe Bryant, or he can have Atlanta offer Al Horford straight up. Maybe Phoenix can offer Amare for Simmons and Yi.

Your ideas that Milwaukee just shouldn't get a good player beacuse they don't "deserve" one is ridiculous. If Yi really wants to void this draft pick, he can take a year off from basketball altogether (including in China), and enter the draft again next year. That would probably lead to the NBA barring foreign players from entering the draft at all going forward.

[TheHonestTruth]

Yi got so much hate because he's chinese. If he's black and from the hood, he won't get hated for doing this.

[Qwyjibo]

Oh really? Seems to me we've said this whole thread that it's worked several times now for several people. Ferry, Kobe, Francis. Now Yi is holding out.

That's only a couple examples out of how many? That's 3 players in 3 different drafts. In general, players don't have a say and that's a fact.

Milwaukee has no reason to cave into Yi's demands here (if these rumours are true) unless they get blown away with a trade offer. The Bucks now own him in the NBA and unless shady dealings happen behind the scenes, they are the only ones who can change that. I don't see Milwaukee quickly accepting a garbage "Michael Dickerson, Othella Harrington + other garbage" trade either.

The thing I hate about this is how people are putting the blame on Milwaukee in all this. That's ridiculous. They took the best talent available and expect him to show up as nearly all players do each year. That's not unreasonable.