Yi Chat with Chad Ford

by Atma Brother ONE on Mar 8, 2007 9:44 PM PST in Links

The NFL Draft has Mel Kiper and his retro hairdo, but over in the hoops world we're lucky to have Chad Ford of ESPN.com. In his latest chat he went Yi-crazy- I'm not joking, check it out:

Moving up the charts...

Mark (Louisville): Which player has done the most to improve their draft stock recently?

Chad Ford: Yi Jianlin of China. Is putting up huge numbers in the Chinese playoffs in front of a number of top NBA scouts and exec who have been over there the last few weeks. One scout, who claims to have seen Yi over 20 times, said that he has him ranked as the 3rd best prospect in the draft behind Oden and Durant. He's a 7 foot skilled athletic kid with a beautiful jump shot. Sounds like another Andrea Bargnani.

Sunnyi...

Mike (Milwaukee): Chad, If the Suns end up with the # 4, 5 or 6 pick, what is your opinion as to who they take?

Chad Ford: They want Noah and I think Noah should want them. It's the best fit for the type of game he plays. Brandon Wright and Yi Jianlian would also be good fits for this team.

No Bull Yi...

Rick Oakland CA: Chad, the Knicks are doing decently and it looks like the pick the Bulls get from them will be in the 10-12 range at best. Will anybody be left that can provide help in the post for the Bulls? Who would help them the most--Yi, Splitter, McRoberts, Hibbert?

Chad Ford: Yeah ... what they need is a low post scorer. Lots of talent in the draft, but I don't see an elite player who does that in the 10 to 12 range. More perimeter guys, point guards, and great athletes (like Tyrus Thomas). This hasn't worked out the way Bulls fans wanted. Yi would be a great fit, but he'll be gone by then. The other three aren't going to be difference makers on this team.

Yi on the Warriors...

P (NYC): Hey Chad, stop hyping up Yi. Given the Bay Area AND his style of play, he'd be the perfect fit for the Warriors, right? Will he fall to the W's though?

Chad Ford: Yeah ... I was waiting for that. Warriors would love Yi. He might be there (Warriors are currently slotted to draft 9th) ... but there's a good chance he's gone.

Ahem, The Yi Movement started on your favorite Golden State Warriors community 7.5.06.

Yi's praying that The Movement begins in the Bay 6.28.07

DO NOT SLEEP on our 3rd annual live blogging of the 2007 NBA Draft in June...

Do you think the Warriors will find a way to draft Yi this June?

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Comments

Sad.

I sure hope so. I think he's what they need.

Playoffs in '07, baby!

by coma on Mar 8, 2007 9:59 PM PST 0 recs

Hey Atma & Coma!

If you want Yi that bad, here's a little piece of advice: stop rooting for us to win!! I fully blame these last two wins on your damn enthusiasm! ;-)

And if you insist on cheering "throw up a W!" and getting all excited in the game threads, at least shut your damn whining about Yi. We'll get Josh McRoberts and like it. Sheesh.

by Sleepy Freud on Mar 8, 2007 10:11 PM PST 0 recs

Josh McRoberts

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

by Atma Brother ONE on Mar 8, 2007 10:20 PM PST up 0 recs

Aw c'mon...

Think of all the "McRoberts Photo Fun" we'll have!

You know you want him!

by Sleepy Freud on Mar 8, 2007 10:32 PM PST up 0 recs

HEY MAN YOU ARE RUDE

ILL DO WHAT I WANT. DONT BE RUDE TO ME LIKE THAT MR.

Playoffs in '07, baby!

by coma on Mar 8, 2007 10:52 PM PST up 0 recs

You Must Obey Sleepy!

Nahhh -- in rooting, as in all matters of the heart, you gotta do what your conscience tells you. All I'm saying is that the difference between going 12-7 and 7-12 over our last 19 games could well be the difference between Yi and McRoberts.

Actually, though: I'm no draft expert, but from what I've read of Ford and the guys at DraftExpress.com, Yi may well be out of range regardless of what we do (barring a total tank, which ain't happening). His stock is rising like a rocket, and the minor question marks -- basically, weak competition -- don't seem likely to check it. I don't care what league you play in: if you're over 7'0", athletic, and dominating the competition in the playoffs people will take notice. I think after the Big 2, he's probably in a group of 5 with the Wright Brothers and the Gator twins. I wouldn't even be surprised to see him go #3.

To beat a dead horse: Pick. the. Best. Effing. Player. Available! If we're pick the #9-14 range (as is likely) we need to get away from the idea of picking someone just 'cos he plays 4 or 5. From what I can tell, most of the value picks in this draft are going to be small guys. If we've got a choice between a 6'10" stiff like McRoberts and a 5'11" dynamo like DJ Augustin, we better do the right thing for once in our lives.

by Sleepy Freud on Mar 9, 2007 1:22 AM PST up 0 recs

let's bring it back to the day's of nellie drafts

even though we missed out on folks like kobe and nash in the draft, back in the there were a whole lot of sweet picks like richmond, hardaway, sprewell, even guys like tyrone hill, chris gatling, and of course sarunas marciulonis, who slipped to the late lottery and beyond.

when we say "best player available," though, we need to make sure we are picking guys with heart. winners. steel in the veins. unafraid to do what it takes.

of course, if they are 6-10 and above, that's a huge bonus.

by OaktownWarrior on Mar 9, 2007 12:50 PM PST up 0 recs

Maybe you pushed Yi so much

It's caught on and pushed him out of the Warriors drafting range. So if he doesnt end up here, its all your guys fault. jp

by Athletix Man on Mar 8, 2007 10:29 PM PST 0 recs

I didn't buy the hype at first

Because, and this isn't going to sound bad, it was only coming from, well, here.

Now that Chad Ford and a number of other places seem to be on board, I'm ready to(tardily)hop on.

Though, it just gives me another reason to root against us. Because lord knows I don't want to pick 9th or 10th again. We'd better either make the playoffs or not win another single game, or heads will roll.

by jonathan on Mar 9, 2007 12:36 AM PST 0 recs

Err

IS going to sound bad. Isn't kinda changes the whole meaning of what I said.

Which isn't kinda important. (Eh, that was funnier before I typed it.)

by jonathan on Mar 9, 2007 12:37 AM PST up 0 recs

gotta give y'all props

appears y'all were right about Yi
big ups

More Hardware Coming!

by gsw4life on Mar 9, 2007 12:47 AM PST 0 recs

REBOUNDING

eom

Let's Go Oakland! Gas, Brake, Dip.

by OaktownFunk on Mar 9, 2007 9:06 AM PST 0 recs

playoffs or yi?

playoffs or yi?
i say yi

by Poopoojoe on Mar 9, 2007 9:32 AM PST 0 recs

and yes

im asian

by Poopoojoe on Mar 9, 2007 9:32 AM PST 0 recs

hellz yeah!

I'm excited at having a draft day i'm actually looking forward to! one I'll watch with excitement, instead of going "damndamndamndamn i KNOW they're gonna pick O'Bryant damndamndamndamndamn." :)

At any rate, I don't see what's wrong with McRoberts (if he comes out of the draft, which I doubt he will). In my opinion, he could be the player that Don Nelson envisioned Troy Murphy being, only with less 3 pointers, and better dunks. :) And yes, I am a biased Duke fanatic. :)

by bradyk2 on Mar 9, 2007 10:16 AM PST 0 recs

We Already Drafted this Piece Twice Last Year

Didn't we draft this exact same body with the exact same pick (#9) last year? And hasn't Don "I will never play 7-foot rookies no matter how bad my team's record or how desperately we need size" Nelson pretty much gone out of his way to keep Patrick O'Bryant from getting any NBA experience at all this year?

Unless Yi can also play point power forward -- an aside here: the whole concept of a point forward is absolutely stupid -- don't you want a ball-handling specialist handling the ball? Magic Johnson is a once-in-a-lifetime Nellie, GIVE IT UP!

Anyway, why is 7-foot Yi going to get any more time than 7-foot O'Bryant? And why isn't O'Bryant getting PT like Azumbuike, Barnes, and Cabbages? For crying out loud, Renaldo Major got more PT than POB. It's because Don Nelson irrationally and subjectively has a thing against rookie big men, no matter what the circumstance. Everybody's giving Nellie huge props for bringing along Biedrins, but the only thing he has done has been play the guy.

Well damn! Play POB, otherwise, he's going to come into next season still with no NBA experience and Nellie won't play him then, and the next year, and next thing you know, we've got a Jeff Fuller on our hands.

And what about our other seven-footer from this year's draft Kosta Perovic? Remind me why we drafted him instead of Leon Powe again? So if we already have two beanpole seven-footers technically under rights, and we're not even trying to play them, why is everybody getting all excited about another beanpole 7-footer?

Looking at Warriors draft history, my feeling is that if we get the #9 pick again, we damn well better trade it for a beefy power forward, a dead-on outside shooter, a defensive stopper, or Kevin Garnett, otherwise it will just be another mid-range lost pick. The #9 spot is cursed for us.

The TruthMaker www.sfist.com

by TruthMaker on Mar 9, 2007 12:37 PM PST 0 recs

Yi is nothing like POB or Kosta

7'0" is basically where the similarities end. Yi's much more athletic than those guys, with an actual shot out to 18 ft. and handles. Much closer to a Bargnani than to a Perovic. Check out some of the blog entries on him at DraftExpress for details.

Anyway, it's probably a moot point, 'cos he'll be long gone when when we pick at #12 or 14 or whatever. We'll likely get one from a group that includes McRoberts (blech), Hansborough (double blech), Corey Brewer, Acie Law, Tywon Lawson, Dominic James, Brook Lopez, old friend Tiago Splitter, and Al Thornton (assuming they all declare). Gotta figure at least one player in that group will turn out to be an NBA star; and I trust Nellie more than a lot of guys to choose wisely.

by Sleepy Freud on Mar 9, 2007 1:41 PM PST up 0 recs

last years draft class was weak and pob probably would have dropped further if we didn't take him
yi is very skilled and athletic pob isn't
they say yi could be a top pick in this draft that is loaded and deep.
their height is the only thing they have in common
yi is not a center. he is a foward.
you are just dumb. im sorry you just have no clue what your talking about. who is "jeff" fuller? and POB barely deserved PT at the D league level this year why would he deserve the PT in the NBA? and you look at a player and say that oh he is 7 feet tall he is just like POB

by travisl212 on Mar 9, 2007 6:28 PM PST up 0 recs