Chinese Team GM Says Yi Will "Definitely Not" Play For Bucks

Yi's Chinese Team Says It Would Block Move To Milwaukee

Chen Haitao, the GM of Bucks draft pick Yi Jianlian's Chinese team, the Guangdong Tigers, said that Yi "would 'definitely not' play" for the Bucks and that the club "would block his move" to the U.S. in an interview in today's Beijing News, according to REUTERS.  Chen: "This is not -- as media reports have said -- because Milwaukee, as a city with very few Chinese people, is not good for Yi's commercial development.  Rather we want to find a team suitable for Yi's growth.  That's the root of the problem."  Chen "expressed concern that Yi would have trouble getting game time" with the Bucks, who also have C Andrew Bogut "and a number of other tall young players."  Chen: "The national team and the Olympic Games are now our key considerations. ... If (Yi) goes to a team where he can't compete, that would be being irresponsible to the national team" (REUTERS, 7/17).