Number 11 strikes a cord with both Yi and Yao
LOS ANGELES: Yi Jianlian may not like being compared to Yao Ming but he isn't shy about wearing his number 11 jersey this season with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Speaking during the Lakers' practice on Friday in suburban El Segundo, the 28-year-old forwardcenter said the two agreed that Yi would wear Yao's former number with his new NBA team.
"Yao asked me. We talked about it," said Yi.
Hall-of-Famer Yao wore number 11 during his eight seasons with the Houston Rockets, averaging 19.0 points and 9.2 rebounds.
Yi was once dubbed "the next Yao Ming" but says he is a different player with his own unique skill set.
"To me it is different. Yao is Yao. The biggest player in China," Yi told a packed scrum of Englishand Chinese-language reporters on the practice court.
"I learned a lot from him. I talk to him a lot. We have a different mindset about basketball."
The struggling Lakers signed Yi, of He Shan, Guangdong, to a one-year deal last month at $1.14 million that could be worth up to $8 million with incentives and bonuses.
The 6-foot-11 (2.11m) Yi is back in the NBA after a four-year hiatus. The native Cantonese-speaking Yi played in China with the Guangdong Southern Tigers from 2012-2016 and was the cornerstone for the Chinese national team at last month's Rio Olympics.
Yi says his stellar performance in his fourth trip to the Olympics likely boosted his worth for the Lakers.
"I had success for sure in the Olympics," said Yi, who averaged 20.4 points and 6.6 rebounds while shooting 46 percent from threepoint range. "Team China was a young team. For myself, I just tried to play hard and try to get a win." - AFP