Yang Hansen urged to emulate Yao Ming as Chinese players eye NBA Draft
Teenager this week rejected comparison with legend Yao, while Lin Wei reportedly shone in workout with Dallas Mavericks
Chinese basketball prospect Yang Hansen has been urged to embrace comparisons with the legendary Yao Ming as he awaits his fate in this month’s NBA Draft.
The towering 19-year-old centre last month rejected any comparison with Yao, saying he had a gap to make up to be considered alongside the former Houston Rockets star, and did not have a similar playing style.
But Rich Paul, Yang’s agent in the United States, said the Qingdao Eagles starting centre, who averaged 16.6 points and 10.5 rebounds in 45 games last season, must aim to be like the eight-time NBA All-Star.
“I don’t like to compare players, so I am not comparing him and Yao – I think this can be a problem for young players,” Paul said during filming for a documentary Tencent is making about Yang. “But I think he should aspire to be someone like Yao.
“Devote himself to basketball while maintaining Chinese cultural characteristics. I think this is extremely important. Yang will get a lot of support back home, he will get support nationwide and this is a good thing for the NBA.”
In two NBA Draft Combine appearances in May, Yang, who stands at 7ft 2in (2.18 metres), averaged 11.5 points, four assists and three rebounds in just over 18 minutes per match.