Yi Jianlian, The Real Player of the Game
It’s obvious; no one stands a chance against the Team USA Basketball team. The team is a culmination of the greatest basketball players, dominating whomever they play. We saw a glimpse of that today in their matchup against China. It’s not surprising for anyone to witness such a game. We expect to see Kevin Durant lead the team in scoring, Melo’s veteran leadership, someone getting dunked on and Demarcus Cousin losing his cool. As Basketball fans, we anticipate this. Unfortunately, our expectations tend to overshadow the performances from the players on the other side of the court. We laugh at those guys. They got blown out by 60 points. Those dudes don’t stand a chance against the greatest Basketball players in the world. At least that’s what the final score tells us, but what if we’re wrong? What about the stat line?
“Unfortunately, our expectations tend to overshadow the performances from the players on the other side of the court.”
Everyone is parading around Durant for his 5 for 8 three point shooting, 25 points, and six assist performance. Those are fascinating numbers if you’re playing in the NBA against your talent level. Don’t get me wrong; Durant is a phenomenal player. He deserves all the credit for his efforts, and perhaps he hit the brakes early. The final score shows us that these guys from Team USA could score at will. They obviously have more skill, athleticism, strength and better overall understanding of the game. But what happens when there’s a guy on the losing side of the bench who puts up 25 points on a team who just beat his by 57? The point I’m making has nothing against my beloved Team USA but everything to do with a guy whose team just got crushed by 57 points and managed to put up 25 points against the best NBA players in the world.
“But what happens when there’s a guy on the losing side of the bench who just lost by 57 yet happens to put up 25 points?”
Look, it’s not easy to play in the NBA, let alone play against the best NBA players in the world and score 25 points. But to be able to put up those numbers in that fashion speaks volumes of your game. On the other side of the court, China’s Yi Jianlian did just that. Not only did he score 25 points but happened to take 19 shots going 8 for 19. The second highest shot taker was at 6. The numbers are ridiculous. It shows that Jianlian was the only dude on that court who had enough balls to shoot 19 shots against the world’s greatest athletes. Jianlian scored a quiet 25 points, going 8 for 19, but many fail to recognize it due to the final score discombobulating the mind.
“Jianlian scored a quiet 25 points, going 8 for 19, but many fail to recognize it due to the final score discombobulating the mind.”
So who gets the player of the game: the guy who scored 25 points against a squad he could’ve got 60 on or the guy who doesn’t have an NBA contract and scored 25 points on the best ballers in the world? My vote is for Yi Jianlian, the underdog.
