Yi Jianlian SHOULD play in Milwaukee

The newest 7-foot sensation out of China is Yi Jianlian, a hybrid built in the mold of Dirk Nowitzki, a big-man with the skill-set of a shooting guard. In last Thursday's NBA draft, Yi was the sixth overall pick taken by the Milwaukee Bucks. Sounds like any ordinary night for a highly-touted prospect, right? Well, here's where things get interesting; Yi's camp specifically told the Milwaukee Bucks to NOT draft him if he was still on the board. Apparently, Chinese basketball isn't excited about the idea of Yi playing in a city that isn't exactly classified as "bustling", or "culturally diverse". Since being selected by the Bucks last Thursday, Yi has not reported to Milwaukee, has not spoke with the local media, and has not even talked to Bucks management. Currently, Yi's agent is seeking a trade out of Milwaukee, but the Bucks don't plan to oblige. This conflict of interest could end up turning into a fiasco between the NBA and China, with Commissioner Stern's Chinese interests caught in the middle of it all.

Why doesn't China want Yi playing in Milwaukee? So far, the only reason they have provided is that they want Yi playing in a city with a large Chinese population. In other words, they want Yi playing in a big-market city such as Boston, which owned the fifth pick in the NBA draft (Jeff Green, traded to Seattle). They want Yi on the biggest stage possible.

Here's what Yi has to understand; playing in Milwaukee wouldn't be the end of the world - not by a longshot. In fact, some of the most popular athletes in professional sports play in markets comparable in size to the Milwaukee-Green Bay area. Take a look at the top 5 best-selling jerseys in the NBA:

1. Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles - 2nd ranked sports zone)
2. Dwyane Wade (Miami - ranked 15th)
3. LeBron James (Cleveland - ranked 16th)
4. Allen Iverson (Denver - ranked 19th)
5. Carmelo Anthony (Denver - ranked 19th)

The Milwaukee-Green Bay market is ranked 18th, with an approximate population of 5 million. This is about 40,000 more people than Denver and about 200,000 fewer than Cleveland. If LeBron James, Allen Iverson, and Carmelo Anthony can be insanely popular in cities with similar populations as Milwaukee-Green Bay, then Yi can easily be propelled into that category, especially considering he has a fanbase of over a billion Chinese.

And yes, while it is true that Milwaukee has a meager Chinese population of about .21%, the city where Yao Ming calls home isn't exactly a Chinese hotspot. Houston, Texas' Chinese population accounts for just 1.23% of its total population, but that number hasn't affected Yao Ming's popularity or effectiveness in a positive or negative light, which brings me to my point: Market size is overrated in terms of a player's popularity. Popularity depends on a player's skill, success, and personality. Shaquille O'Neal would have been just as popular playing in Portland as he was in Los Angeles, assuming he would've had the same type of success (3 championships). Market value has little, if anything, to do with it.