When you think about Yi Jianlian's characteristics, a couple of things jump out at you. He is really tall, athletic, and has a very good perimeter shot for his size. When I first heard that description of Yi, three names popped into my head; Dirk Nowitzki, Toni Kukoc, and Nikoloz Tskitishvili. All three of those players fit that same description, yet fall all across the spectrum in how that skill set ended up serving them. Will Yi be an MVP like Dirk? A solid pro like Toni? Or a bust like Nik? From time to time we'll check in on the Yi Meter to see where Yi stands. It will likely be reactionary, and it will unlikely be fair. Enjoy.
For the first installment of the Yi Meter we found Yi somewhere between Toni and Nik territory. Why? Yi did show some scoring skill when he put up 23 points against Memphis in the Summer League, so that points to the hype perhaps being correct on Yi's skills. On the other hand though, this happened:
Getting posterized in a Summer League game, and then getting taunted afterward by the guy? That is a Tskitishvili move if I ever saw one. Therefore, in spite of the 23 points Yi is going halfway between Nik and Toni for this installment of the Yi Meter.
