The NBA generally looks down on the CBA, Yang Hansen can be selected in the first round! Yang Yi praised Paul for his outstanding ability

At the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, the 2025 NBA Draft Conference kicked off as scheduled. Yang Hansen, a Chinese player, was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the 16th pick in the first round, and is about to start his NBA career journey. Once this news came out, many domestic fans became enthusiastic and sent him good wishes with sincerity.

Yang Hansen was successfully selected due to his good performance in the CBA arena. He averaged 16.6 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2.6 blocks per game last season. His block data ranks among the top among many players. Because of this, he won the honorary title of the CBA regular season star player of the year, and was selected as the starting lineup of the CBA All-Star Game and the first team of the domestic team in the regular season. His strength is indeed obvious to all.

However, NBA teams have always been complicated toward CBA players. They generally do not regard CBA performance as an important basis and feel that they cannot be used as a key reference for draft picks. If Yang Hansen can emerge under such circumstances, he has to mention his agent, the famous rich Paul.

Klutch Sports Group, a brokerage company under FuPaul, is very famous in the industry, with a bunch of superstars such as James and Anthony Davis. He personally formulated a comprehensive draft plan for Yang Hansen, arranged for him to participate in various trials and display activities, and invited professional trainers to help Yang Hansen make up for his technical shortcomings and push him to the NBA stage with all his strength. In comparison, Lin Wei, a Chinese player who also participated in this year's draft, was not so lucky. After the draft on June 27 ended, it was quite regrettable that Lin Wei was defeated. In the 2024-25 season, Lin Wei performed very well in the CBA. During the regular season, he averaged 21 points per game, grabbed 3.3 rebounds, 5 assists and completed 1.4 steals. He is the real CBA local scoring champion. In the two games against Xinjiang in the playoffs, he was in a state of great shape, scoring an average of 30.5 points per game, and also had 6.5 rebounds, 11 assists and 1.5 steals.

However, even so, he still did not receive attention from the team in the fiercely competitive NBA draft.

In this regard, Yang Yi, a famous domestic basketball commentator, commented on this matter on the show. He focused on the important role that Fu Paul played in Yang Hansen's draft, and felt that if Fu Paul had no connections and popularity in the NBA circle, it would be more difficult for Yang Hansen to be selected in the first round. Moreover, by operating Yang Hansen's draft, Paul Fu further showed his influence in the industry and laid the foundation for future development of the Chinese market.

In my opinion, the operation of Paul Fu is indeed particularly critical for Yang Hansen to be selected in the first round. In terms of his own factors, Yang Hansen himself has a solid basketball foundation, and his excellent performance in the CBA are the fundamental reason why he has attracted attention. His height, skills and basketball IQ are all in line with some of the NBA team's expectations for inside players, which is his confidence in being selected. But it has to be admitted that the NBA has prejudice against the CBA, and at this time, the influence of Paul Fu was reflected.

He relied on his connections in the league to make more teams pay attention to Yang Hansen and magnified Yang Hansen's advantages to the management and scouts of each team, which turned the situation around.

From the perspective of external factors, China's huge basketball market is very attractive to the NBA. Signing Yang Hansen will not only allow the Trail Blazers to gain more attention and business benefits in China, but will also benefit the expansion of the entire NBA league in the Chinese market. Paul Fu must have told the team this point, which is also a driving factor that Yang Hansen was selected in the first round.

As for Lin Wei not being selected, it is not difficult to understand. The competition for the guard position in the NBA is too fierce, and outstanding talents are gathering. Although Lin Wei is the first in the local scoring position in the CBA, his physical condition and technical characteristics are not very outstanding compared to those guards who have been trained in the US basketball system when they are young. In addition, when NBA teams choose guards, they pay more attention to the players' comprehensive abilities in defense, organization and other aspects. Lin Wei may not have met their standards in these aspects.

I can only say that I hope Lin Wei will not be discouraged and will have the opportunity to continue to compete in the NBA through channels such as the Summer League.