Sun Yue
From Hoopedia
This is a Chinese name; the family name is Sun (孙).
Sun Yue (Simplified Chinese: 孙悦; Traditional Chinese: 孫悅; Pinyin: Sūn Yuè, born November 6, 1985 in Cangzhou, Hebei, China) is a 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) basketball player from Hebei, China who is currently a member of the Beijing Aoshen basketball team. He is not to be confused with the female pop music singer with the same name. Sun Yue (孙玥) is also the name of the high flying 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) former female volleyball Olympian who also played professionally in Italy. Sun was drafted as the 40th overall pick by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2007 NBA Draft.
Beijing Aoshen Controversy
Sun was at the center of a controversy between the former CBA team, the Beijing Aoshen Olympians, and the CBA. Sun was ordered to report for national team duty, but when Beijing refused to release, the CBA banned Beijing from playing in the men's league. The owner of Aoshen subsequently moved the team to the American Basketball Association, where they have played for one year.
Sun has continued to play with the Olympians, but was finally allowed to play internationally with China, along with another Beijing player, Zhang Songtao. He has since played in the Asian Championships in Qatar in 2005, and in the 2006 FIBA World Championship, hosted by Japan.
Player Profile
Sun has attracted attention from the NBA mainly because of his exceptional height for a point guard. Despite being 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), Sun has proven to be a capable point guard for both Beijing and the Chinese national team.
As the substitute point guard for Beijing in the ABA, he initially struggled, but by mid-season, he was good enough to be picked for the ABA All-Star Game. He even notched a near quadruple-double against the LA Aftershock, with 12 points, 14 rebounds, 12 assists, and 8 blocks.
On the China national basketball team, Sun has alternated coming off the bench with Chen Jianghua, behind starting point guard Liu Wei. He was initially forecast as the top point guard for China by the 2008 Beijing Olympics, with his exceptional size and passing ability, but with the rise of Chen, there is now doubt as to who will be the better point guard in the future.
He will compete in Las Vegas with the Chinese national team in the summer of 2007. Held from July 6-July 13. He will be competing against 16 NBA teams.
During the 2007 NBA Draft, Sun was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers during the second round as the 40th overall pick.
