ALLAN THE MAN

If Japan has Sakuragi for FIBA Asia Championship, powerhouse China will still feature the biggest team in the FIBA Asia Championship.

The defending Asian champions will feature not one, not two, but three 7-footers in its lineup for the tournament that serves as qualifier to next year’s FIBA World Cup in Spain.

Leading the charge is 7-foot NBA veteran Yi Jianlian, who is expected to take the mantle as the leader of the team.

The Chinese lineup will also feature 7-foot teenager Wang Zhelin, who has drawn attention from NBA scouts.

“Offensively, Zhelin has a pretty nice skill-level for a player his size. He has range on his jumper out to about 18 feet, and some basic ball-handling ability as well,” wrote Jonathan Givony in a scouting report on Draft Express.

“He can take advantage of his superior size and strength inside the paint to bully his way through weaker opponents, showing good touch and the ability to finish with either hand.”

Rounding out the new generation of the Great Wall of China is 21-year-old Li Muhao, who stands 7-foot-2.

China also features 6-foot-10 center Li Xiaoxu, a member of the national team to the 2010 FIBA World Championship, and 6-foot-9 forward Zhou Peng, a veteran of several international wars.

The team’s size advantage extends all the way to the backcourt with Sun Yue, a 6-foot-9 guard who once played for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Under new Greek coach Panagiotis Giannakis, China has displayed impressive form ahead of the FIBA Asia Championship, defeating European teams Iceland, Macedonia, and Montenegro in tuneup matches this week. The team will play the Tall Blacks in a final tuneup match before flying to Manila for the Asian tournament.

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