KTV 'frenzy' a cakewalk

It's hard to gauge which story caused a bigger stir among Chinese fans of Yi Jianlian: that the NBA sophomore was suddenly shipped to the New Jersey Nets on the eve of the NBA draft, or that he was caught partying at a KTV in Beijing until 4 am when he was supposed to be preparing mind, body and soul for the Olympics.

News and photos of Yi's late-night dalliance with girlfriend actress Shi Yanfei spread across Chinese tabloids last week in what some reports called a "media frenzy". Those feasting in the frenzy, shocked the 20-year-old would risk distraction and venture so far astray of his Olympic training regimen, demanded to know if and how Yi would be punished.

Chinese basketball officials rightfully downplayed the event, saying there are no plans to punish the power forward and suggesting the media's obsession with the story may in fact prove more distracting to the young star than would an innocent night of karaoke. After all, Yi has much bigger things on his mind, not the least of which includes preparing for the notoriously nasty media that await him on either side of the Hudson River.