Guangdong star center Yi Jianlian claims record fifth CBA MVP award

QINGDAO, China -- Guangdong Southern Tigers center Yi Jianlian has been named the 2019-2020 regular season Most Valuable Player, the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league announced on Thursday.

It's the fifth CBA MVP award for the 32-year-old CBA legend, who averaged 20.1 points and 10.4 rebounds in 39 games. Yi also extended his personal record of CBA MVP awards.

Yi led Guangdong to finish the regular season with a 44-2 win-loss record, marking the best winning percentage in the team's history. Guangdong's 29-game winning streak set a new CBA record.

Representatives from media outlets nationwide were invited to vote. Players were awarded 5 points for each first-place vote, 3 points for each second-place vote and one point for each third-place vote.

Yi received a total of 259 points, edging Xinjiang Flying Tigers center Zhou Qi, who had 258 points, to bring home the honor.

Wang Zhelin from Fujian Sturgeons was third with 147 points.

Zhou, who finished the regular season with 22.2 points and 13.3 rebounds, was named the best defender. Guangdong coach Du Feng was voted the best coach.