I don’t know if AM Jianlian Yi is going to be a considerable deal for playing one’s A-Team in Unlimited, but the buffs from the 2K19 EM to this new AM are very considerable:
Obviously 91 Open 3 opens people’s eyes and the +20 jump to 88 Contested 3 is huge, especially because his shot is on the slower side.
Aside from that, there are other consequential changes:
- Raw defensive LQ, Block, Contest remain same but there’s a +23 buff to Def Cons to 75. And he gets +10 boosts to all Def IQ ratings. Going from 74 to 84 LP DIQ is nice for defending opposing bigs in the post, along with the big +15 to Strength to 75.
- In same vein, nice +9 to Def Rebound to legit 92 (at 7’ with 80 Vert) and huge +31 to Off Reb to 88.
- Gets a more viable post game with 84/84/88 Post Control/Hook/Fade now. The Fade is a +9 buff and I think his animation is not very good, I forget. But think his Hook is good.
- Off Consistency, for those who believe in it, is huge jump from 67 to 95.
- Stamina going from 80 to 95 is quite nice, especially if you’re planning on playing him in a budget lineup with short rotation. Or in a very short rotation, period. I’ve always liked how I feel good with him at 4 or 5, and can hang at 3 with his 80 LQ and not bad Speed/Accel for 71/68.
- NO game changing boosts to his Speed/Accel or BC or SWB. The dream of a speed-boosting Yi are dead. Or a Kemp-esque Yi on the break.
For those who can remember 2K17 EM Yi with the Yao duo boosts, this is a significant but kind of analogous boost, with the starkest difference being mostly the buffs to Open and Contested 3. Here’s duo boosted 2K17 EM Yi:
2K is so weird: for the Amethyst Jianlian Yi, they went back to the same hot zones they had for him in 2K18, with both corner three zones hot. They had taken these away from him for the 2K19 Emerald.
Now they’re back.
Tendencies changes are kind of interesting.
- From 2K18 to 2K19 EM, they greatly improved his Defensive tendencies. And AM Yi carries over the EM Yi improved Def Tend: 79 OB Steal, 84 Pass Int, 84 Contest, 61 Block, 80 Charge, 40 Foul.
- But, from EM to EM, they sort of nerfed his dunking by Dropping his Standing/Driving/Flashy…but buffed the hell out of his Alley-Oop to 90. Also his Crash to 95. The AM carries over the EM’s buff to Alley and Crash, and also reclaims the 80 Driving/Flashy. Just doesn’t get back the 70 Standing from 2K18 and still has the 2K19 35 Standing Dunk Tendency.
Perhaps other options are better but I’ve just always enjoyed the Yi cards. Obviously are fan service to 2K players in China and I just enjoy when marginal players are buffed fantastically into even quasi-relevance.
Badging is a massive jump for him as well. In 2K17 and 2K18 they gave him 1 Badge…Bronze C&S. They took this away in 2K19, with the EM coming with nothing…and, of course, only have 3 Add-On slots. So not possible to maximize him simply as a 3&D&R PF.
But now he has 10 badges and room for 6 more. Comes with:
- Catch & Shoot
- Corner Specialist
- Mid-Range Deadeye
- Pick & Popper
- Up & Under Specialist
- Drop-Stepper
- Post-Spin Technician
- Putback King
- Lob City Finisher
- Hustle Rebounder
So you get the post-scoring badges, rebounding, and all but the two more expensive outside shooting badges.
Badging is still a conundrum because he has a diverse skill set and now you kind of want to give him everything. Here are some easy choices:
- Rim Protector
- Limitless Range
- Deep-Range Deadeye
- Defensive Stopper
- Brick Wall
- Dimer
And here are some others to consider:
A. Bruiser: Duh.
B. Posterizer: Duh.
C. One Man Fast Break: 65 SWB is just enough for a big that this could be nice.
D. P&R Maestro: you can definitely take slower bigs of the dribble, even without a screen, but if you get momentum going into a screen, then stuff like 4-5 or 5-4 PnR is totally possible.
E. Break Starter: Duh.
F. So Much: finishing badges, Diff Shots, Tireless, Pick Dodger, Pick Pocket…
