(XINHUA)

Yi Jianlian, a Chinese basketball star, was named the most influential male athlete at the Sina Micro-blogging Night held in Beijing on January 4.

Yi, 24, signed a one-year contract with the NBA champion Dallas Mavericks on January 7.

Yi entered the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) in 2002 when he was 15. He was a member of China's national team in 2004 and became the youngest most valuable player in the history of the CBA in 2005. In 2007, Yi entered the NBA after being picked by the Milwaukee Bucks. He was traded to the New Jersey Nets in 2008 and Washington Wizards in June 2010.