THE Los Angeles Lakers were in “advanced discussions” to sign former lottery pick Yi Jianlian, ESPN’s Marc Stein reported Tuesday.

    But Sina.com said yesterday that Yi has reached a deal with the Lakers, citing sources close to the basketball player.

    It’s been five years since the former No. 6 pick in the 2007 NBA draft played in the NBA, but it looks like the Lakers might change that.

    Yi was drafted by the Bucks in 2007 as a 20-year-old but lasted only one season before being dealt to the Nets. He spent two seasons in New Jersey, averaging a career high in points (12.0) and rebounds (7.2) in 2009-10.

    Yi last played in the NBA with the Mavericks during the 2011-12 season, appearing in a career-low 30 games. He has played in the Chinese Basketball Association since that final NBA season.

    The 28-year-old forward was one of the bright spots for the winless Chinese national team at the Rio Games, averaging 20.4 points and 6.6 rebounds.

    The Lakers have 13 players under contract, leaving them with two open spots.

    The Lakers have been relatively quiet since signing free agents Luol Deng and Timofey Mozgov. After signing Timofey Mozgov to start free agency then Tarik Black a month or two later, it was assumed that the center position was locked down. However, with Mozgov’s recent groin injury, it appears that the Lakers are covering all the bases by signing yet another big man.

    Playing for four teams in five years is normally never a good sign for a player, and the same could be said about Yi.

    Upon watching the Rio Olympics, specifically the USA vs. China games, none of the players really seemed to stand out, as they all appeared much too slow to keep up with their NBA counterparts, but Yi obviously did enough to get noticed by Mitch Kupchak and the scouting team.(SD-Agencies)