Thomas Robinson had vastly outplayed Yi Jianlian throughout the Los Angeles Lakers preseason, that much is certain. Even if his skillset mirrors that of Tarik Black to some degree, Robinson’s hustle, rebounding, and defensive intensity had made their mark on the Lakers to a greater degree than Jianlian’s advertised shooting ability (which proved mostly theoretical in nature).
Even with that said, the Kansas product still seemed to be a longshot to make the final roster mostly due to how team-friendly Jianlian’s contract was. Jianlian’s up to $8 million salary could serve as useful trade ballast, and even if he didn’t play his deal would be able to help a team save money at the trade deadline by waiving him for just $250,000.