Yi Jianlian Photo: IC

Shortly after lifting the CBA trophy in the air, the joy of the Guangdong South China Tigers was quickly overshadowed by the shocking news that their star center Yi Jianlian had sustained a serious injury. 

Yi suffered a right Achilles tendon rupture during the final minute of the third quarter in the CBA championship decider against the Liaoning Flying Leopards on Sunday night. He completed surgery for the injury on Monday.

Basketball fans are no stranger to such injuries, as several NBA star players, such as Kobe Bryant, Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins, have suffered from the heinous injury. 

Kevin Durant is the latest high-­profile star to tear his Achilles tendon.

The 2.08-meter-high forward injured his Achilles tendon while playing for the Golden State Warriors during the NBA Finals in June 2019. He switched to the Brooklyn Nets later in 2019, but has yet to make an appearance with the team since the coronavirus has postponed the season. 

These past examples indicate that the devastating injury is likely to take Yi, now 32, about a year before he can return to competition.

The veteran 2.13-meter-high center, who won his sixth CBA ring, is playing down his own injury though.

Speaking to CCTV Sports after Sunday's finals, Yi said the injury is just "part of the game." When the news confirming he had ruptured his Achilles tendon came out on Monday, Yi said on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo that his "fighting mindset was finally being held back by the body, which called for a break." 

Yi is considered the third generation of China's basketball centers - following para-military team Bayi Rockets legend Wang Zhizhi and former Houston Rockets star Yao Ming - who can carry the national team. But now the question is, who is going to step into Yi's shoes while he is sidelined?

As China still needs to wade through the qualifiers for the Tokyo Olympic Games after missing its automatic qualification chances during 2019's home FIBA World Cup, the journey will highly likely be overwhelming for the team without Yi.

Wang, Yao and Yi have all had stints, either short or long, in the NBA, but such experiences have undoubtedly helped these forwards hone their skills.

Some have pinned their hopes on young center Zhou Qi, who is now playing for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers after a brief stint with the Houston Rockets in the 2017-18 season, but there are also fans who doubt Zhou's capabilities. 

They argue Zhou is the man to blame for China's defeat to Poland during the 2019 World Cup, where Zhou contributed two critical turnovers to Poland in the final stage of the highly anticipated game.

Missing the Olympic Games will be a massive blow to Chinese men's basketball, as the team, dubbed Asia's No.1, have not skipped any of the quadrennial events since 1984. China's best result at the Olympic Games has been reaching the quarterfinals.

Whether Zhou can make it or not, there are no better options as domestic games have yet to produce a promising center that has the potential to become a key player for the national team - a problem that might linger for years.