It was just last year when Yao Ming asked people to tone down their expectations about another great prospect from China. “Sometimes I feel that people should not expect another Yao Ming, because I have many unique conditions.” But just a year later, the hopes of Chinese people were up once again as Yang Hansen became a surprise first-round pick. He becomes just the third Chinese player to be selected in the first round of the NBA Draft and the first since 2007.

Even though many are surprised by the 20-year-old’s high draft pick selection, the Trail Blazers had full faith in him. In the press conference, Hansen said, “The Blazers had scouts scouting me in China the last couple of years.” With the trust, he became the new face of Chinese basketball and the overall #16th pick in the Draft. It was his dream to play in the NBA, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the two biggest supporters in his life–his parents. Let’s understand how their role shaped his life and gave us a potential superstar

Who are Yang Hansen’s parents?

Yang Hansen was born in Shandong on June 26, 2005, to Yang Lin and Zhu Jing. His father was an amateur basketball player in his youth, and he passed his love for the sport to his son. But funnily, Yang hated the sport in the beginning as he didn’t like it when his father forced him to play outdoors.

Eventually, though, he fell in love with the game and started taking it seriously. After showing some promise in primary school, his parents recognized his talent and provided him with professional coaching. There is no publicly available information regarding his mother, but it will be fair to assume that she played a massive role in his development.

What ethnicity are Yang Hansen’s parents?

Just like the new Blazers Center, his parents are also of Chinese ethnicity. Fun fact: His name has a very unique connection with Portland. The word, Hansen, means vast forest in Chinese. And Portland is known for its greenery in the Douglas-fir forests of the Pacific Northwest. Oregon Public Broadcasting, which interviewed with Yang Hansen, where he spoke in Mandarin, found this connection. Maybe it’s a sign!

Preview Changes (opens in a new tab)

Another interesting thing about Hansen’s parent is; they delayed his dream of joining the NBA by one year. There’s an intriguing story behind this. As per reports, during the Chinese New Year 2024, an agent called his parents secretly, inviting them to the NBA All-Star Game in the U.S. The invitation was not the problem, but the condition that the star Center would have to leave Qingdao for training didn’t sit well with the parents. So, Yang Lin and Zhu Jing, along with the Qingdao Guoxin Haitian Club, decided against it. That move helped in their son’s development.

In the CBA, he ended with 2x All-Star nods, and also with the CBA DPOY accolade. That’s why he was on the radar of most teams, including the Warriors and the Lakers. Eventually, the Blazers just wanted it more as they traded for Yang Hansen and sent No. 11 pick (Cedric Coward), a first-round pick in 2028, and two second-round picks to the Grizzlies.

And of course, his parents were present on that magical draft night when his name was called along with his agent Ma Jie, and translator and assistant Liu Yucheng. His mother was evidently very emotional and proud about her son’s journey. She said, “We hope he can play hard here and win honor for our country.”

Yang echoed his mother’s thoughts, adding, “I hope to inspire more Chinese young basketball players to step out of their comfort zones and pursue their dreams. I believe we are capable of leading Chinese basketball to new heights.” Yang will inevitably have to come against people comparing him to Yao Ming, but the young star is here to write his own story and make his nation proud.