Bucks' owner Herb Kohl downplayed his personal role in the Yi Jianlian discussions and discounted his status as a U.S. senator playing an important part.

"It was a team effort," Kohl said. "John (Steinmiller, the team's vice president of business operations) and Ron and Larry Harris and myself were working on this thing on a daily basis. Another person, Mike Burr (Bucks chief financial officer) was a big part of this effort.

"I wouldn't say one person was most instrumental. Everyone doing his little bit made up a very strong whole. Working together we got something done."

Kohl declined to divulge the transfer fee the Bucks paid the Guangdong team to release Yi to the NBA, but the senator said it was "in that modest range to get a player released from a foreign team."

The Milwaukee Bucks announced on Wednesday that 2007 first round draft pick Yi Jianlian has signed a multi-year contract. The Bucks 6th overall selection in the 2007 NBA Draft, Yi Jianlian signed his contract in Hong Kong following a negotiating session with Mr. Chen Haitao, owner of the Guangdong Tigers.

Bucks owner and team president Senator Herb Kohl, General Manager Larry Harris and Bucks Vice President Ron Walter were able to meet with Mr. Chen, as well as Yi and his family, as part of the process.

Yi Jianlian is expected to join the team for training camp that begins on Monday, October 1 at the Bucks Training Center in St. Francis, WI.

?There has been a genuine excitement throughout our city and state, as well as internationally, following our selection of Yi in the NBA Draft,? said Senator Herb Kohl. ?We all anticipate Yi?s arrival and welcome him and his family to Milwaukee. We look forward to a successful relationship for many years to come.?

?We would be remiss if we didn?t acknowledge and thank Mr. Chen for his assistance and support in the negotiating process,? Kohl added.

?We were thrilled to be able to draft Yi Jianlian in June and are equally excited to sign him to a NBA contract as a member of the Milwaukee Bucks,? said Harris. ?We drafted Yi with the expectation that he would be a part of our franchise for a very long time and this is the first step in that process. Yi is a skilled and versatile young man who we have seen play numerous times over the last few years including this summer in the NBA Summer League. Our players and coaches look forward to working with Yi and I know our fans will enjoy watching him compete with the many talented, young players on our roster.?

NBA Commissioner David J. Stern commented, ?We are happy that Yi will be playing with the Bucks to further develop his skill and his contribution to both the Chinese National Team and the NBA. This is another great example of cooperation between the CBA and the NBA and I want to congratulate the CBA, Mr. Chen, the Guangdong Tigers and the Milwaukee Bucks.?

Milwaukee Bucks owner Herb Kohl and general manager Larry Harris are meeting with first-round draft pick Yi Jianlian and his representatives today in Hong Kong, a Bucks spokesman confirmed this morning.

The high-level meeting marks the first substantive talks since the 7-foot Chinese forward was selected by the Bucks with the sixth overall pick in the June 28 draft.

Sen. Kohl's presence is seen as a critical piece in negotiations to bring Yi to the Bucks. His representatives initially balked at having Yi join the Bucks and requested a trade, and they did not allow him to work out for the Bucks prior to the draft.

If the Bucks are to sign Yi, they must reach an agreement with Guangdong Tigers owner Chen Haitao and officials of the Chinese Basketball Association, and the Bucks must pay a fee to release Yi from his contract with the Tigers.

The meeting was expected to begin on Wednesday morning in Hong Kong, which was Tuesday night (Milwaukee time).

Ruben Patterson said this is the longest he has waited before knowing what jersey he will wear when camp begins in October.

Patterson acknowledges he's getting a little nervous.

"You could say that. I know it's the middle of August," Patterson said last week during a telephone interview from Cincinnati. "You got a lot of guys who haven't signed."

Patterson said he would prefer to sign with Boston or Miami.

Former professional basketball star Latrell Sprewell, who three years ago rejected a $21 million contract offer, calling it insulting and saying he had a family to feed, had his 70-foot, $1.5 million, Italian-built yacht repossessed Tuesday.

Armed with an order from U.S. Magistrate Judge William E. Callahan Jr., a federal marshal seized the vessel in Manitowoc, where it sat in storage.

Callahan is presiding in a court case filed by a New York bank that claims the yacht's owner, a company run by Sprewell, has defaulted on a mortgage loan.

The firm, LSF Marine Holdings, hasn't made monthly payments of $10,322 on time and hasn't maintained the necessary insurance on the vessel, North Fork Bank alleges.

It wants the yacht, "Milwaukee's Best," sold to pay off the $1.3 million it says is remaining on the loan. Sprewell has guaranteed the loan personally, a contract filed with the court shows. He could not be reached for comment on the repossession.

Bucks' GM Larry Harris said he is continuing to talk with agent Mark Bartelstein about a new multi-year contract for Charlie Bell, a restricted free agent.

"There's nothing concrete at this point," Harris said. "I'm still confident he'll be back with us."

The Milwaukee Bucks have signed forward Awvee Storey to a multi-year contract, General Manager Larry Harris announced today. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Storey was a member of the Bucks 2007 Las Vegas Summer League Team, where he maintained averages of 11.0 points and 4.2 rebounds over five games.

?Awvee is a hard-nosed, aggressive player who brings depth to our roster at the guard and small forward positions,? said Harris. ?He?s an excellent athlete and a solid defender who will be a good addition to our team.?

Contrary to a published report, Desmond Mason's two-year contract with the Bucks is $10.3 million. He'll make $5.0 million this season and $5.3 million next season.

Mo Williams' six-year contract is for $51.263 million. He'll make $7.75M next season and then $8.353M, $8.86M, $9.30M, $8.50M and $8.50M. He has an ETO after the fourth year and a player option after the fifth.

While the Bucks are still negotiating with Charlie Bell, who was the only Buck to play in all 82 regular-season games last season, they appear on the brink of signing free agent Awvee Storey.

Storey, a 6-foot-6 forward, played on the Bucks? summer league team in Las Vegas last month. He impressed Bucks officials with his versatility, toughness and rebounding.

"I think we?re moving toward a deal," said Mark Bartelstein, Storey?s agent, in a telephone interview Saturday afternoon. "Hopefully, by Monday, we?ll have it wrapped up."

The Bucks have been interested in signing Storey since the start of free agency on July 1.

"He really enjoyed the summer league with the Bucks," Bartelstein said. "He liked his teammates and coaches and felt comfortable being around them."

Former NBA player Wang Zhizhi and draft picks Yi Jianlian and Sun Yue combined to score 59 of China's 82 points in its victory over the NBA Development League team at the Stankovic Cup.

After China's 82-67 win, each team finished the tournament with a 3-2 record.

Renaldo Major of the Dakota Wizards, a former Fresno State player, led the D-League Ambassadors with 16 points and eight rebounds.

Yi, who had 28 points, was drafted sixth by the Milwaukee Bucks. Sun was picked in the second round by the Los Angeles Lakers.