China's 20-year-old basketball sensation Yi Jianlian, touted as the new Yao Ming, heads to the United States Wednesday to blaze his own NBA trail.

The seven-foot (2.12-metre) power forward is expected to be a top pick in June's NBA draft and has long been seen as the best player to come out of China since Yao, the All-Star centre for the Rockets.

"I think he is 100 percent prepared for the NBA. Take a look at his numbers over four years and you'll see he has made a dramatic improvement," China Basketball Association chief Li Yuanwei told the China Daily.

"I am very confident he will find his way very soon in the United States."