Yi Jianlian.

Rising star Yi Jianlian has broken NBA centre Yao Ming's record for the most slam dunks by a Chinese player in the China Basketball Association, a local sports website said.

Yi, 19, who plays for the league champion Guangdong Tigers, surpassed Yao's CBA record of 302 dunks by a Chinese player, according to Sina.com, which is recognised as having some of the best basketball coverage in China.

Yi overtook Yao's dunk milestone two weeks ago and, following Guangdong's 102-91 victory over Shandong on Wednesday, the 2.12-metre (seven-foot) Yi has 314 dunks.

Yi, who is averaging 24.3 points and 12.1 rebounds per game this season, is expected to be a top pick in the National Basketball Association's June draft, following his famous countryman into the world's toughest league.

Although Yi is now the CBA's leading Chinese dunker, the league's most prolific dunker remains US player Jason Dixon, Yi's Guangdong team mate and seven-year CBA veteran who has 386 dunks, Sina.com said.

The CBA keeps official statistics on slam dunks, but the numbers were not posted on its website on Thursday.