Indian Men's team at the Super Kung Sheung Cup in Hong Kong

The Indian Sr. National Men’s team will be amongst seven countries and clubs invited to participate in the 18th 3-D Gold Super Kung Sheung Cup Basketball Tournament for Men, set to be held in Hong Kong from 14th-19th December. A 10-member India squad, accompanied with a coach and a manager, will be heading to Hong Kong on December 11th to compete for this cup.

The Men’s team selected for this tournament is:

Dinesh Coimbatore Venugopal
Dishant Vipul Shah
Prakash Mishra
Kiran Pal Singh
Vishesh Bhriguvanshi
Sunil Kumar Rathee
Bobby Singh
Jairam Jat
Yadivinder Singh
Ajay Pratap Singh
Kunal Maria
Coach: Keshav Kumar Chansoria
Manager: PJ Sunny

The participating teams have been divided into two groups. India has been grouped alongside the hosts Hong Kong and the Southern California Fukienese Association (SCFA) from the USA. The teams in the second group are: Xin Cheng Holdings (XCH), GCC Group, Thailand, and Philippines. The matches will be held at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Hong Kong.

India’s tentative schedule for the group stage of the tournament is:

India vs. Hong Kong on December 14th @ 8:45 PM
India vs. SCFA on December 15th @ 8:45 PM

The top two teams from each group will move on to the Semi-Final round, which will be held on December 18th. The third place teams in each group will play on the 18th in a 5th-6th place classification match. The final will be held on December 19th.

In the previous (17th) edition of the Super Kung Sheung Cup was won by the hosts Hong Kong, who beat Philippines 100-61 in the Final. India finished at 4th place.

The Men's team has recently returned from an unsuccessful but improved performance at the 2010 Asian Games, where they were led by American coach Bill Harris. At Harris' departure, experienced national coach KK Chansoria has taken charge of the squad.

Amongst the players, leading scorer Jagdeep Singh and Trideep Singh are two of the most glaring stars who haven't been able to make this squad due to injury. Hareesh Koroth, and Eudrick Pereria are also missing in this squad. Bobby Singh and Ajay Pratap Singh have been recalled to the Indian squad for this cup.

FIBA 33: A boon or a curse for hoops?

When the first ever Youth Olympic Games (YOG) took place in Singapore earlier this year, there was no sign of a proper basketball tournament. I use "proper basketball" deliberately, because the tournament showcased the large scale debut of FIBA's latest brainchild, the FIBA 33.

Maybe I used correct the "latest brainchild" statement - after all, every ball player alive (no really, EVERY ball player alive) has played a less formalised version of FIBA 33. If you don't know, FIBA 33 is half-court basketball, played 3-on-3, first one to 33 in regulation time wins. Regulation time is just 10 minutes (with five minute halves), and if no team reaches 33, the one leading when time expires wins. Each team has three players plus one substitute. There is just a 10 second shot-clock, and like the international unspoken rules of basketball half-court play, if the defensive team gains possession of the ball, they have to first pass it outside the three-point arc before starting their offense.

It sounds suspiciously like every pick-up game ever played, except with referees and timers - plus I'm not sure if FIBA would be too hot on the Shirts vs. Skins idea.

Anyways, due to the fast-paced and exciting nature of the game, it was a roaring success at the YOG, capturing the largest (and loudest) crowds. Even India had a four-member squad present at the games - they failed to win any of their group games, but beat a couple of teams in the 17-20 classification to end at 18th spot.

The success prompted FIBA to discuss the format at the FIBA World Conference in Istanbul during the World Championships. Now, FIBA are hoping to take the 3-on-3 format to a bigger stage.

“We are all very excited about FIBA33, and in view of its popularity after just one day, it isn’t too far fetched to imagine it one day making it into the Olympics in its own right,” said FIBA Secretary-General Patrick Baumann.

Baumann has even said: "The US will always be able to have 12 players of the same quality which India would not be able to have. But India can have three, four or five players who can play three-on-three and they will be at the same level as the US"

FIBA president Bob Elphinston has added: "We want to use FIBA 33 to encourage more young girls and boys to play the game, to get started in basketball. We also want to create FIBA 33 as a separate discipline, not dissimilar to what we see at the Olympic Games with volleyball, in that we have beach volleyball and we have volleyball."

Is there anyone else here who thinks this new concept sounds a bit too familiar? Let's see, what is that one sport in India that involves a lot of players and goes on for five days? There is a one-day version of that sport, too, but it goes on for hours and hours. People love this sport in our country but the organisers and some fans (but mainly, the advertisers) felt the show was too long and too slow to be enjoy / capitalised on fully. So they introduced a much shorter version of the game, inspired by the version played on the grass-root level, and gave it a nifty name with a two-digit number and soon, this version became so big and popular that those who fell in love with the original version of the sport said that the new version was killing it.

I'm talking of course of cricket - After the Test format and ODI format was deemed 'too slow' for some fans, in came Twenty-20 cricket, with just 20 over games to satisfy all our cricketing needs in under three hours. T-20 has become a phenomenon since, and its league in India, the IPL, has become almost as lucrative as football's EPL and basketball's NBA.

But T-20 critics are aplenty - many have complained that it has killed the soul of the game, or that it encourages pinch-hitting cricket without the classic technical skills, that it has become more of a spectacle than a sport.

Whatever side you take on this argument, it is clear that T-20 is here to stay. Now, FIBA 33 is a similar story in many ways. Of course, basketball's long format is about the same length as cricket's short one, but the intention in both cases is to serve the needs of the our collectively shortening attention spans (I'd be surprised if many readers have actually attentively made it this far down in this article!). Just like T-20, FIBA goes back to the grass-roots of the game, thus perhaps encouraging more participation.

But this is where we feel that FIBA needs to be careful. The 3-on-3 format encourages the one thing that many basketball purists detest - the 'I' not in 'Team'. Shanmugam Sridhar, the coach of India's 3-on-3 team that played in Singapore, said: "The 3-on-3 format made for very quick games. It especially helped in showcasing the talents of individual players."

Just like cricket purists have complained that T-20 has "dumbed-down" the game, FIBA 33 critics too may claim that the new format might be a too simplistic version to feature on the big stage.

On the positive note though, T-20 has been good for other formats of cricket in one way - by changing the player's attitude towards greater aggression, and of course, serving as a good platform for youngsters to prove their mettle for the "more respected" versions of the games.

FIBA 33 scores big in the fact that it will be able to involve more countries, since they will be required to field lesser players. India's involvement in the tournament in Singapore proved just that. Also, quicker games would mean greater participation. And both T-20 and FIBA 33 have been great crowd-pullers, so why not just give the people what they want?

Which side of the fence do you sit on with this issue? And while you mull over it, here is a video of the Indian three-on-three team at the Youth Olympics in their 27-11 win over South Africa.

A look ahead: Harrison Barnes

I like to keep a roving eye on the future, especially when the current state of NBA teams will directly reflect on number one draft pick in the 2011 draft. Obviously, we are going to pretend to have a stony silence on that which shall not be mentioned (hint: seven letters, starts with an L, ends with a T, and could be goddamn annoying). So when David Stern climbs the podium to announce next year's top pick, the player I'm most expecting to be called up first is North Carolina small forward Harrison Barnes.

Barnes has been rated as the top prospect in the draft via several sources, including the one I respect the most, DraftExpress.com. The 6"8 forward is long, with a great wingspan, and is actually listed as a SG/SF on draft express. But what immediately attracted my attention towards him was Barnes' NBA comparison offered by NBADraft.net: Grant Hill.

Now, before the 38-year-old Hill became a model for geriatric basketball in the league, he was one of the most explosive all-round players in the league, way back in the 90s. In his prime, he was a poor man's, less explosive LeBron James, and was supposed to be the next Jordan before any of the other next Jordans.

Here's more information from NBADraft.net on Barnes:

Strengths: Athletic wing with long arms (7-foot wingspan), good muscle tone and excellent body balance ... Kid with a great attitude, work ethic and willingness to improve … Has a disciplined approach. Shows a good understanding of the game making positive decisions with the ball ... Has excellent form on his shot, and developing range … Can pull up off the dribble and hit shots … Does a good job of attacking the basket and creating contact and free throw shooting opportunities … Knocks down shots from the line at a good rate … Gives good effort on the defensive end getting low and using a proper defensive stance … Still shows a good deal of potential left in his game …
Weaknesses: Needs to work on improving his left hand and become equally adept at driving using either hand … Should look to improve his mid-range game and become a more consistent shooter from the perimeter …

As of now, the worst teams in the NBA are already on the 'Harrison Barnes' watch, because their position in the league will depend on their likelihood to get the first pick. The Clippers, Kings, Timberwolves, Nets, and 76ers are currently the league's five worst teams - all of them, except perhaps the 76ers, have a gaping hole in the small forward position and could use Barnes' services.

So while we pay attention to how this exciting season pans out, lets keep an eye on the future stars too... Barnes isn't the only one - players such as Kyrie Irving, Kemba Walker, and Perry Jones are also gathering respect from NBA scouts. Let's just hope we see them in action next season and avoid the dreaded L-word.

And by the way... These won't be the only rookies coming to the league. A certain Spanish point guard phenom will finally be making his way to the States. Ricky Rubio was drafted fifth by the Timberwolves last year but is yet to make an appearance in the league. Rubio is currently with FCB Barcelona in Spain, where he has been dominating. Whether or not he joins the T-Wolves next season is another question...

Here is my near-fiendish ode to Rubio.

Bhullar Brothers transfer from Kiski School

Seven-footed giant brothers, Sim (age 16, height 7 foot 4) and Tanveer(age 14, height 7 foot 2) Bhullar, the Indian-origin basketball players from Toronto, Canada, have recently withdrawn from the Kiski School in Pennslyvania (USA). Sim and Tanveer, who have been gathering a lot of attention from American colleges over their dominant play and potential, seem to be heading into different schools.

Sim and Tanveer Bhullar's parents, Avtar and Varinder, are immigrants to Canada originally from Amritsar, Punjab.

The Bhullars' Canadian teammate Stefan Jankovic is also transferring from Kiski. According to NBE Basketball Sim and Stefan are reportedly planning to join Huntington Prep in West Virginia, whereas Tanveer may be going to Montrose Christian in Maryland.

The American Chronicle reports:

Sim Bhullar, a 7-foot-4 junior, Tanveer Bhullar, a 7-2 sophomore and Sim's brother, and 6-10 junior Stefan Jankovic all plan to transfer to schools outside the state, said Kiski School coach Daryn Freedman. All three players are from Toronto and enrolled at Kiski for the 2009-10 school year.

Freedman, in his second year as coach, said the players' departures were a shock. The players already had been playing in games this season for Kiski, which is not part of the WPIAL. Freedman claimed AAU basketball and the influence of other people associated with AAU basketball outside Western Pennsylvania were the reasons for the players' departure.
"Basically, this had to do with AAU stuff," Freedman said. "It's one of those bad, dirty parts of basketball. It's sad, but they've moved on."

"The Bhullar brothers are going to split up," Freedman said. "There are rumors that Sim and Stefan are looking at Huntington [W.Va.] Prep. Tanveer may be going to a school in Maryland."

The two giant brothers carry a lot of expectations on their shoulders, not just because of their freakish potential but also because there happens to be a country of 1.1. billion people that look kinda like them who will have very large hopes for their success. Hopefully this decision helps them in the long run.

Go here for some recent videos of the brother's dominating all competition.

NBA is (finally) back on Indian TV... With a BANG!

I admit that I was starting to get the jitters. My forehead was sweating, my feet were feeling the pins-and-needles, my throat felt dry. It wasn't any kind of fever - well, not the explainable physical kind anyway - it was withdrawal.

Life was all hunky dory in June: the NBA Finals were on TV every other day, and I had spent many (many) early mornings sleepily drudging around my home with a cup of hot coffee and a warm blanket, watching live basketball games. Any self-respecting hoops fan in India would have done exactly the same, ignore the 9 and a half hour (on the east coast) to 12 and a half hour (on the West-Side) time difference to watch the games live. That's just what we do. Damn those who wait for the prime-time repeats in the evening, because by then, most of us have already read the recaps, analysed the box scores, and watch the top ten plays of the day online.

The season finished in mid-June, and the NBA went on the full offensive in India in the off-season. We welcomed superstars Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol to our shores. We participated in the Mahindra-NBA Challenges in Mumbai, Bangalore, Ludhiana, and Delhi, taking NBA team monikers. We read NBA articles by Indian writers, for Indian readers, in the NBA's India website (including a weekly column by yours truly!). We bought the jerseys and wore the shoes.

It was indeed, an epic off-season for the NBA in India, and the 2010-11 season was supposed to be one of the greatest ever. LeBron, Wade, and Bosh were together in Miami. The Celtics brought in Shaq and got stronger. The Knicks got Amar'e and became relevant again, and the Bulls improved with the Boozer signing. Thunder, with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbook, were promising to become everyone's second favourite team. Dwight Howard left with a good impression in India, making fans crave to watch him and his Magic team a little more. And of course, the champions Lakers were back, bigger and badder, looking to make it a three-peat.

Until of course, a silent tragedy struck. There were no more promos for the upcoming season on ESPN and Star Sports. No recap shows, no games at those ungodly hours in the morning.

This is when the jitters and the pins-and-needles started. We waited a whole month, cursed and complained, but nothing came our way.

And then, with one epic announcement, it all changed. The NBA announced on Thursday evening that it has signed two TV deals in India, with Taj Television (Ten Sports) and Multi Screen Media (MSM) Private Ltd (PIX). The best part of this deal? There will now be FOUR live NBA games shown in India every week. In addition, there will be the return of a lot of NBA's special programming, as well as special events such as All Star Game, Playoffs, and Finals, of course.

It seems that the NBA's long marriage with ESPN/Star Sports (ESS) in India is finally over. The affair with Taj Television and MSM has just begun!

So here's a rundown of all that will be coming our way on the two channels for the rest of the season. Please refrain from salivating on your keyboard.

Ten Sports

- Two live games every week, on Thursday morning and Saturday morning.
- Replays of the live games on both days at primetime hours.
- Live coverage of the All Star Game.
- Live coverage of the NBA Playoffs.
- Live coverage of one Conference's Finals.
- Live coverage of the NBA Finals.
- NBA highlight recaps and NBA grassroots events in India, locally produced by Taj Television, for Ten Sports and select Zee Network Channels.
- 36 episodes of Real NBA, a half hour weekly reality programme that provides viewers with a behind-the-scenes look at the biggest stories from around the league. It will air at primetime on Ten Sports and in some of Zee's regional channels in LOCAL DIALECTS!

PIX

- Two live games every week, on Wednesday morning and Friday morning.
- Live coverage of the NBA Playoffs.
- Live coverage of one Eastern Conference Finals in 2011 and Western Conference Finals in 2012.
- 36 episodes of NBA Action a renowned highlights show that captures the latest game action and league news, giving fans an inside look at the best players in the NBA.
- A new weekly original program, NBA in 30. Each episode of NBA in 30 will showcase a condensed game in thirty minutes.

“The NBA has a growing audience in India and Ten Sports will enhance the viewing experience by providing additional insight, localized content, and interviews apart from the traditional telecast,” said CEO of Sports Business ZEEL Atul Pande. “I am sure we will enjoy a long relationship with the NBA as we are committed to being a leader in acquiring, producing and televising the most important sports programming.”

“The NBA is one of the world's top sports properties, and is comprised of some of the greatest athletes on the planet,” said MSM India CEO Man Jit Singh. “This historic agreement allows PIX to deliver all of the action and excitement of the NBA to Indian sports fans, while launching a partnership between MSM and the NBA which we expect to widen and grow through the years.”

I must say, I am very, very impressed by all this. Four games a week! That means, Wednesday to Saturday morning I'm going to be busy, back inside my blanket and with my cup of coffee. I especially like the idea of the NBA in 30 show that will be on PIX: it will be a great way to introduce the game to a whole new audience, who, in half an hour, will get a good experience of how exciting NBA basketball is.

Ah, the sickness is gone. I can relax again. The first game, according to NBA Global Programming list, is tomorrow, Saturday morning, at 9 AM: Dallas Mavericks @ Utah Jazz on PIX. The schedule for the Ten Sports games hasn't been put up there at the time of writing, soon I'm sure all will be revealed.

Chennai witnessing the growth of basketball at the IMG-Reliance School league

After a successful first competition in New Delhi, the IMG-Reliance School Basketball League has shifted to Chennai, one of the most basketball crazy cities in the country. Featuring a total of 20 school teams in the Girls’ and Boys’ divisions, the league tipped off on the 22nd of November.

For the first time this year, IMG-Reliance, along with the Basketball Federation of India (BFI), have organised a home-and-away Inter-School basketball league system for Indian youngsters. It was first conducted in New Delhi between August 16-October 20th.

The teams for both the sections have been divided into two groups of five teams each. Each school will play the other schools in their group in twice - once home and once away. The top two teams from each group will then qualify for a ‘Super League’, and the top two teams from the Super League will play each other in the Finals. Each team will learn two points for a victory, one for a loss, and zero for a loss by forfeit.

The group round will conclude on December 3rd, and will be followed by the Super League.

The participating teams are:

Boys Group A

MCTM Hr. Sec. School
Don Bosco Hr Sec School, Perambur
PSBB Sr. Sec. School, K.K.Nagar
Santhome Hr. Sec. School
Vidya Mandir Hr. Sec. School, Mylapore

MCTM are on top of the group with 12 points, followed by PSBB on second place with 10.

Group B

St. Peter's Hr. Sec. Scjool, Perambur
Chettinad Vidhyashram Hr. Sec. School
Vellamal Hr. Sec. School
Sherwood Hall Hr. Sec. School
Hindu Sr. Sec. School

St. Peter's are currently leading the group with 12 points, followed by Chettinad Vidhyashram on 10.


Girls

Group A
Vidyodaya Hr Sec. School
St. Ursula's Hr. Sec. School
St. Joseph's Hr. Sec. School
PSBB Sr. Sec. School, K.K.Nagar
Vidya Mandir Hr. Sec. School, Mylapore

Vidyodaya Hr. Sec. School and St. Joseph's Hr. Sec. School are currently leading the group with 12 points and 11 points respectively.

Group B

Lady Sivaswami Hr. Sec. School
St. Raphael's Hr. Sec. School
Chettinad Vidhyashram Hr. Sec. School
MCTM Hr. Sec. School
Hindu Sr. Sec. Schoo

Lady Sivaswami Hr. Sec. School are leading the group with 12 points. St. Raphael's and Chettinad Vidhyashram are tied on second place with 10 points each.

Wizards vs Raptors... From the Verizon Center

Earlier this week, I had posted pictures and information from the first NBA game I ever attended: the Warriors @ Knicks, played at the World's Most Famous Arena, the Madison Square Garden. A week after that exciting night, I was back to some live NBA action in Washington DC on November 16th, where I got to see the Washington Wizards play the visiting Toronto Raptors.

It was a peculiar change of scene from the game at MSG. The crowds were scarce, and much quieter. The pizza was better, but nothing could match the hot-buttered MSG popcorn. And the game was pretty much over in the third quarter, so the crowd was kept enthused by T-shirt guns and hot-dog give-aways.

But I, for one, had special interest in this match-up: ever since the glory days of Vince Carter (now amongst Toronto's Public Enemies), I have been slightly partial to the Raptors, and was interested in seeing their young players such as Andrea Bargnani and Sonny Weems in action. Most importantly though, I was here for Gilbert Arenas - one of my favourite players in the league, who was attempting to make a comeback after some horrific decisions last season.

Arenas' backcourt partner-in-crime and Washington's current darling John Wall unfortunately missed that game, and it was a pity, since Wall has been the most explosive player in the league. The rookie easily the quickest player on the ball ever, drawing comparisons to a certain Allen Iverson, and he has been putting up some good performances as well.

But without Wall, it was Arenas' night. This game was his first start of the season. After the game, I wrote about his attempt at a comeback on my NBA-India article. Sure enough, Arenas has repaid my faith by significantly improving his output ever since.

Arenas took over in the third quarter in this game, and with the help of Andray Blatche and Nick Young, Wizards easily beat the visiting squad.

Anyways, here are some of the not-very-fantastic photographs I have from that night. And no, I'm not sorry for the Hibachi overdose.


Pregame national anthems



Arenas



Bargnani from the side



Arenas takes the ball from the sideline



2nd half: Raptors on offense