Indian Ballers to play at Singapore Youth Olympic Games

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A team from India will feature in the basketball tournament to be held at the first Youth Olympic Games (YOG), set to be held from August 14-26th in Singapore. The basketball tournament will be a 3-on-3 halfcourt competition, featuring teams from 20 countries around the world. The athletes will be the best basketball stars between the ages of 14-18. The YOG is the biggest gathering of athletes of 18 years and below, and will feature a total of 26 sports.

In the basketball tournament, the teams were drawn recently into four brackets, and the Indian men's squad have been drawn in a group with Serbia, Greece, Puerto Rico, and New Zealand. There is no Indian women's team. Click here to see the full draw.

India's group games are:

15th August: India vs. Puerto Rico
16th August: Serbia vs. India
18th August: India vs. Greece
19th August: New Zealand vs. India

The top two teams from each group will move on to knock-out quaterfinals, and the Final will be held on 23rd August. Harish Sharma, the secretary general of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI), confirmed that a short-list of eight players has been decided already, out of which four will be sent to Singapore for the competition.

Other countries taking part in the men's competition are Argentina, Iran, Lithuania, Panama, Egypt, Israel, Singapore, Turkey, USA, Central African Republic, Philippines, Spain, South Africa, US Virgin Islands, and Croatia.

As noted above, this is a 3-on-3 half-court competition - each game will be 15 minutes long with three quick five minute periods. The first team to 33 or the team that is leading at the end of regulation time wins.

I know that this 3-on-3 half court concept is being done to accomodate more teams and thus more games in a shorter span of time, but I still feel that it is really not the right way to go about promoting basketball. Anyone who has actually played basketball will testify how different this format is to an actualy full-court 5-on-5 game: players are not tested on their stamina and the games become more individual skill based than team-oriented. A different caliber of player will perform better in this situation as compared to REAL basketball.

Still, I think that the YOG are a great idea, and it's awesome that India will be representing a basketball team amongst countries featuring some of the best ballers in the world like USA, Spain, Greece, or Serbia.

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US Colleges chasing the Giant Bhullars!

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This could potentially be huge for Indians and my fellow Brown Peeps all over the world - The giant Bhullar brothers, whose parents hailed from Punjab (India), who settled into Toronto (Canada), and who have recently been making some noise with their basketball at Kiski School in Pennslyvania (USA), may soon become a very, very big deal in the States.

College basketball recruiting in America is an uber-competitive, harsh, and crazy world, and it seems that once they finish High School, the Bhullar Brothers are set to become sought-after commodities.

Truly giants, Sim Bhullar (17) is 7 feet 4 inches, and weighs almost 130 kgs. The younger brother, Tanveer (15), is 7 feet 2 inches, and weighs around 118 kgs. Their parents hail from Amritsar, Punjab - father Avtar is 6-1 and mother Varinder is 5-10. Hey, the father's name is Avtar. Didn't anyone else see this coming? I've seen how tall those Na'vi are.

Anyways, since I last checked on the Bhullar Bros, they have improved considerably. Under the tutelage of Kiski School head coach Daryn Freedman, the brothers have improved several parts of their game. Leading the school to a 16-4 record this season, Sim averaged 16 points and 14 rebounds per game and his strenghts on the court include a surprising three-point range, strong passing, and the ability to finish strong around the basket. Tanveer, who averaged 12 and 11, possesses a smooth 15 to 17foot jumper, has quick feet and soft hands, which are key attributes to low-post success.

As American college sports website Rivals.com reports, some of the best colleges and coaches could be coming after the Bhullars very soon.

"You just don't find big guys that agile," Kiski School head coach Daryn Freedman said. "There's nothing like him in the country right now."

They both have improved immensely at Kiski School under Freedman, a longtime college and NBA assistant who arrived at the school about a month before the Bhullars did. They have since remade their bodies, regularly working out at 5 a.m. with the Kiski wrestling coach.
Sim, who has lost 30 pounds, could not run the court more than two or three times. Tanveer, who started last season as a backup, needed a month before he could dunk after a running start.
And while they both have areas to work on - Tanveer must resist the urge to shoot fadeaway jumpers and improve his foot speed; Sim needs to be a more active rebounder and to maintain his composure after committing a silly foul - there have been glimpses of greatness.

West Virginia has already offered Sim a scholarship. Duke plans to visit him.
Duquesne, Florida State, Kentucky, LSU, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Stanford, Texas, UMass, USC and Washington State have expressed interest in both brothers.

The Bhullars are looking for a strong academic school that excels at developing big men and is close to Toronto. And they'd like to play together.
"If we could," Sim said, "we most likely would do it."
Anyone who has seen them together, understands why.
"Everyone thinks they're twins," Freedman said. "They're really, really tight... They definitely have each other's backs all the time."

It is definitely exciting to see the attention these boys are getting from top NCAA basketball colleges. They have an experienced coach in Daryn Freedman who has worked with several Division 1 schools and with NBA teams New Jersey Nets and Philadelphia 76ers.

But the best part of their story has been the potential interest of superstar coach John Calipari of Kentucky. Calipari is the same guy who has coached the last two NBA rookie of the years, Derrick Rose and Tyreke Evans. He is the same guy who has been the coach of the consensus top pick in the NBA Draft on June 24th, John Wall. He is the same guy who recently made the cover of SLAM magazine with Wall and other players of the Kentucky team. And he's the same guy who is now being linked to coach the Cleveland Cavaliers (and keep LeBron James in Cleveland).

The Bhullars' current coach Freedman spent eight years as an assistant to Calipari. "He was my mentor, my coaching idol," Freedman says - some assume Kentucky has the inside track.

Wherever Sim and Tanveer end up, these are exciting times for basketball fans in India. Both the brothers dream of playing in the NBA.

The brothers are serious about their future - and would welcome roles as Indian basketball pioneers.
The NBA had players from 36 countries and territories this season, but none from India.
The brothers already have a following. When they visited the Golden Temple, a Sikh spiritual and cultural center, last summer, about 100 people crowded them.
"If I was able to make the NBA," Sim said, "that would be something big for India."

For a big country like India, there will be nothing bigger in basketball than these giants. Let's hope that the Bhullars are guided and coached well so that they can make a difference in college basketball in the States, and eventually fulfil the dream of every Indian fan by one day playing in the NBA. I'm going to ignore the fact that they are actually now Canadian.

Here is a video of the Bhullars sure to get more than a few fans excited...

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Mahram Tehran win Asia Champions Cup

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Iranian club Mahram Tehran BC won the FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2010 that was held in Doha (Qatar) from May 22-30. Tehran beat the Qatari home team Al Rayyan in the final 93-73. Tehran have successfully repeated as champions. Al-Riyadi Beirut (Lebanon) finished in third place.

Iran are on a particularly good run in Asian basketball, as their national squad also won the FIBA Asia Championship held in Tianjin (China) last year.


Why am I writing this? The Fiba Asia Champions Cup is kind of like the Champions League of Asian basketball teams - the best teams from different leagues in the continent get together to play in this prestigious competition. This year's tournament featured clubs from Iran, Qatar, Lebanon, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Syria, Phillipines, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Iraq.

Yes, so countries around the world which are, no offense, barely functioning such as Lebanon, Syria, or Iraq, have basketball clubs that perform better than ours. Or do they really? Or is it just our system that doesn't allow a 'club' to participate in such an event? I'll be thrilled to see National Championship winners from India participate in this competition and see where we stand. I'm sure Vishesh Bhriguvanshi and Indian Railways can put up a bit of a fight...

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NBA Finals: Celtics, Lakers, History...

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No one expected it at mid-season, and no one in their right mind expected it when the playoffs began. Sure, the Lakers were always the favourites in the West, where the debate contiunally raged on about who would finish at second place. The East was supposed to be the Cleveland LeBrons, um, Cavaliers to lose, and if they did lose it, it was most likely going to be the Magic. Most likely.

I predicted a Cavaliers-Lakers final in February, and I predicted it again when the playoffs began around six weeks ago. The Lakers are here, the LeBrons are back home. Instead, every Laker's favourite (not) opponent the Boston Celtics, after finishing a humble fourth in the Eastern Conference seedings, beat down Wade and the Heat, LeBron and the Cavs, and Dwight Howard and the Magic to surprise everyone and reach the Finals again.

So here we are, looking over the 12th NBA Finals meeting between these two legendary franchises. I almost titled this piece "Celtics and Lakers ARE the NBA", and that wouldn't have been too far off. These two teams have won 32 of the 63 NBA championships between each other, and after this one, it will be 33 of 64. That is about 51.6 percent. They are also the last two champions, Celtics beating the Lakers in 2008, and the Lakers winning over the Magic last year. I'm feeling like its the mid-80s all over again. Bird. Magic. Pierce. Kobe. Garnett. McHale. Gasol. Abdul-Jabbar. etc. etc. etc.

But before I delve into this incredible finals match-up, let's talk about the Conference Finals a little bit. I predicted both the Celtics and Lakers to beat their opponents, and although both the series started to look like potential easy pickings, Magic and the Suns showed enough life to keep things interesting.

When the Magic took on the Celtics, I had a feeling that Celtic Ubuntu was going to be too much on the softer Magic squad. Dwight Howard is a strong player, but he is not a tough player. Celtics easily (more or less) breezed through the first three games, which were mostly a nightmare for Dwight Howard. And for Rashard Lewis (who scored 15 points TOTAL in those three games). And for Vince Carter (those missed free throws in Game 2 will haunt him forever). Jameer Nelson showed some sign of resilience, and under his lead, Magic won the fourth game in overtime, and (with the help of some dodgy refereering) took Game 5 in Orlando. Although Boston looked old and beaten, they were back up to their old tricks in Game 6 and easily closed out the series to become Eastern Conference Champions.

Rondo continued his steller play in this series, but he was helped greatly by an improved Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. Pierce, specifically, is looking extremely dangerous and poised to take over the Finals. Rasheed Wallace, Kendrick Perkins, and Glen Davis all did an awesome defensive job on Howard, and Wallace and Davis showed up on the offensive end, too. Plus, when Nate Robinson took over in Game 6, I momentarily lost my sense of reality. Nate friggin Robinson, the Knick sideshow, whose only real success has come in the Summer League and the Slam Dunk Competition, played the best 10-something minutes of his life in Game 6. And all this without my favourite Celtic Kevin Garnett playing a lot more subdued than he did in the Cavs series. The Celtics did it like they always do it - teamwork and hustle.

On to the West now, where the shooting percentages are higher, the scoreboards have more triple figures, and the courtside celebrities look better. Lakers looked great in their first two games against the Suns at home, and the Suns defense was all over the place. In Phoenix, Suns showed great resilience to make an amazing comeback and tie the series 2-2, thanks to Amar'''e, Steve Nash, Grant Hill, and a strong bench. Game 5 was the most exciting one of them all, as a fury of amazing plays from Nash brought the Suns back from a huge deficit to tie the game in the end, only to lose out to a tip in by... Ron Artest. The biggest shot of Ron Ron's career gave Lakers a crucial 3-2 lead. In the closing Game 6, Kobe, Ron Ron and the rest of the Lakers did their thing to hold the Suns' comeback and make it back to their THIRD STRAIGHT Finals.

And oh, I nearly went a whole paragraph without mentioning Kobe. 'Mamba' was amazing all series, scoring a shade below 34 ppg, and getting near triple-doubles on several occasions. Most importantly, he was clutch in nearly every win for the Lakers, especially in Game 6 where he hit dagger after dagger to silence the Suns' surge. Like Lamar Odom said, "Kobe is so good, he makes incredible normal for us." Bryant has (unsurprisingly) improved his play considerably in the playoffs and truly answered back to all those who doubted him all season.

But now comes the biggest challenge that either team has faced all playoffs. And fittingly, it happens at the game's biggest stage, the NBA Finals. And Hoopistani predicts...

Lakers vs. Celtics: Celtics in 7: I have been contemplating this result more than you think... Each game of the Conference Finals changed my opinion, each result gave me doubts, and now that these two teams prepare to see each other again, I have finally settled (sort of) the see-saw of my thoughts to decide on a prediction.

All season, I would have picked the Lakers to repeat as NBA Champions. I picked them at the start, at the mid, and near the end. Even when the Conference Finals began, I gave them the benefit of the doubt. But the Celtics kept on improving. They got better and better, and then the Lakers didn't look so strong after losing two games to the Suns, and then the Celtics looked old and battered when they lost Game 5 at Orlando, and then Kobe became godly again and Lakers won the series, and then Celtics improved their play, too.

Phew!

So to make the picture a little clearer, I'm going to compare and contrast what the two teams will be going against here, and add up their advantages...

Point Guard: Rondo vs. Fisher: Rondo has been the best player in the playoffs. Fisher hits important shots sometimes, but Rondo is going to eat him alive. ALIVE I tell you. Kobe might have to respond like he did with Russell Westbrook in the first round against the Thunder and try to stick with Rondo. I don't think it will work. Celtics

Shooting Guard: Ray Allen vs. Bryant: Oh, and these two are semi-rivals, too. Ray Allen is an amazing shooter, but Kobe Bryant is Kobe Bryant. Lakers

Small Forward: Pierce vs. Artest: I love Ron Ron. You don't know how much I love Ron Ron. I've always said that if Artest is in any sort of a decent squad, he will take up to a higher level. Don't ask me exactly how he does it, but it is a combination of great defense, ill-advised but sometimes important three-pointers, and his own brand of crazy Dennis-Rodman-ness. That said, the 2008 Finals MVP aka Paul Pierce aka The Truth is looking incredible right now and could well be the main main in this series. Artest will trouble him, but Pierce is better. Celtics

Power Forward: Garnett vs. Gasol: This match-up I feel is the closest and the most important of them all. So much so that, whoever dominates between these two will be the one in the winning squad. And although Gasol has been incredible all season and Garnett has not, KG has picked up where it counts, and if there is anyone who can make life hell for Gasol, it is him. KG won't score much, but he doesn't need to, for he will dominate Gasol defensively and make him want to shoot himself. Celtics

Center: Perkins vs. Bynum: Perkins is a mean man. Bynum is a nice little boy who is hurt a lot. Bynum is technically more talented, but he won't overcome Perkins. Celtics

Bench: Davis, Wallace, Tony Allen, Robinson, Finley, Daniels vs. Odom, Waltom, Farmar, Vujacic, Brown, Mbenga. Lakers bench, hands down, is much better, thanks mostly to Lamar Odom. For the Celtics bench to have a chance, they will need consistency from Rasheed Wallace and Nate Robinson, but asking that is like asking for consistency from the friggin moon. Sometimes you get it full and bright, sometimes it shoots dumb three-point air-balls. Lakers

Coach: Rivers vs. Jackson: Doc Rivers is a good coach, and has succesfully watched his plan come to good as the Celtics saved their energy for the playoffs. Phil Jackson though, is the best, perhaps the best ever. The 'Zen Master' always seems to be a step ahead of his opposition coaches, and will once again be an important factor tactically on the Laker sideline. Lakers

Health: Lakers' only issue is Andrew Bynum. Celtics have issues with everyone. Lakers

And of course, it is well known that no result in sport is as simple as stats, match-ups, and players on paper. I must add one more category here: call it heart, call it desire, will to win, the hustle... I'll just call it The Edge. And coming into the 2010 Finals, Celtics have the edge over the Lakers. They will win the loose balls, they will get more offensive rebounds, they will have the emotional runs, they have the team chemistry. Lakers have the most cold-blooded man in the world right now in Kobe, but that won't be enough of an edge. Celtics

Final score? Celtics 5 Lakers 4. I told you it's gonna be close. Celtics in 7. And it's hard to choose an MVP from this squad of numerous stars, and although Rondo and Pierce have been the go-to guys the last few rounds, I have a feeling that it will be Kevin Garnett who will be the X-Factor and the one to elevate the Celtics over a tough LA team.

Despite what I predicted all year, the Lakers will not repeat as champions, and although I believe that this will be a much tougher series for both teams than last time around, Celtics will beat the Lakers again, just like 2008.

2010 Champions: Boston Celtics
Finals MVP: Kevin Garnett

Can't wait for this series to begin. Thursday night in Lost Angeles, Friday morning on my TV in India. Lakers vs. Celtics, Part 12. Here's another chapter in the history of the NBA Finals...

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Veteran players hold junior camp in Orissa

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You know what I love even more than basketball awareness in India? Basketball awareness at new, unexpected places in India. That's why this story from 'The Silk City' of Orissa, Behrampur, made me smile: around 15 veteran players from Orissa got together on May 17th to organise a three-week long basketball coaching camp for youngsters, independently and from their own resources.

The camp is being held at the Berhampur stadium, under the tutelage of veteran players such as former national player J. Kameshwar Rao, Arun Kumar Patnaik, basketball coach Kajal Kumar Sahu, and Orissa's only international referee, Rajkumar Patra. Around 80 youngsters between the ages of six to 18 years are participating in this camp.

From The Hindu:

The organisers said despite several requests from parents they could not intake more participants due to constraint of resources. “We are hoping to hold a bigger camp next time if we get some sponsorship,” Mr. Patra said.
The participants of this camp have been divided into three groups. The 15 participants of the age group below eight years have made the organisers hope that a bright future awaits basketball in this region. The other two groups are meant for participants between eight to 13 years and rest participants are in another group. The youngest ones have been named ‘Kids' group... “The enthusiasm of these kids is also proving to be a major catalyst for the practice of other participants”, Mr. Patra said. Apart from practical training in field the participants are also being imparted theoretical training about the fundamentals and history of the game.

This is exactly what the game needs in India! Veteran leadership and direction to develop the game up from the grassroots, and not just in the Tier I cities like Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai but at relatively smaller places like Behrampur, too.

I'm hoping that this initiative by the Orissa veteran basketballers serves to encourage other players, coaches, and organisers around the country who have enough influence in the game to help its growth around the country.

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You will hear an Indian accent when you call Mike Brown

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I found a surprisingly funny story today and realised immediately that I had to blog it. The biggest free agent story of all time now potentially has an Indian stakeholder. Let me introduce to you to the characters in our little drama this morning...

First meet Mike Brown. Brown is the former head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and fired just three days ago from his position after leading the reigning two time NBA MVP LeBron James and the Cavs to two straight years as the best regular season team in the league. Of course, that didn't translate to post-season success, as the best Cavs team ever assembled once again choked in the playoffs, this time at the hands of the Boston Celtics. Brown also has struggled with teaching this talented squad with LeBron, Shaq, Jamison, Mo Williams, Varejao, Hickson, Anthony Parker and others any sort of offence except 'give-lebron-james-the-basketball-and-pray'.

Now meet Rajesh Kumar. Kumar is a 24 year old from New Delhi who recently completed his Master's degree in engineering from New York University, and has lived in the US for around two years. In August 2008, Kumar lived in Cleveland for a month, and aquired a phone number... which turned out to be Mike Brown's old number.

So of course, ever since Mike Brown got fired from his job, Rajesh Kumar heard the condolences. From NBA Fanhouse:

"I have gotten over 150 phone calls since (Monday)," Kumar said Tuesday afternoon in an interview with FanHouse from New York. "I took a nap and I woke up and I had 37 voice mail messages. I thought Mike Brown must have lost a big match."
Pardon Kumar's terminology.
"I'm a fan of cricket," said Kumar, who later was able to find out Brown's firing was the reason for all the commotion. "It's a very exciting sport."
Kumar doesn't know who most of the callers have been since he simply tells them they have the wrong number. As for the messages left on Kumar's voice mail, which has an automated recording rather than his voice or name, he has deleted them immediately.

But Kumar did say he got a call asking for Brown from somebody identified as being from the office of New York mayor Michael Bloomberg. The call ended after Kumar said it no longer is Brown's number.

So why would Bloomberg's office be calling Brown? Well, Bloomberg did speak on his weekly Friday show on WOR Radio on May 14 about believing Cleveland star guard LeBron James, who had played for Brown, would want to sign with New York or New Jersey when he can become a free agent this summer.

Don't ask Kumar, though, to speculate about any relationship between Bloomberg, Brown and James. Kumar knows little about James.
"I had heard of him," said Kumar, saying he learned of James before he got Brown's old cell number but couldn't speak much about him. "I'm not sure when I heard of him."
Kumar's number was Brown's at least through the 2007-08 season. After he got his number, Kumar began receiving some calls for the coach.
"After about a week, I realized he must be a celebrity," Kumar said. "I wondered who this Mike Brown was. So I Googled him."

Wow! There are at least 2,523 funny things about the story above, but I'm going to ramble off the first few that pop up in my head:

- His name is Rajesh Kumar. I mean, he could've only gotten Indianner if he was called Patel or something.
- The Americans just don't seem to understand the word 'match'. Match? "Pardon his terminology!"
- I love how he drops the fact that he's a fan of cricket and that "it's a very exciting sport".
- So, apparently, the Mayor of New York called him. To discuss LeBron James.
- Kumar really has no idea who LeBron James is. "I have heard of him - I'm not sure when I heard of him," may be the greatest quote of the LeBron James free-agency mania.
- And finally, Kumar googled Brown thinking that Brown is a celebrity. I'm not sure I would call the former Cavs coach that, but hey, standing next to LeBron James and feigning orders while actually being his slave has to count for some celebrity status, right?

Come on Kumar. Do your Indian buddy here a favour - next time LeBron dials a wrong number and finds you, tell him about how awesome the New York Mayor / The Knicks are. You need to help make him a Knick next season. And wish him good luck for his next 'match', too.

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SABAL preseason held at Don Bosco School

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Gearing up for a summer of basketball? Well, a lot went down at the Don Bosco School in Tumkur (near Bangalore) last week, when Subhash Mahajan of the Sumpoorna grassroots basketball movement continued to involve young kids into basketball with a pre-season tournament of the Sumpoorna Annual Basketball League (SABAL) from 19-21 May.

Around 60 kids, under the age of 15, participated in the games, and they were divided into 12 teams to match the 12 seasons of a year - January to December... The kids were allowed to scrimmage during the first two days of the camp, and then were divided into well-balanced teams. Students from the Sumpoorna Basketball campus in Tumkur played alongside students of the Don Bosco School.

"It was nice to see that even the students who didn't have the basic knowledge of basketball learnt quickly from the others and subconsciously copied them," said Mahajan, "It became easy to get through rules and violations to them, like travel, illegal screens, or different kinds of fouls."

"We have good relationship with Don Bosco, and we want to make more relations with other schools around the region for more basketball," Mahajan added. "At Don Bosco, they lack coaches, and we wanted to embed our players and coaching with those players."

The full season of SABAL begins in about a month, the 26th of June. Mahajan is looking to glamourise the event by involving corporate sponsorships and to provide uniforms to the children.

"We are hoping to form a network of over a 100 schools by the end of the season."

The Sumpoorna Basketball School is a basketball movement in South India hoping to popularise basketball and teach basic skills to younger children. Mahajan, its founder, has always believed that the best way to make the game approachable for children (and parents) who are averse to sports and basketball specifically is to create a relaxed environment in the game.

Sumpoorna has been slowly growing in small, rural town of Tumkur over the past five years. Driven by a lifelong love of basketball, Mahajan has set up this basketball camp mostly for small town and village youth, which has grown over the years to have taught basketball basics to up to 6,000 youngsters around the rural area, and launched the Sumpoorna Basketball Tournament where dozens of small school and recreational teams compete against each other.

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