Hoopdarshan Episode 101: All Star and Midseason Musings with Ashwin Gopinath

The 2021 NBA All Stars have already been named, and of course, we have some thoughts to share. Hoopdarshan Episode 101 features co-hosts Kaushik Lakshman and Karan Madhok in conversation with Ashwin Gopinath, co-host of the Ball is Bae podcast, to discuss the names that made it, the names that didn't, and answer some questions about what have gotten right and wrong in the NBA season so far. Including the all important question: Who will be the last pick in the All Star draft? 

 In addition, Kaushik and Karan recap India's performance at the recent window of FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers, a two-game slate that included Vishesh Bhriguvanshi's epic "floating three-pointer" to give India a victory over Iraq. Plus, we check in with the most-recent Indian presence in the NBA's G-League, Princepal Singh. 

Hoopdarshan is the truest voice of Indian basketball, and since we're such hopeless fans of the game, it will become the voice of everything basketball related we love, from the NBA to international hoops, too. On every episode of Hoopdarshan, we will be inviting a special guest to interview or chat to about a variety of topics. With expert insight from some of the brightest and most-involved people in the world of Indian basketball, we hope to bring this conversation to a many more interested fans, players, and followers of the game.

Make sure to follow Hoopdarshan on Soundcloud or search for 'Hoopdarshan' on the iTunes Store! Auto-sync Hoopdarshan to your preferred podcast app NOW!

Hoopdarshan can be found on...

• - iTunes: Hoopdarshan 
• - Hoopdarshan on Soundcloud 
• - On Twitter: @Hoopdarshan 
• - Facebook.com/Hoopdarshan 

Hoopistani on... Basketball Babas!

I love the NBA Playoffs more than I love most things in my life.

Real life is filled with little daily challenges, like bargaining with the auto-wallah, or worrying about the elections, or making sure I don't crack my laptop's motherboard again. But the NBA world is the tonic for all the pains, and there is no better amrit for long life like the postseason.

And this time, thanks to the help of Nation of Sport, I was able to crank up my playoff-enthusiasm to the next level. Earlier this week, I joined the NoS YouTube programme 'Basketball Babas' - as the third 'Baba' alongside Jonathan Rego and Ashwin Gopinath - to sit down for nearly two hours and discuss the long road ahead for each team in both conferences. In this special two-part episode, we spoke about each of the eight first-round matchups, made our predictions for which teams will work their way to the Finals, and even imagined the best-case narratives for each of the 16 teams to possibly win the 2019 title.

So please watch, comment, shout, murmur, share... and enjoy the playoffs!

Part 1: Eastern Conference



Part 2: Western Conference