Three young Indians chosen for NBA's Basketball Without Borders Asia 2016 camp in Australia

Bringing together the best youth basketball talents in the Asia-Pacific region for an elite camp, the NBA's Basketball Without Borders (BWB) Asia 2016 camp is set to be held in Melbourne (Australia) from June 23-26. Three promising Indian players - Baladhaneshwar Poiyamozhi, Aashay Verma, and Sahil - have been chosen for the four-day camp, which will also feature numerous current and former NBA stars. The 2016 BWB Asia is being coordinated between the NBA, FIBA, and Australia's National Basketball League (NBL).

All three Indian players will be a part of the top 45 male players - born between 1999-2001 - selected from 17 countries for the training scheduled to be held at Dandenong Basketball Stadium in Melbourne.

In the Indian contingent, Poiyamozhi is clearly the most exciting prospect. The shooting guard from Tamil Nadu recently captained India's U18 squad as they won the South Asian Basketball championship in Bangladesh to qualify for the FIBA Asia U18 Championship. Poiyamozhi has been part of Tamil Nadu's back-to-back champion junior squad and was India's shining bright spark at the FIBA Asia U16 championship last year. Aashay Verma is a 7-foot-2 center from Hyderabad and Sahil represents Punjab. All the three were selected from various BWB camps conducted by the NBA-India across the country.

A large number of NBA players and legends - especially those with Australia connections - will be mentoring the young players at the camp, including Aron Baynes (Detroit Pistons, Australia), Dante Exum (Utah Jazz, Australia), Joe Ingles (Utah Jazz; Australia), Khris Middleton (Milwaukee Bucks, US), and Patty Mills (San Antonio Spurs, Australia). NBA legend David Robinson, his former Spurs teammate Bruce Bowen, and former All Star and Raptors' Assistant Coach Jerry Stackhouse will be coaching at the camp, too. President of the World Association of Basketball Coaches Patrick Hunt will serve as camp director.

Wiggins, Parker, & Embiid highlight NBA draft class for the ages

After becoming the number one pick, Andrew Wiggins has the potential of becoming a leader in the draft that we could one day look back at fondly for being one of the deepest ones in recent memory. Between Wiggins, Jabari Parker, Joel Embiid, Dante Exum, Aaron Gordon, Julius Randle, Marcus Smart, Noah Vonleh, and Dario Saric, I feel that there are many future stars coming out this year. And there are sure to be many more hidden jewels deeper into the picks, whose ultimate talent only time will reveal.

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Mocking All The Way: My 2014 NBA Mock Draft

Parker or Wiggins? Wiggins or Parker? The 2014 draft will bring another battle between the two young rivals, the questions around Joel Embiid, and one of the deepest drafts in recent years. As usual, this is an exciting time for NBA fans ready to welcome a truckload of new talent into the league. And to continue my annual tradition a few days before Draft Day, here is my official mock draft of the 2014 lottery picks, barring any trades that take place between now and then.

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USA win U19 FIBA World Basketball Championship for fifth time

The American basketball future - much like the American basketball present - is shining bright.

USA's under-19 Men's Basketball team defeated Serbia on Sunday night in Prague (Czech Republic) to lift the 2013 FIBA U19 World Championship for a record fifth time. No other team has won the tournament more than once. The USA used an impressive 13-1 run in the fourth quarter to sneak away to a 82-68 victory, thus ending the tournament undefeated.

It was Serbia's second consecutive silver medal at the tournament, after finishing as runners-up to Lithuania in 2011.

The Americans, who were dominated through the course of the tournament, were given some healthy competition for three quarters by a feisty Serbian side in the Final. Jovan Novak of Serbia was the game's leading scorer with 21 points, but the USA used a balanced attack, led by forward Montrezl Harrel (17) to slip away to victory.

USA's Aaron Gordon, who only had six points and six rebounds in the Final, was named the tournament's MVP for his efforts leading up to the Final game of the tournament. He was the finest amongst near-equals in a balanced USA team. Gordon, who is committed to the attend Arizona next season, is one of the brightest young American players and was named the MVP of the 2013 McDonald's High School All American game.

Defending champions Lithuania had to settle for the bronze medal after defeating Australia 106-100 in overtime earlier in the day. Lithuana were led by Tomas Dimsa (19) while Dante Exum (28) and Dane Pineau (20) led the way in a losing effort for the Aussies.

Earlier on the semi-finals, USA had destroyed Lithuania 100-60 in a balanced effort led by Marcus Smart. Nikola Jancovic scored 21 points to lead Serbia past Australia 63-58 in the other semi-final. Dante Exum had 20 for Australia.

Final Standings

1. USA
2. Serbia
3. Lithuania
4. Australia
5. Spain

All Tournament Team

• Jahlil Okafor (USA)
  
• Aaron Gordon (USA)
  
• Dario Saric (Croatia)
  
• Dante Exum (Australia)
  
• Vasilijie Micic (Serbia)