Ram Kumar: Hoopistani Indian Basketball Hall of Fame

Photo courtesy: Punjabbasketball.org

For some, basketball just flows in the genes, giving them a natural magnetism towards the game, a magnetism that could potentially become a reality with hard work and persistence. One of India's most-respected coaches and accomplished former players, Ram Kumar is one such individuals, carrying on his father's legacy with the game, winning the Dhyan Chand Award, and now, landing up in the Hoopistani Indian Basketball Hall of Fame.

Ram Kumar was born in Delhi in 1964, the son of basketball great and Arjuna Awardee Khushi Ram, who was added to the Hall of Fame last month. Kumar's own basketball career began in 1983, when he played his first Nationals in Calicut. He moved to Income Tax and then joined Indian Railways in the mid-80s, which became his professional home. Representing the Railways, Kumar - an extraordinary shooting-guard - won eight gold, three silver, and three bronze medals over the next decade and a half.

Ram represented India's national basketball team from 1991-1996, and served as the captain from 1991-1995. During his peak years, he stood out as India's top scorer at many international events, including the 1995 FIBA ABC in Seoul. He played in several international Railway Games, test matches in the USA, and more.

After his retirement from playing in 2003, Kumar was appointed the coach of Indian Railways basketball squad, whom he has since shepherded to many more honours. He has served as coach of India's junior basketball team and continues to be a part of India's national coaching system, contributing to the training and scouting of players hopeful of breaking into the senior teams. Kumar is currently working as a Senior Sports Officer at Rail Coach Factory at Kapurthala.

A highlight of Kumar's career was winning the Dhyan Chand Award in 2003 for lifetime contribution to sports, becoming one of only two Indian basketball players to receive this prestigious honour. Kumar was also handed the Maharana Pratap Award in 1989 and the Rail Minister Award in 1994. His illustrious family also included another former India basketball captain and his brother, Asok Kumar.

Click here for more of the Indian Basketball Hall of Fame.

Khushi Ram: Hoopistani Indian Basketball Hall of Fame

The man who was once called 'The Magician of Basketball in India' and 'The Scoring Machine of Asia', Khushi Ram is remembered as one of the country's best-ever players, and one of the top talents in Asia in his prime years. A former captain of India's national Men's team, Kumar was handed with the Arjuna Award in 1967. Today, he becomes the newest addition to the Hoopistani Indian Basketball Hall of Fame.

Ram was born in Jhamri village in Jhajjar district in Haryana in 1936. He made his debut as a youth player at the National Basketball Championship in 1952 representing the Armed Forces team. From a young age, he was known for his shooting ability - which helped him become an unstoppable scorer for the course of his career - and for his high IQ and sense of the game. The Armed Force team won India's National Basketball title 10 consecutive years, with Ram leading the helm several times as the tournament's best player. In 1969, he moved to Kota (Rajasthan) to join Shri Ram Rayons. He represented the state of Rajasthan for the next five years in National Basketball Championships.

Ram was an integral part of India's national team from 1964-72, and captained India in 1965 at their first ever appearance at the Asian Basketball Confederation Championship (now known as the FIBA Asia Championship) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. India finished 7th at the tournament. He was the highest scorer at the championship (the only Indian at the Senior Men's level to be the tournament's highest scorer). In the next two Asian Championships in Seoul (Korea) and Bangkok (Thailand), he was the tournament's second and third highest scorer respectively. Ram's fame was at its height in 1970, when he dominated at the 10th Anniversary Celebrations Championship in Manila and scoring 43 points (highest by an Indian in an international) against the hosts Philippines.

After retirement, he continued to be deeply involved in coaching at the state and school level until his death at age 77 in 2013. Ram was also the father of another Indian basketball legend, the Dhyan Chand Award Winner Ram Kumar, and of the late Asok Kumar. In 2015, Ram was immortalised with a statue in his village of Jhamri.

Click here for more of the Indian Basketball Hall of Fame.

Milestones in Indian Basketball (2015 Update!)

It's India's 69th Independence Day today, it's the day where we celebrate the anniversary of when that the fruits of the labours of our founding fathers - Gandhi, Nehru, Bose, Bhagat Singh, Azad, and so many more - came to realization. It's the day that India began its tryst with destiny.

Since 'Hoopistani' is the self-proclaimed holy-scripture of Indian Basketball, it is a must that this blog should celebrate Indian Independence Day in a special manner, too. Earlier this week, the Hoopdarshan podcast - hosted by myself and Kaushik Lakshman - released a special Independence Day episode, where we gave listeners a lesson in Indian basketball history, capturing its greatest moments and highest achievers. We also spoke to India's former Women's NT captain Prashanti Singh. The podcast was a retelling of an article I wrote on this blog over five years ago, listing the greatest milestones and individual award winners in Indian basketball.

Since then, history has come closer to fans of Indian hoops, with steady development in the sport racking up new milestones at an accelerating level. With the most current state of the game in mind, here is the 2015 update. Of course, with 85 years of hoops history in the country, not every major moment can be captured. These are the highest of the highlights; feel free to suggest any other major milestones that should be considered in the comments section below.

• circa 1930: This is when many people believe that basketball was first introduced in India, through the YMCA organizations. It's believed that Kapurthala in Punjab is where they first played the game.
  
• 1934: The first Indian National Championship for men is held in New Delhi.
  
• 1936: The Indian National Team (The Young Cagers) become a member of FIBA.
  
• 1950: The Basketball Federation of India (BFI) is formed.
  
• 1951: New Delhi hosts first-ever Asian games. India Men finishes fourth (out of five) in basketball tournament. Philippines wins.
  
• 1965: India appeared for its first International Basketball Championship in 1965. The India Captain, Khushi Ram was the second best scorer in the tournament
  
• 1975: The Men's National team finished fourth in the FIBA Asia Championship in Bangkok, the highest finish for India in the men's division.
  
• 1980: The Men's National team participated in the Moscow Olympics but finished last in the tournament.
  
• 1981: The FIBA Asia Championship was held in Calcutta, India finished fifth.
  
• 1982: New Delhi hosts Asian Games again, India Men finished 8th of 13, women 5 of 5.
  
• 2008: NBA begins to send operations officers and former stars to India to increase activity in the country.
  
• 2009: The FIBA Asia Championship for Women was held in Chennai, India finished 6th.
  
  
• 2010: BFI signs sponsorship deal with IMG Reliance, Satnam Singh sent to IMG Academy.
  
• 2011: Geethu Anna Jose tries out for Los Angeles Sparks, San Antonio Silver Stars, Chicago Sky.
  
• 2011: Former NBA coach Kenny Natt named head coach of India.
  
• 2011: NBA opens office in Mumbai.
  
• 2013: India Women win gold at 1st ever FIBA Asia 3x3 championship.
  
• 2013: India-born Vivek Ranadive becomes owner of an NBA team, Sacramento Kings.
  
• 2014: India's Men's team won gold Medal at Lusofonia Games in Goa.
  
• 2014: India's Men's team beat China at the FIBA Asia Cup in. Wuhan.
  
• 2015: Satnam Singh becomes first Indian drafted to the NBA (by the Dallas Mavericks).
  

Arjuna Award winners

• 1961: Sarabjit Singh
  
• 1967: Khushi Ram
  
• 1968: Gurdial Singh
  
• 1969: Hav. Hari Dutt
  
• 1970: Gulam Abbas Moontasir
  
• 1971: Man Mohan Singh
  
• 1973: SK Kataria
  
• 1974: AK Punj
  
• 1975: Hanuman Singh
  
• 1977-78: T. Vijayaragavan
  
• 1979-80: Om Prakash
  
• 1982: Ajmer Singh
  
• 1991: Radhey Shyam
  
• 1991: Suman Sharma
  
• 1999: Sajjan Singh Cheema
  
• 2001: Parminder Singh
  
• 2003: Satya (Sports)
  
• 2014: Geethu Anna Jose
  

Dhyan Chand Award winners

• 2002: Aparna Ghosh
  
• 2003: Ram Kumar
  

Indian basketball has come a long way from the time the first ball was bounced somewhere in the middle of Punjab to the same state producing India's first NBA draftee, 85 years later. Through the years, we have seen 17 players and two coaches receive Arjuna and Dhyan Chand honours respectively, played basketball in the Summer Olympics, hosted several major international basketball competitions, and shocked heavyweights China in a legendary victory. Despite its growth, the sport still feels like it is in its infancy in India; considering India's massive population and growing economic status of the middle class, we have sold much short of our true potential.

Hopefully, the future will be much brighter than the past. The Indian basketball family will be looking forward to a major professional basketball league, more young players following Satnam's footsteps into the NBA, and further international success by our national teams. For the present, however, let's celebrate our favourite sport in our favourite country and go out to shoot some hoops!

Indian basketball legend - the late Khushi Ram - immortalized with statue in Haryana village

During his prime, Khushi Ram always found a way atop the basketball score card, dominating Asian tournaments and rising above competitors from across the world as one of the finest Indian basketball players of his generation. As years passed, hindsight titled the man affectionately referred to as 'The Magician of Basketball' as one of the greatest Indians to ever play the game. And now, two years after his death (at 77), Ram's legacy has been immortalized forever.

Earlier this week, a statue of Khushi Ram was unveiled in his home village of Jhamri, in the Jhajjar district of Haryana. The marble statue was a first-of-its-kind to be given to honour a basketball player in India. A former captain of India's national Men's team, Kumar was handed with the Arjuna Award in 1967. His son Ram Kumar (also an Arjuna Awardee for basketball), former basketball legend Ajmer Singh, and many members of the Indian Basketball Players Association (IBPA) were among the many present to unveil this statue in Jhamri.

The 6-foot4 Ram was one of the leaders of an era when Indian basketball was on the rise. He was an integral part of India's national team from 1964-72, and captained India in 1965 at their first ever appearance at the Asian Basketball Confederation Championship (now known as the FIBA Asia Championship) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. India finished 7th at the tournament. He was the highest scorer at the championship (the only Indian at the Senior Men's level to be the tournament's highest scorer). In the next two Asian Championships in Seoul (Korea) and Bangkok (Thailand), he was the tournament's second and third highest scorer respectively.

Born in Jhamri on August 7, 1936. His interest for basketball began at age 14 when he joined the Delhi-based Army unit Rajputana Rifles as a Boy Recruit in 1950. He made his debut as a youth player at the National Basketball Championship in 1952 representing the Armed Forces team. From a young age, he was known for his shooting ability - which helped him become an unstoppable scorer for the course of his career - and for his high IQ and sense of the game.

Ram's fame was at its height in 1970, when he dominated at the 10th Anniversary Celebrations Championship in Manila and scoring 43 points (highest by an Indian in an international) against the hosts Philippines.

After retirement and even until his final years, Ram was coaching basketball to students at the Modern School in Kota.

The Indian Express' Shivani Naik wrote in further detail about the statue unveiling and Ram's past glories.

His son Ram Kumar, an Arjuna Award-winner just like him and a coach of equal repute with the Railways, believes that it was important to set down the legacy in stone. “I personally went to Jaipur and this was made by sculptors who specialize in marble work and took two months to complete,” he says. “India’s attention is on basketball and everyone’s looking ahead to developments in NBA. But we also need to honour our past, because Indian basketball has a rich history, and Khushi Ram was a legend,” he said.
A dozen boys trained by the doyen in his final years, also played an exhibition game, as his work continues in the little-known village. Jhamri promises to be a rare basketball nursery even as the rest of Haryana is swept by myriad other sports — hockey, volleyball, boxing and even cricket. “The villagers came out in huge numbers because they knew what this man did for Indian basketball. I can’t expect the whole country to know him but it was heartening that the whole village turned up at the unveiling by another towering legend Ajmer Singh (who was India’s highest scorer in the 1980 Olympics),” Ramkumar said.
The legend of Khushi Ram is incomplete without the tale of the Philippines coach. The tiny island country were the dominant nations of Asian basketball in the 60s. A Philippines coach had once declared after an invitational tournament where Khushi Ram finished as the MVP of Asia, the highest scorer in Asia and best centre of the meet: “Give us Khushi Ram, and we’ll conquer the world.” Asia’s most formidable side in 1970s had just been humbled by a spirited India, riding on Khushi Ram’s exploits at Manila, and the rival coach made more than the polite enquiry into whether it was possible to poach India’s tall-man for good, before the team returned home.

“I know basketball players get lost in sands of time and are forgotten. But the statue will keep the spirit of this game and what it means to several village ball players alive. Future Satnams (Dallas Mavericks pick Satnam Singh) are bound to come from villages,” Ram Kumar added.

As far as I know through Uncle Google, Jhamri, with a population of a little over 2,000 people, is barely indistinguishable from one hot, farming Haryana village to another. Khushi Ram may have been the village's most accomplished son, and now, Jhamri can become the part of a unique Indian basketball pilgrimage. Pilgrims of other religions travel hundreds or thousands or miles to pay respect to their saints or their Gods around the world; for those whose true faith is basketball in India, this little village with the statue of one of our greatest talents, may become a minor 'tirth stahl' of its own.

Indian Basketball Legend & Arjuna award winner Khushi Ram passes away

The man who was once called The Magician of Basketball in India, the legendary Khushi Ram, passed away at age 77 on December 29, 2013. Ram will go down in history as one of the India's greatest ever basketball players and - at his time - one of the top talents in all of Asia. A former captain of India's national Men's team, Kumar was handed with the Arjuna Award in 1967.

While we live in a time when basketball players in India rarely get the respect and admiration that the sport deserves, Ram was one of the leaders of an era when Indian basketball was on the rise. Ram was an integral part of India's national team from 1964-72, and captained India in 1965 at their first ever appearance at the Asian Basketball Confederation Championship (now known as the FIBA Asia Championship) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. India finished 7th at the tournament. He was the highest scorer at the championship (the only Indian at the Senior Men's level to be the tournament's highest scorer). In the next two Asian Championships in Seoul (Korea) and Bangkok (Thailand), he was the tournament's second and third highest scorer respectively.

Ram was also the father of another Indian basketball legend, the Dhyan Chand Award Winner Ram Kumar, and of the late Asok Kumar.

Ram was born in Jhamri village in Rohtak district in Haryana on August 7, 1936. His interest for basketball began at age 14 when he joined the Delhi-based Army unit Rajputana Rifles as a Boy Recruit in 1950. He made his debut as a youth player at the National Basketball Championship in 1952 representing the Armed Forces team. From a young age, he was known for his shooting ability - which helped him become an unstoppable scorer for the course of his career - and for his high IQ and sense of the game.

From 1958-68, Ram was associated with the Army. The Armed Force team won India's National Basketball title 10 consecutive years, with Ram leading the helm several times as the tournament's best player. In 1969, he moved to Kota (Rajasthan) to join Shri Ram Rayons. He represented the state of Rajasthan for the next five years in National Basketball Championships.

Ram's fame was at its height in 1970, when he dominated at the 10th Anniversary Celebrations Championship in Manila and scoring 43 points (highest by an Indian in an international) against the hosts Philippines.

After announcing his retirement he took over as the coach of Shri Ram Rayons Basketball team in 1976 and also coached Rajasthan's Basketball team for many years. Under his helm, Shri Ram Rayons became one of the best teams in India and won many All India tournaments.

Even until his final years, Ram was coaching basketball to students at the Modern School in Kota.

We wave goodbye to a pioneer of Indian Basketball, one of the greats to have paved the way for the path that all of today's players now follow. Ram received a lot of tributes for his achievements in his lifetime, but the most lasting tribute to his memory would be a concentrated effort by the basketball fraternity in the country to help India reach it's old glories again, and perhaps even shoot for a higher level than ever before.

Indian Railways complete a three-peat double of National Basketball Championship

Indian Railways stamped their mark over Indian Basketball as they completed three-years of double victory of both the Men’s and the Women’s squads at the 61st IMG-Reliance National Basketball Championship for Men and Women at the Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi on Tuesday, January 4, 2011.

For the ninth straight year, the Women’s final of the National Basketball Championship was held between budding rivals Indian Railways and Delhi. And for the eight straight year, Indian Railways upheld their dominance in the rivalry and over Women’s basketball in India by destroying Delhi 95-55. Indian Railways have won 23 of the last 25 National Championships, and once again, this was their year in the tournament.

It was more of the same in the Men’s Final, as Indian Railways muscled their way towards a gritty victory against their rivals, Services. This was the third straight National Basketball Championship title for the Railways Men.

After eight days of excitement, from December 28th – January 4th, at the Talkatora Stadium and the Modern School in Barakhamba, the finals of the championship were a showcase event. In the Women’s game, Delhi were no match for Railways’ devastating duo of Geethu Anna Jose (29 points) and Anju (23), as they were blown out by 40 points. Prashanti Singh and Raspreet Sidhu scored 18 and 16 points respectively for the hosts.

In the Men’s game, youngster Arjun Singh caught fire to lead Indian Railways a victory over Services, 74-62. Arjun had 27 points, whereas Jay Ram Jat scored 25 points in a losing effort for the Services side.

In the third place match-ups, Tamil Nadu Women edged out Chhattisgarh in a close encounter, 55-51, behind 18 points apiece by S Kokila and Apoorva Murali Nath. In the Men’s game, Punjab’s superstar Jagdeep Singh found his groove to score 33 points as Punjab beat Kerala 89-67. Amjyot Singh added 16 points for Punjab as they sealed third place. Basil Philip was the top man for Kerala in the match, adding 26 points.

Harish Sharma, the Secretary-General of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) expressed his satisfaction towards a successful tournament. “Thanks to the help of our sponsors, IMG-Reliance, this was the biggest national championship to date. The play on the court didn’t disappoint and it’s obvious for us to see that basketball is growing at an acceleration pace in India. Once again, I would like to thank and congratulate all the participating teams, coaches, managers, support staff, and fans who have helped make this a memorable championship.”

“2010 was a big year for Indian basketball and I’m hoping that 2011 will be even better!” Sharma added.

BFI’s president RS Gill was the honorable guest to present the awards to the winning teams, along with Arjuna Award winner and Indian Basketball legend Mr. Khushi Ram. Both the winning teams received a cash prize of Rs. 1.5 lakhs each. Runners-up were rewarded Rs. 1 lakh each and third-place winners were rewarded Rs. 50,000 each.

Scores

Women’s Final: Indian Railways 95 (Geethu Anna Jose 29, Anju 23) bt. Delhi 55 (Prashanti Singh 18, Raspreet Sidhu 16).

Men’s Final: Indian Railways 74 (Arjun Singh 27, Gagan Deep Singh 13) bt. Services 62 (Jay Ram Jat 25, Dalip Kumar 14).

Women’s Third-Place Match: Tamil Nadu 55 (S Kokila 18, Apoorva Murali Nath 16) bt. Chhattisgarh 51.

Men’s Third-Place Match: Punjab 89 (Jagdeep Singh 33, Amjyot Singh 16) bt. Kerala 67 (Basil Philip 26, Jomon Jose 13).

Final Standings

Women

Indian Railways
Delhi
Tamil Nadu
Chhattisgarh
Maharashtra
Kerala
Andhra Pradesh
Punjab
Madhya Pradesh
Rajasthan

Men

Indian Railways
Services
Punjab
Kerala
Tamil Nadu
Uttarakhand
Chhattisgarh
Andhra Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Delhi