Bollywood Showtime: Indian celebrities love the Lakers

If you woke up last night and decided to become an NBA fan, you would be living in a world where Anthony Davis and Marreese Speights were the two best players in the league, the Raptors were the favourites to win the Eastern Conference, and the Lakers were that weird '40-40-40' team (Kobe shoots 40, scores 40, loses by 40). Little would you know that the team in purple-and-gold from Los Angeles are actually one of the most successful franchises in NBA history, winning 16 championships and featuring about half of the NBA's greatest-ever. Five of those championships were collected over the past decade and a half - all partly credited to a certain Kobe Bryant - conveniently during an era when the internet made the world a much smaller place and brought the NBA closer to the Indian fan than ever more.

No surprise then that the Lakers - who already carried with them the legacies of Mikan, West, Chamberlain, Kareem, Magic, and Worthy - are one of the most popular NBA teams worldwide, including in India, of course. So while the likes of LeBron, Durant, and a certain consistently successful Spurs team have ruled the NBA stratosphere over the past few years, Kobe and the Lakers are still kings across the pond in India.

Now, as the NBA expands its outreach in India, it is looking to hook new fans towards the game by using India's most popular bait: Bollywood. Film stars - both superstars and those on the fringes - and the NBA have a neat mutually-beneficial relationship to help each others' visibility. A couple of reoccurring popular names have been cropping up at NBA events in India around the country in recent years, And seeing the photos from these events have brought me to the scientific conclusion that Indian celebrities love the Lakers. Or, Indian celebrities 'love' the Lakers.

One of the common NBA India partners is actress Neetu Chandra (or Neetu Chandraa as her numerologist may have suggested), a long-time supporter of basketball in India as a former Maharashtra player herself. Chandra has a little niche as Taekwondo black-belt holder and basketball fan. She's a regular at the Indian basketball All Star games in Mumbai and now, a regular celebrity attraction at NBA Jam events around several Indian cities. She likes Kobe.

Rannvijay Singh is that guy who was really mean to everyone on MTV Roadies. Now, he's acted in a few Bollywood films and is going to be an army hero for a TV show called Pukaar. He's also an NBA fan apparently who shockingly loves the Lakers and Kobe. NBA India has invited him to several of their events in recent months, including a showcase with former 3x NBA champ Bruce Bowen (where he wore a Lakers T-Shirt, sorry Spurs fans) and of course, NBA Jam. He likes Kobe.

Abhishek Bachchan is a pretty big star right? Amitabh's son, Guru, all the Dhooms, Dostana, Sarkar, Dostana, Happy New Year etc etc etc. Well, did you know that he loves the Lakers? No, he really does, and he's loved them for a while. Since Magic, we hear. He's been to NBA All Games, Lakers games, etc. He was also chosen by Jabong and NBA India to be the celebrity endorser at the NBA's India store launch in Mumbai, where he showed up in a Lakers # 1 jersey (and I thought it was a tribute to Kobe's greatest ever teammate, Smush Parker).

Before Ranbir Kapoor became 'Rockstar', I knew him mostly for the fact that he was once India's second Knicks fan - after me. Well, Ranbir seems to have quit on his roots and joined the purp-and-yellow side, too. He was at a Lakers game in New York a few years ago, and ended up hanging out with Kobe, getting his sneakers, and rooting for the Lakers.

Models/actors Dino Morea and Lara Dutta were a little ahead of the curve of Bollywooders jumping on the NBA bandwagon, but not many people cared back then. The two got VIP access to the Lakers in Los Angeles, hung out with Kobe, came home with a couple of Lakers jerseys, and saw some NBA hoops. It might blow your mind to hear that they like the Lakers too.

But don't fear, Kobe/Laker haters in India. You'll always have Neha Dhupia, who made sure to order a LeBron Heat jersey online from NBAStore.in the first chance she got. Is she going to burn it now that he's gone back to Cleveland or join the bandwagon? I predict door number two.

And then there's this... I have no idea where the photograph is from and when it was taken. But it's only India's greatest-ever sportsman Sachin Tendulkar chilling in a Chicago Bulls hat. Considering Tendulkar's younger look here and the quality of this photograph, I'm gonna guess that this was sometime in the 90s, around the same time that the greatest-ever basketball player - Mr Michael Jordan - was turning the Bulls into a worldwide institution. Now if only we could get Jordan and Tendulkar in the same shot for a meeting of the Gods. It's gonna be like when Thor meets Superman.

No matter how depressing that 3-13 record looks to Lakers fans right now, at least they can take some relief in the fact that Bollywood still believes in them. That's gotta count for something right? For the haters, just wait another decade when the young kids from today become the stars of tomorrow and make LeBron fashionable in India just in time for his 40th birthday.

Damien Wilkins to join Crossover Basketball Academy's programme in India this July

Nine-year NBA veteran Damien Wilkins will be coming to India in July to be a part of this season's 'Hoops Creating Hope' programme by the Crossover Basketball and Scholars Academy. Crossver will hold the 2014 edition of their programme in Chennai from July 7-18 this year and Wilkins will be a part of their faculty.

Wilkins played the majority of his NBA career in the Seattle Supersonics/Oklahoma City Thunder, before playing short stints with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks, Detroit Pistons, and the Philadelphia 76ers. He last played professional basketball briefly in China with the Beijing Ducks last year. Wilkins has NBA career averages of 6.3 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 19.3 minutes per game, and enjoyed his best season in 2007-08 with the Sonics averaging a career high 9.2 ppg.

"It is a pleasure to travel to India this year to collaborate with Crossover; I am excited, and looking forward to having a positive impact!” said Wilkins. “Basketball has always been an important part of my life, it is the vehicle I used to get my education and more importantly promote the importance of academics."

Crossover's Hoops Creating Hope is a two-week programme for students in Chennai create and develop the link between leadership, character, teamwork, and communication with academic success and future goals using basketball as the medium for education and change. This year, Crossover will host a Sport in Education Conference on July 12 at The American International School in Chennai. Thought leaders, student voices, coaches, and educators from the US and India will discuss the positive role sport can play in a students overall education.

Wilkins will join a faculty that includes Crossover founder Shaun Jayachandran, WSN247 co-founder Carie Small, Phillips Academy cluster dean Raj Mundra, Harvard University basketball junior Jonah Travis, and Emory women’s basketball players Lauren Ball and freshman Maggie Brown. Additionally, Varun Ram - the Indian-origin player for the University of Maryland - has also confirmed his attendance. And Indian actress/model/basketball enthusiast mentioned that she'll visit the programme as well.

Wilkins comes from a family of great basketball heritage. He is the son of 13-year NBA veteran Gerald Wilkins and nephew of Basketball Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins (who came to India for the NBA's Basketball Without Borders programme in 2008).

In Mumbai, a battle to save the Andheri YMCA basketball court

It seems that the days are numbered for the famous Andheri YMCA basketball court. Back in April this year, the YMCA announced a plan to replace the basketball court with a swimming pool. Although the YMCA has clarified that the court’s shutdown will only be temporary and it will return – new and improved – when the YMCA area has been refurbished, many regular players are skeptical and fear that their daily dose of hoops could be lost forever.

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Indian All Stars sparkle Mumbai with two electrifying games

The best basketball players in India came out to put up an extraordinary display of skill, athletic ability, and hoops intelligence at the Mastan YMCA court in Nagpada, Mumbai on Saturday, April 9 at the Indian All Star Games. The finest Indian men and women players, from all across the country, were invited to play in these exhibition matches that produced plenty of thrills and a few dominating performances.

For both the games, the players were divided into two teams each, WEST and EAST. The toast of the night was definitely Geethu Anna Jose, India’s biggest basketball star, who has recently been invited to tryout with several teams in the US-based basketball league, the WNBA. On Saturday, Geethu was at her dominant best, scoring 41 points in the Women’s All Star Game to lead the Team WEST to a 77-74 victory over Team EAST. In the Men’s game, Team EAST won 95-82.

The first-of-its-kind event in India was organised by Ibrahim Lakdawala of Lakdawala Developer PVT. LTD.

In the Women’s game, WEST took an early lead behind Geethu’s unstoppable inside play and support from Indian woman’s captain, Prashanti Singh (21), but sharp-shooting by Delhi’s Raspreet Sidhu (21) kept the EAST close in the game. With WEST holding on to a comfortable eight point lead at the beginning of the last period, EAST began to mount a comeback with a flurry of three-pointers by Bharti Netam, Anju Lakra, and Manisha Dange. But it wasn’t enough and the WEST held on for the three-point victory.

Hindi film actress Neetu Chandra was an added attraction for the fans present, as she displayed her own hoop skills as part of the Women’s EAST team. Chandra, who has been an active basketball player, has been participating in regularly in basketball events at the Mastan YMCA.

The Men’s game featured some exciting and athletic play, sharp passes, and fancy lay-ups by some of India’s finest. The EAST side made it a point to be dominant from the very beginning, leading 42-33 at the half and sustaining their strong play for the rest of the game, too. Trideep Rai (21) and Yadwinder Singh (18) did most of the damage from the EAST team, while Jagdeep Singh Bains scored a game-high 22 for WEST. In the end, EAST ran away to a 95-82 victory.

Awards

WINNERS – Women’s WEST & Men’s EAST: Awarded with Rs. 40,000 each.
RUNNERS-UP – Women’s EAST & Men’s WEST: Awarded with Rs. 25,000 each.
Most Valuable Player (MVP) – Geethu Anna Jose (Women’s WEST)
Best Player Awards – Prashanti Singh (Women’s WEST), Raspreet Sidhu (Women’s EAST), & Jagdeep Singh Bains (Men’s WEST).

Several awards were handed out to the outstanding players of the game, including BlackBerry phones, Laptops, travel bags, Grinder Mixer, and cash.

The All Star Weekend’s first day was Friday, April 8th when the gathered crowd witnessed a Men’s and Women’s 3-point shooting competition, won by Vishesh Bhriguvanshi and Akansha Singh respectively, and a Men’s Slam Dunk contest, where Bhriguvanshi and TJ Sahi were named joint winners.

Central Railway win Andheri Basketball Carnival

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After 11 days of thrilling hoops action, the Andheri Invitational Tournament concluded on Sunday the 1st of May with the Central Railway team beating Maharashtra State Police 75-61 in the final game, which was held at the Andheri YMCA court. Sharp-shooter Amit Gahlot led Central Railway with 34 points in the final. The most valuable player of the tournament award was shared by Gahlot and Mahesh Nagne of MS Police.

Central Railway won the prize money of 25,000 rupees while the runners-up MS Police got Rs. 15,000.

Competitions were held in four categories: Men, Boys U-18, Girls U-13, and Boys U-13. The final results were:
Boys U-18: Mastan YMCA beat Indian Gymkhana 66-56
Girls U-13: Vidya Niketan Dombivli beat St. Anthony, Chembur 25-14
Boys U-13: Mastan YMCA beat Ghatkopar YMCA 35-15

Another highlight of the final day of the tournament was the Master's Basketball Match, which featured celebrities, coaches, and Indian basketball legends in our own Indian watered-out but super-competitive version of an All Star Game. The game was held on May 1st, and featured some of the best former basketball talents in the country in the two teams, which were creatively named The Greens and The Blues.

The game ended in a 41-41 draw at the end of full time, but instead of an overtime period, there was a surprisingly wierd, penalty shoot-out style, free throw shoot-out, which also ended 2-2. So the game was declared a tie. A tie. In Basketball. Ya, I know...

The Greens, led by Abbas Moontasir, and served well by Clarence Menezes, Jayasankar Menon, Riyaz Ahmed, Bollywood actor Neetu Chandra, Troy Justice, director of development, NBA-India, and Crispino D’Souza, seemed to be running away from the match from the Blues, before Abdul Hamid, Rajesh Srivastava, Haneef Patel and Manoj Tripathi got into the act to make a late surge and level scores at 41-41 at the end of full time.
After a free throw shoot out between the two captains Moontasir and Ghulam Rasool also ended in a 2-2 tie at the end of three throws the match was declared a tie.

All scorers were led by Bollwood star, hoops enthusiast, Taikwondo black belt, and overall superhot chick Neetu Chandra, who scored 15 points. Basketball in India has never looked better.

Congrats Central Railway, and to all the participants of this basketball carnival.

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