NBA Global Academy wins 3rd NBA Academy Games in Atlanta; Team India finishes 1-5

For the past few years, the NBA has significantly shifted its focus on the future on basketball, on finding and developing elite-level youth talent from across the world with their network of international academies. Every year, these academies come together for a battle royale, pitting the best against the best. This year, the 3rd NBA Academy Games were held in Atlanta, for the first time in USA soil, and the result was a repeat of last year: the top team of the tournament was once again the NBA Global Academy - based in Canberra (Australia) - who took the title with a final win against World Select Blue on Sunday.

The 2019 NBA Academy Games were held at the Emory Sports Medical Complex in Atlanta, featuring eight Academy teams from around the world: World Select Red, NBA Global Academy, TSF, NBA Academy China, NBA Academy Africa, NBA Academy India, NBA Academy Latin America, and World Select Blue. The tournament held from July 9-14, with the final and third-place games held on Sunday, the 14th of July.

NBA Global Academy cruised to a victory in the final against World Select Blue, 97-73. NBA Global Academy took the first quarter 28-16. Despite World Select Blue taking the third quarter 25-19, NBA Global Academy easily won all other quarters to secure the win. Uruguay's Santiago Vannet was the leader for the Global Academy with 20 points and 5 assists in the win, while Australian Blake Jones added 18. NBA Global Academy also featured India's standout prospect Princepal Singh on their roster. For World Select Blue, Samuel Mennenga was the top scorer with a game-high 27 in the loss.

Featuring the likes of Amaan Sandhu, Harshwardhan Tomar, and Pranav Prince, the NBA Academy India finished the tournament with a 1-5 record, at 7th place out of the 8 participating teams. Former India's national team head coach and the current technical director of the Academy in Greater Noida, Scott Flemming was the head coach of this team. They lost their first five games to World Select Blue, NBA Academy Latin America, NBA Academy Africa, NBA Global Academy, and, in the knockout stage, a second time to NBA Academy Africa. But they picked up an important consolation victory over NBA Academy China in their last game.

NBA Academy India results from 3rd NBA Academy Games

• World Select Blue 87-43 NBA Academy India
• NBA Academy Latin America 84-49 NBA Academy India
• NBA Academy Africa 66-27 NBA Academy India
• NBA Global Academy 94-38 NBA Academy India
• NBA Academy Africa 59-35 NBA Academy India
• NBA Academy India 65-61 NBA Academy China

The top performer for Team India at this tournament was Amaan Sandhu - 'Big Baby Punjab' - who finished the tournament averaging 10.67 points and 7.7 rebounds per contest.

India's youth boys' squad sets off for FIBA U16 Asian Championship in Foshan, China

The U16 level is the youngest official stage of international basketball competition. For teenage basketball stars in India that hope to become future leaders of the game, it's their first chance to wear the team's national jersey, to travel for a major event abroad, to give a preview of their potential.

Unfortunately, for many of India's next generation their dream FIBA champsionship debut was delayed. FIBA's official event for the continent's youth boys' squads - the 2017 FIBA U16 Asian Championship - was postponed from its original scheduled dates in Fall 2017.

Now, the long-delayed opportunity finally presents itself. The 2017 FIBA U16 Asian Championship is set to be held in Foshan, China, from April 2-8, 2018. India is among the 13 squads taking part in this tournament, a fray of teams that includes hosts China, reigning champions Korea, the 2015 silver-medallists Chinese Taipei, and competitive new additions from Oceania: Australia and New Zealand. The tournament will serve as Asia's qualifier for the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018 in Argentina.

India will be hoping to overturn the disappointments of the 2015 U16 FIBA Asia tournament in Jakarta, where the squad finished with a 3-5 record and dropped to 13th place among the 15 participating teams.

This year's squad will be led by a couple of young players who have already started to make a name for themselves in Indian hoop circles, including the captain Harshwardhan Tomar and big man Prince Pal Singh. Both these players played a prominent role in helping India win the 2017 U16 South Asia Basketball Championship in Nepal. Prince Pal, who plays for the NBA Academy India, was named the MVP of that tournament and has also been part of the NBA/FIBA's Global Basketball Without Borders camp during this year's NBA All Star Weekend. Tomar was notably a young prospect at the Stellazzurra Academy for basketball in Italy. Another player to watch in Indian colours is Priyanshu, who showed some great potential at the championship in Nepal last year.

The squad will be led once again by head coach Vibhor Bhriguvanshi, who helped deliver the dominant 2017 South Asia Championship triumph.

2017 FIBA U16 Championship Groupings

• Group A: China, New Zealand, Hong Kong.
• Group B: Australia, Philippines, Malaysia.
• Group A: Iran, Chinese Taipei, Macau.
• Group A: Korea, Japan, Lebanon, India.

India's roster for 2017 FIBA U16 Championship

• Prashant Tomar
• Jerome Prince
• Rajveer Singh Bhati
• Nitish Beniwal
• Vigneshwar Upadhyay
• Manikanta Manuri
• Divyaraj Singh Rathore
• Harshwardhan Tomar
- Captain
• Priyanshu
• Prince Pal Singh
• Ajmer
• Head Coach: Vibhor Bhriguvanshi
• Assistant Coach: Babu Davis
• Manager: Ajeet Singh Rathore

India's preliminary round schedule - all timings IST

• April 2 - India vs. Korea - 5:30 PM
• April 3 - Japan vs. India - 3:30 PM
• April 4 - India vs. Lebanon - 12:30 PM

FIBA will stream all the games in this championship LIVE across their social media channels.

"We are proud of your achievements so far and expect a lot more from you in the coming days," said K. Govindraj, the president of the Basketball Federation of India, to the young players. "It as an incredible achievement to represent the country at such a young age but we hope that all of you keep on learning and improving so that in future we can see you representing the Senior team as well. I wish you all the best and hope that you make the country proud."

India are in a difficult group, the only group of four, and will surely struggle in their first two matchups against the faster and more athletic Korea and Japan. India's best opportunity for a victory might be against Lebanon, and if they can pull it off, they will move on to the playoffs stage. Regardless of result, this tournament will provide a good chance for India's young players to show their standings against others of their age group in Asia, and hopefully can some experience and confidence for future events.

India crowned youth South Asian Basketball Champions & qualify for 2017 FIBA Asia U16 Championship

With clinical brilliance, India's under-16 men's squad made no mistake as they blew past their opponents to win the 2nd South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Championship in Kathmandu, Nepal, held from September 5-9. The triumph helped India showcase several of the country's exciting new basketball talents and secured the team's qualification for the larger challenge ahead: The FIBA Asia U16 Championship.

Held at Kathmandu's Dashrath Rangshala Stadium, the tournament was organised by the Nepal Basketball Association and included hosts Nepal, India, Maldives, Bangladesh, and Bhutan. India sent out a strong 12-man roster, coached by Vibhor Bhriguvanshi, of young players out of whom many had recently impressed at the Youth National championship in July.

India started the tournament in the most dominant fashion possible, demolishing the Maldives squad 152-17. India led 67-9 at halftime, went on a 49-2 run in the third quarter, and finished off the game with a 135 point victory. Rising stars Prince Pal Singh (31), Harshwardhan Tomar (20), and Binod Rajak (20) all contributed in this unreal scoreline.

India continued their hot streak on Day 2 against Bangladesh. Four Indian players scored in double-digits, led by Priyanshu's 32, in a comfortable 83-64 win. This was India's closest-margin of victory, and Bangladesh showed real life in the first half, but the Indian continent proved to be too strong after the break.

India faced hosts Nepal next, and were unstoppable once again, mostly because Nepal had no answer for the post-dominance of 6-foot-8 center Prince Pal Singh. Prince Pal dropped 45 points on the day to help India to a 106-39 victory. Abhisekh Singh scored 20 for Nepal in the loss.

On Saturday, India put on the finishing touches to their campaign, blowing past Bhutan to a 131-50 victory. Seven Indians scored in double digits include Prince Pal (20), Rajak (20), and Prashant Tomar (16).

Prince Pal Singh, one of the rising stars in Indian basketball, was named the tournament's MVP. India won every game by an average margin of over 75 points each. Players like Binod Rajak and Priyanshu also showed their potential. While Varanasi-born coach Vibhor Bhriguvanshi - elder brother of national team star Vishesh Bhriguvanshi - will be overjoyed with his first major international coaching experience.

India will now prepare for the FIBA Asia U16 Championship, set to be held in Malaysia later this year. Korea won the 2015 edition of this tournament in Indonesia, while India dropped to 13th place.

Team India heads to Nepal for 2nd South Asia U16 Basketball Championship

This week, the youngest players to sport an Indian national basketball jersey will get their first opportunity to represent the country at the international stage. The 2nd U16 South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Basketball Championship will be held in Kathmandu, Nepal, from September 5-9, 2017. India will be among five teams from the South Asian region to take part in this tournament, which will serve as a qualifier for the upcoming FIBA Asia U16 Championship later this year.

Organised by the Nepal Basketball Association, the tournament will feature hosts Nepal, India, Maldives, Bangladesh, and Bhutan. Sri Lanka withdrew from participation before the beginning of the tournament, so instead of a group stage followed by knockouts, the entire tournament will be held in round robin formats for the five teams, and the top finishing team will be declared champion. India will start as favourites, even though we did not participate in the previous (2015) edition of this tournament.

Recent youth standouts and big man duo of Punjab's Prince Pal Singh and Madhya Pradesh's Harshwardhan Tomar are likely to be India's leading performers at this event. India will be coached Vibhor Bhriguvanshi, the experienced coach of the Uttar Pradesh and Varanasi teams. He will be assisted by Babu Davis and accompanied to Nepal with manager Kulvinder Gill.

Team India for 2nd SABA U16 Championship

• Prince Pal Singh
• Binod Rajak
• Harshwardhan Tomar
• Mani Thakur
• Ajmer Singh
• Gaurav Sheoran
• Priyanshu
• Jerom Prince George
• Prashant Tomar
• Nitish Beniwal
• Vigneshwar Upadhyay
• Rajveer Singh Bhati
• Head Coach: Vibhor Bhriguvanshi
• Assistant Coach: Babu Davis
• Manager: Kulwinder Gill

India's Schedule for the 2nd SABA U16 Championship - all timings IST

• September 5 - India vs. Maldives - 1:15 PM
• September 6 - Bangladesh vs. India - 12:45 PM
• September 8 - Nepal vs. India - 1:15 PM
• September 9 - India vs. Bhutan - 10:45 AM

The FIBA Asia U16 Championship will be held in Malaysia later this year. Korea won the 2015 edition of this tournament in Indonesia, while India dropped to 13th place.

Basketball takes Punjabi youngster Prince Pal Singh from humble beginnings to a $75,000 scholarship to train in USA

Fresh out of the heart of Punjab, another unlikely desi hoop dream is coming true.

Prince Pal Singh (15), the son of an electrician from Gurdaspur, was chosen for a three-year scholarship worth $75,000 (Rs. 50 lakh) to train and go to school at the Spire Institute in Geneva, Ohio, USA. The athletic youngster, already standing at 6-foot-7, was picked by FIBA agent Dermot Russell after he stood out from a field of 450 14 to 19-year olds at open trials conducted at the Delhi Public School in Rajnandgaon (Chattisgarh). The four-day trials - the first of its kind - was conducted by the Players1st Sports Managment in association with the Sports Authority of India (SAI) centre and School Games Federation of India (SGFI).

Like many of India's supremely talented players to come out of Punjab, Prince honed his game over the last year at the famed Ludhiana Basketball Academy (LBA). His scholarship at the Spire Institute is set to last from July 2016 to September 2019.

Aside from Prince, 14 more players will be awarded full scholarships across various academies in European countries following the Rajnandgaon trials.

Prince's success story is eerily similar to that of Satnam Singh, who bounced from a tiny Indian village (Ballo Ke) to the LBA, and then, six years ago, was given a basketball scholarship by IMG Academy at age 14. Last year, made history by becoming the first Indian to be drafted into the NBA.

"My prediction is that he could potentially been a NBA draft pick should he seize the opportunity he is currently been given," Dermot Russell, the FIBA agent, told SportsKeeda, "For Prince, the hard work starts now."

Unsurprisingly, Satnam is Prince's role model. "I wish to become like Satnam," the young prospect told Times of India's Amit Sampat in an extensive story and interview.

More from Sampat's comprehensive Times of India piece:

Recruitment and development consultant of North Atlantic Basketball Academy, Dermot Russell, who is also a certified Fiba agent, was invited by SAI coach Rajeshwar Rao Kalva to conduct selection trials for young Indian players in Rajnandgaon...
Having picked Prince ahead of a handful of national campers and other experienced players, Russell explained, "The level of athleticism that Prince has standing 6-foot-7 at 15 years impressed me the most. Similarly scouts at the Spire academy felt that he is likely to reach 7-foot plus and with the world class training in US, Prince is likely to get signed for a top 25 NCAA programme in three years." At the Ludhiana Academy, Prince is being trained by Devinder Dhindsa.

With Prince becoming the first school kid to get an American scholarship, Russell has identified 14 more Indian prospects from the recently held trials to work within his consultancy's development pathway.
Much like Prince, all these 14 players will be awarded full scholarships across various academies in European countries. Of the 450 players who took part in the trials, Russell also identified 82 cagers who would be given international scholarship opportunities. All these players, however, have been divided in different categories and are being offered part scholarships.

This is fantastic news for Prince and for the other 14 youngsters who have been selected. In the coming days, I'm sure we'll learn more about all of them and their destinations. Eventually, their improvements and accomplishments will not only help popularise basketball but also help the players achieve academic and other life goals.

India has no shortage of basketball talent waiting to be discovered, and open trials with well-connected coaches and agents like the one in Rajnandgaon is a good way of bringing attention to some of that talent. I have already given Satnam the moniker of 'King Singh'. Hopefully, the Prince of Basketball Singhs won't be too far behind.