Indian official Naresh Aneja nominated by FIBA for Rio Olympics Basketball Event

Despite our far-fetched dreams, India's basketball teams won't be playing in the Olympics anytime soon. But the good news is that there will certainly be a major Indian presence at basketball biggest international stage in Rio de Janeiro next month.

Naresh Aneja, one of the most respected basketball referees and commissioners in India and worldwide, has been nominated by FIBA (the world's governing body for basketball) to be one of eight jury members who will represent FIBA at the Rio Olympics 2016 in Brazil, announced the Basketball Federation of India (BFI). The duties of a jury member will be to supervise officials and to provide oversight to officiating and refereeing.

The composition of the jury pool is as follows: 2 from FIBA, 2 from Europe, 1 from Asia, 1 from Oceania, 1 from Africa and 1 from the Americas.

“This is a big honor for me,” said Aneja. “I hope I can meet the expectations that FIBA has for this event.”

This is the third prominent time that an Olympic basketball event will see Indian participation. The Indian men’s team had participated in the 1980 Moscow Olympics and three decades later, Snehal Bendke was a woman’s referee at the 2012 London Olympics.

Aneja is a basketball veteran who played for Delhi for 14 years and was selected for the All-Star Junior Indian Team. He has been awarded 2 medals by the President of India: The President’s Medal for Meritorious Services and the prestigious President’s Medal for Distinguished Services.

His career in officiating began in 1978. He has refereed at 14 national finals. In 1998, he took the International FIBA Referee Test and then went on to be a referee at senior men’s, women’s, U-18 and U-16 men’s games. Due to a 50-year cap on the age of active refereeing by FIBA, he undertook the FIBA Commissioner Exam, and went on to provide his expertise at the Asian Games and the FIBA Asia Championships. He has played a role in 3 Asian Games, 3 World Junior Championships and various Asian Championships. Aneja has also been asked by FIBA Asia to conduct referee clinics at various countries and has also been nominated to be a referee supervisor in the FIBA Asia Men’s, Women’s and Junior Championships.

India at Changsha: Complete Team India roster, schedule, and preview for 2015 FIBA Asia Basketball Championship

In less than three days, a referee on center-court will lob up a basketball, one of the two giant men contesting for it will win the lob and tab it back to his teammate, and the biggest basketball tournament in Asia will officially tip off. The continent's best teams, from 16 nations, will descend to the city of Changsha in China's Hunan province in hopes of being crowned Asia's best and qualifying for the basketball tournament at the Rio Olympics next year.

The 2015 FIBA Asia Basketball Championship (2015 FIBA ABC) will be held at Changsha Social Work College's gymnasium and Central South University of Forestry and Technology's gymnasium from Wednesday September 23, with the final scheduled for October 3. The winner of the tournament qualifies for the basketball tournament on the 2016 Summer Olympics, while the next three best teams will participate at the 2016 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men. India is among the 16 teams heading to Changsha for the tournament, and will begin their campaign in Group A, along with reigning champions Iran.

Two years ago, at the 2013 FIBA ABC in Manila, Iran declared their supremacy over the continent by winning the gold medal, defeating the hosts Philippines in the final clash. Iran and the Philippines will once again be two of the favourites vying for the title in Changsha this year, while the big boys from China and the rising threats from Jordan or Chinese Taipei could give a few contenders the run for their money, too. India finished 11th at Manila under the tutelage of the then newly-appointment coach Scott Flemming. Two years later, facing domestic turmoil that has hampered their preparation, India is sending several new faces to the FIBA ABC - including a new coach - with hopes of bettering their standing in the continent.

The current India team is led by head coach Sat Prakash, a former player and former coach of India's Women's national squad. Veteran guard Vishesh Bhriguvanshi will return to the squad after missing out on the qualifiers as captain. Amrit Pal Singh and Amjyot Singh, India's imposing front court who have been playing professionally in Japan's D-League, will form the primary fulcrum of India's attack and defense in the middle. The rest of the squad will feature a mix of veteran players (Yadwinder Singh) and young prospects (Gurvinder Singh Gill), and it will be coach Prakash's job to find the perfect blend for success. India will be missing a seven-foot-two hole in the middle in the form of 19-year-old Satnam Singh Bhamara, who earlier this year became the first Indian to be drafted into the NBA but has chosen to focus on developing his career in the NBDL and the NBA instead of playing in India for now.

Team India roster for 2015 FIBA ABC

• Vinay Kaushik
  
• Rajesh Uppar
  
• Siddhant Shinde
  
• Vishesh Bhriguvanshi
  
• Amrit Pal Singh
  
• Vikas Kumar
  
• Yadwinder Singh
  
• Arvind Arumugam
  
• Amjyot Singh
  
• Akilan Pari
  
• Akashdeep Hazra
  
• Gurvinder Singh Gill
  
• Head Coach: Sat Prakash
  
• Assistant Coach: Sebastian PJ
  
• Manager: Goutam Ganguly
  

India have been drawn in Group A of the tournament, along with reigning champions and favourites Iran, the formidable Japan squad, and Malaysia, the only team in the group ranked lower than the Indians. Like with the women’s team earlier this year, popular budget airline Air Asia is sponsoring the men’s team’s participation at the event.

2015 FIBA ABC Preliminary Round Groups

• Group A: Iran, Japan, Malaysia, India.
  
• Group B: Philippines, Palestine, Kuwait, Hong Kong.
  
• Group C: Korea, Jordan, Singapore, China.
  
• Group D: Chinese Taipei, Lebanon, Qatar, Kazakhstan.
  

India's Preliminary Round Schedule for 2015 FIBA ABC - All timings IST

• September 23 - 5 PM - Malaysia vs. India.
  
• September 24 - 9:15 AM - Iran vs. India.
  
• September 25 - 12 noon - Japan vs. India
  

The top three teams from each of the four Preliminary Round groups (12 total teams) will move on to two further Second Round groups of six teams each, carrying forth their points from the Preliminary Round as well. The top four teams in the Second Round (eight total teams) will then move on to the knockout-out stage, starting with the Quarter-Finals.

India has a real chance of moving into the second round if they can defeat Malaysia and finish third in the group. Iran, who are the favourites will be a juggernaut, especially as they feature superstars of the likes of reigning FIBA ABC MVP Hamed Haddadi and Mahdi Kamrani. Japan are missing star players Kosuke Takeuchi and Yuta Watanabe, but the small and speedy squad will feature great shooters like Kosuke Kanamaru, Keijuro Matsui, and Takatoshi Furukawa, and Joji Takeuchi as the big man in the middle.

India haven't finished in the tournament's top 10 since 2003. It will take a herculean effort to break the spell and challenge for a Quarter-Final spot, but Prakash's squad should head into the championship with a positive attitude to perform well in the Preliminary Round and hope to spring an upset or two in the Second Round as well. "Most of our core team is intact, so we hope to perform very well," said India's captain Bhriguvanshi, "Our primary goal is to win our first game against Malaysia, and give tough fights to Iran and Japan. If we can manage that, we will progress to the second round."

Last year, Indian basketball was at a high; the team had defeated China at the FIBA Asia Cup in Wuhan for the first time in history and given a tough fight to two more of Asia's best - Iran and the Philippines - during the course of the tournament. Unfortunately, external turmoil halted India's progress and their ability to build on the potential shown in Wuhan. Infighting between two competing executive committees has left the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) in a disarray, and Coach Scott Flemming - the architect behind the miracles in Wuhan - left for another job back in the United States a few months ago.

In the midst of this friction and instability at the top, can India's Men's basketball team deliver some good news to fans of the sport back in the country?

After numerous voices of protest, FIBA (tentatively) relaxes Headgear rule for international basketball

It took voices of protest from in and outside India, from the Sikh and Muslim communities and from many more who chose to support the right cause, and finally, there seems to be some progress. FIBA - the International Basketball Federation - announced at the first meeting of their newly-elected Central Board that they will be tentatively 'relaxing' their rules banning players donning headgear (such as turbans or hijab) from participating in international basketball games.

FIBA.com's provides more of the news below, with details that show FIBA's steps into the right direction:

In response to the various requests received, the Central Board held in-depth discussions regarding rules about uniforms and decided to put a testing phase into place for the next two years that will consist of:
- Relaxing the current rules regarding headgear in order to enable national federations to request, as of now, exceptions to be applied at the national level within their territory without incurring any sanctions for violation of FIBA's Official Basketball Rules. National Federations wishing to apply for such an exception to the uniform regulations shall submit a detailed request to FIBA. Once approved, they shall submit follow-up reports twice a year to monitor the use of such exceptions.
- The players will be allowed to play in FIBA endorsed 3x3 competitions - both nationally and internationally - wearing headgear without restrictions, unless the latter presents a direct threat to their safety or that of other players on the court. Players wishing to take part in such competitions with headgear must ensure that a detailed request for approval is addressed to FIBA.
- FIBA will communicate with National Federations over the coming weeks on the subject of these request procedures.
The two years will serve as a test period. FIBA, through its competent bodies, will monitor these requests and their implementation from both the technical and sport development perspectives (for example in terms of manufacturing specificities, safety of athletes, look on the field of play and positive development of participation numbers in basketball within the demanding countries).
A first report will be provided to the Central Board in 2015, which will then determine whether tests at the lowest official international level shall be allowed as of next summer. A full review will be done in 2016 to take a decision on whether permanent changes to the Official Basketball Rules shall be made and implemented after the 2016 Olympic Games.

Wading through the intense wordiness above we find the the good news for Sikh, Muslim, Jewish, or players of other communities for whom the headgear is a crucial part of their religion and culture. They will now be allowed to take part in FIBA events with their headgear on just as long as the national federations submit an application asking for this exception beforehand. This rule specifically directs to India and the Basketball Federation of India (BFI): The BFI claimed discrimination when Sikh players of the Indian national team at the FIBA Asia Cup in Wuhan (China) and the U18 FIBA Asia Championship in Doha (Qatar) were not allowed to take part in the games unless they removed their turbans. The onus is now on India and the BFI to be at the top of their game each time and make sure to apply for these uniform exceptions in time and make sure to follow up twice a year (because FIBA doesn't want to make things too easy, do they?) to ensure that our Sikh players don't feel humiliated at the international stage again.

FIBA has set up a two year test period; hopefully, at the end of these two years, they are able to accept certain headgear as a normal part of the uniform and don't need constant applications/reminders about it. It will be great if the official FIBA rules regarding this are changed by the 2016 Olympics: not that India has any chance of participating in the basketball tournament, but there might be players from other nations who may don headgear, too.

The Sikh America Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF), who share a lot of credit for bringing the turban issue to international attention, recognized FIBA's step forward. "FIBA has taken a step towards change, but this policy alteration will continue to lead to an unequal playing field," said Jasjit Singh, executive director of SALDEF, "We hope that FIBA will soon recognize Sikhs, Muslims and Orthodox Jews can freely play with their respective articles of faith, without process or paperwork and beyond their home countries. We ask all to join us as we tell FIBA to let Sikhs play freely."

Here's my personal guarantee about this issue: over the next two years, the test period will go swimmingly and FIBA will figure out manufacturing specificities etc. as they mentioned above. And soon enough, because we live in a world of large corporations that truly decide morality and culture at the commercial stage, sports-wear brands like Nike and adidas are going to start vying to sponsor athletic turbans, designed specifically for basketball, and coming fully FIBA-approved in their shape/size/design. And this train of thought leads me to believe that if LeBron James or Kobe Bryant had wanted to play in the Olympics with what FIBA had previously described as 'threatening' headgear, Nike would've changed the 'No Headgear' rule years ago.

Anyways, good step forward, FIBA. Hopefully the Indian national teams can put these distractions behind them and focus on taking even bigger steps forward on the basketball court.