Hareesh Koroth: Unexpected Rise; Unfinished Business

Unexpected

At the Asian Games in Guangzhou (China) last year, the Indian Men’s Basketball team created history, by marking their first ever win in the competition in the tournament’s first, playoff game, against South Asian rivals Afghanistan. Facing a shortage of quality in the backcourt, India’s then coach Bill Harris handed an unexpected start to Kerala born, Tamil Nadu groomed guard Hareesh Koroth. The sharp-shooter, who was a relatively late bloomer as a basketball prospect, reached the zenith of an Indian player’s ambition at age 25 with this start.

But the start alone wasn’t enough: in the first few matches at the Asian Games, Koroth developed into one of India’s most valuable players. He scored 17 points in the win over Afghanistan, and followed it with a team-high 24 in a loss to Qatar. India went on to lose all their other games in the tough group, but Koroth, who had already achieved so much in so little time, returned brimming with confidence for his future with the Indian squad. A natural shooter and proud defender, he was ready to put in the work to continue as a regular in the team.

That hard work shows – a little less than a year later, the Indian team has a new coach, has a lot of new young faces, and a new challenge to face: the 26th FIBA Asia Championship for Men in Wuhan (China) from mid September – but Koroth, now one of the seniors in the young squad, remains a constant force.

Once a player who started off his career with low expectations surrounding his basketball potential, Koroth now shoulders the burden as one of the experienced leaders of a new-look team heading out to battle again.

Undersized

Standing at 6 feet 1 inch, Koroth is shorter than the average player running and gunning on a basketball court, but he has made up for his lack of height with hard work and tenacity. Starring in India’s national squad is not a simple process: before getting to the highest level of hoops in India, most players have to master the game from a young age, dominating other youngsters of their age level and steadily improving until they can one day have the privilege of representing India at the Senior level.

But this was hardly the script followed by the Koroth: Born in Calicut, Kerala, Koroth first picked up the game at age 10, but the future star was a slow riser. Koroth didn’t play his first national tournament until the Junior (under-18) level, where the little dynamo finally broke out and began to show his impeccable shooting tough. It was then that the floodgates opened for him.

“I didn’t play much at the Youth stage at the highest level,” says Koroth, “But in college, I got selected into Kerela’s senior team.”

After two nationals with Kerala, Koroth moved a little across the state border, joining Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) in Chennai in September 2007, and then, began to represent Tamil Nadu at the national level. “Soon after that, I was invited to India’s senior team,” Koroth recalls, “It all happened very quickly! Back then, I wasn’t thinking too far. I wasn’t thinking about playing for India – I was just thinking about each small step."

Once a state famous for producing international level players on the regular, Koroth is now the only TN-based player in India’s senior squad.

Unstoppable

There is no secret to reveal, no code to decrypt, and no puzzle to solve: Koroth’s incredible rise into becoming one of the most unstoppable players in India has been the product of the simplest basketball cliché: practice. “It’s not just about working hard in camp or in tournaments,” he says, “I continue working, continue practicing during the off days, during holidays. Whenever I can, I spend several hours daily on the court, perfecting my shot, and time in gym if I can to improve my fitness.”

Koroth adds: “That is also the major difference between us and some of the younger players coming up to prominence in the country now – they practice hard in the camps but laze around during the holidays. You have to keep working hard even when you’re home to stay at the highest level.”

With time, Koroth began to see a sense of maturity and patience seeping into his game. “With the new coach (Kenny Natt), the Indian team has improved a lot, and I have seen improvements in my own game,” he says, “I play a more set, patient form of basketball, where I wait for the play to be created before making my move, instead of just shooting at every chance.”

Koroth’s role as a back-up shooting guard in Natt’s Indian side was first put on display when India played against SAARC rivals Sri Lanka and Bangladesh at the Middle Asia Zone Qualifying Round in New Delhi. Vying for a place in the FIBA Asia Championship, India took little effort in brushing off their competition, winning their three matches by a margin of nearly 68 points per game. With the competition posing little threat, Natt could afford to give major minutes to the players on the bench. In the balanced offense, only three players averaged double digits in scoring!

It was Koroth, who emerged as one of India’s main men: despite starting as a substitute, Koroth led the team in minutes played (23 per game) over the three games. He scored, rebounded, and created with ease, and especially showed off his deadly accuracy from the three-point range. India qualified for the FIBA Championships with ease, and now, the real test is about to begin.

“Coach Kenny made a lot of good changes with the side,” says Koroth, “He was able to give a lot of players the chance to play, created a system where we could score fast and score efficiently, and also helped us improve on the defensive end.”

Defense is something that Koroth obviously takes a lot of pride in. Natt’s India plays a help-defense style, so that there is not so much pressure on individuals, but Koroth adds that when the time comes, he relishes a good man-on-man defensive challenge. “I try my hardest to stop the best player on the other team, or at least, hold him below his average,” he says, “It’s important to find a balance between good defense and concentrating on offense.”

Unfinished

The task at hand is clear now: the FIBA ABC in Wuhan begins on September 15th, and India is focused on nothing but their very first game, against Lebanon on opening night.

“The last time we took part in this competition [2009], we finished 13th (out of 16),” says Koroth, “I am aiming higher this time, hoping that we get up to eighth place. Our opponents are Korea, who are a very strong team, Lebanon, who will make us work very hard, Malaysia, who we hope to beat.”

Koroth will most likely be playing the backup shooting-guard position in Natt’s team – he is an able ball handler who shared the point-guard responsibilities with Vishesh Bhriguvanshi at the Asian Games, but this time, the likes of TJ Sahi and Prakash Mishra will be doing the bulk of the ball-handling for India, leaving Koroth free to focus on shooting. Being undersized and smaller than the other guards in the team, though, Koroth is likely to play his primarily defense against the opposing teams’ point guards.

United

“We are ready and focused,” Koroth repeats, speaking now not only of himself but of the 12-man team that stands with him, and the experienced Coach Kenny Natt that leads from the front. “Our coach now knows us, and we know him. We are familiar with each other and understand each other.”

In Natt, Koroth and the players have found an easy figure to respect and follow: For nearly two decades, Natt has had coaching roles in the NBA. He has been an assistant with the Utah Jazz, with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and with the Kings – he was also an interim head coach with the latter. He has worked with hall-of-famers and future hall-of-famers, so the players in the Indian side have little problem in gleaning confidence off of him.

“Things are improving in basketball in India,” says Koroth, “We are confident in our Coach, and now we have a Strength and Conditioning coach, Zak Penwell, who is helping us stay fit and away from injury. We have better facilities, better kits, and better accommodation: we’re ready!”

It isn't just the improved facilities that have helped the team spirit: Koroth's infectious friendly nature has also spread amongst the players and helped in improving team chemistry. "We are all one team," he says, "It's good to be friends amongst each other - we have to stay together against our opponents."

The rise, success, and preparation so far have made for a stellar career for the star,: but there is still unfinished business: and it is at the FIBA ABC where the next chapter in his story will be written.

Indian Basketball Game Tape on YouTube

I'm a self-confessed nerd for watching basketball. I would watch it till my eyes are sore and then watch it a little more. No other factor in life has been able to wake me up consistently on early mornings except for early morning live basketball games.

Knowing that, imagine my joy when I discovered the DVDs of all of India's Men and Women's teams' matches at the 2010 Asian Games in China! This was the first time that India had participated in the basketball tournament of the games since 1982, back when India hosted the Games. The teams didn't really return with a record to write home about (1-5 for the Men, 0-3 for the Women), but hey - at least they were there, participating against the best in Asia, playing in the awesome basketball courts in Guangzhou at such a large stage.

So I set off on a mission to burn and upload all of the games available on the Basketball Federation of India's (BFI) new YouTube channel. Half a dozen games are already up on this channel and I will be uploading a few more over the next few days.

As a bonus, I also ended up spending hours and hours watching the games. I have proudly become a hermit, churning out DVD after DVD of this historical tournament for Indian basketball. Yes, the game tapes are flawed: there is no commentary, the camera usually stays in one position, and apart from a couple of games, there are no scores/timings on the side of the screen. It is almost like watching the games in person, but without any of the good experiences of watching it in person.

Still, the games make for interesting viewing. It was fun watching the likes of Vishesh Bhriguvanshi, Jagdeep Singh, Yadivinder Singh, Hareesh Koroth, and up and coming youngsters such as Dishant Shah battle out against Qatar, Chinese Taipei, Iran, Japan, Afghanistan, and Philippines. The Afghanistan game was the only one that the Men's team won, which was also a pre-qualifier to make it into the rest of the tournament. The team was led by American coach Bill Harris for this tournament. I was especially impressed by Vishesh's ever-evolving game: the young Indian captain shows a versatility between three positions and his all-round ability to score, create, rebound, and lead the team by example.

In the Women's tapes, the likes of Geethu Anna Jose, Akanksha Singh, Anitha P., Harjeet Kaur, and Prashanti Singh show up playing against some tough Asian talent. Led in this competition by former WNBA player Tamika Raymond, the Indian dames struck unlucky with the draw, as their first two games were against Asia's finest - China and South Korea - the two teams who went on to face each other in the Final. India had a close game against Thailand but couldn't hang on in the 4th quarter against them. The Thailand game is also a great exhibition of the talents of Geethu. A legendary Center for India, Geethu's game is a feast for the eyes of any basketball lover. She is a glutton for scoring through a variety of moves in the low post, is a good rebounder of the basketball, and her most underrated skill might be her inside passing, through which she was able to make her teammates better, too.

Once again, even though we lost a lot, and you will see more than good for India in these tapes, the attendance at the Asian Games was still a crucial step for development of basketball in India. Plus, for aspiring ball players and fans of the game in India, this is a chance to watch and learn from the best in the country in action.

Are you excited yet? All you need is a bit of patience, maybe a set of headphones bumping your favourite music, and an average internet connection. Go and check out BFI's YouTube channel now! Over time, videos from other major basketball tournaments, if available, will be uploaded on the channel.

By the way: a short recap of the Asian Games basketball tournament and India's performances is available here. Hosts China won gold in both the Men's and Women's divisions.

Vishesh Bhriguvanshi: Striving for success

In Varanasi, one of the oldest living cites in the world, they say that history of the world moves in a cyclical motion. Events repeat themselves one after the other every generation in the city, a cycle of good and evil and life and death, over and over and over for infinity in time. They say that even if the rest of the world stops, in Varanasi life will go on just as usual.

There is another kind of cyclical history being made at the famous UP College basketball court. Situated in the North-Western corner of the city, time and again, these courts have proven to be the nursery of some of Indian basketball’s finest talents. When taking a closer look, one can see how, every day, day after day, the basketballs continue bouncing without end, every morning and every evening, over and over again. With every year there is the development of a new batch of talented players and every generation gives birth to a select group of superstars.

On a chilly December evening at the UP College, all is as it has always been: the balls are bouncing, the shots are falling, the sneakers are pacing up and down the court. Except that today, there seems to be a distraction: a familiar face has shown itself again, and the court’s regular players, from the young toddlers with palms barely large enough to control a dribble to the experienced older ones with graying hair, have all stopped to welcome back their hometown hero.

Fresh out of captaining India to its first appearance at the Asian Games basketball tournament in 28 years, Vishesh Bhriguvanshi returned home to Varanasi for a few days of rest before the next challenge – the Super Kung Sheung Cup in Hong Kong. Still only 19, Vishesh already has several years of senior international appearance under his belt. He was called upon to captain the Indian side at the South Asian Games (SAG) in Dhaka at the beginning of this year, and the young shooting guard hasn’t looked back since.

Now back at the court where he learned how to master the game, Vishesh goes back to what he does best: showing up every morning and evening to meet his old friends, divide himself and the rest of the participating players into fair teams, and set the ball rolling. In a few years since his national and international exposure, he has earned an aura of awe and respect amongst the youngsters at the court. Refreshingly though, he is still the same old Vishesh with his peers: challenging, taunting, laughing, and competing. A small crowd gathers to watch as he lazily bounces around the court, sometimes wowing the spectators with great plays but mostly just blending in.

The Asian Games in Guangzhou (China), was a tough competition for the Indian squad. Led by coach Bill Harris, the first ever American hired to coach the Indian basketball team, the Young Cagers defeated Afghanistan in their first game of the tournament, a pre-qualifier that allowed them to enter the main group stage of the competition. India were not only able to exact revenge on an Afghani squad that had beaten them twice at the SAG (including a heart-breaking win at the tournament’s final), but the team also made history by celebrating Indian basketball’s first ever win at the Asian Games.

India then proceeded to lose all five of their group games, but they did put up some memorable performance in defeat. Against Asian powerhouses Iran, India managed to stay neck-to-neck in the second half after succumbing to a big deficit in first. Against Philippines and Japan, India performed well in the first halves to keep the games competitive before losing focus in certain stretches of the game to lose out.

A natural wing player, Vishesh (6 foot 4 inches) was forced to play the point guard or ‘feeder’ position at the game due to the team missing several key players. He gracefully took over the role to run the floor, sacrificing some of his scoring numbers to be able to lead the team better.

“The Asian Games were a great experience,” said Vishesh, “We showed great improvement as a team. Coach Harris was able to instill a defensive philosophy in the team which made us competitive. Throughout the tournament, I think we played some good defense and were better prepared with set plays for our offense, too.”

Comparing the current feel of the squad to the one that lost to Afghanistan at the SAG, Vishesh said that the players have begun to feel more like a cohesive unit. “Earlier on, it felt like everyone distrusted each other and just wanted to do their one thing,” he said, “This time, we were able to beat Afghanistan even without some great players because of good team unity.”

Vishesh admits that the Indian team had some glaring faults that were exposed at the Games. “It was hard for us to stay at the top level for the full game,” he said, “We would play well for one half and then not be able to keep up. I think our lack of experience showed. We just have to keep working.”

For the team to improve, Vishesh believes that they have to keep working harder, especially on the defensive end. Coach Harris has left all of the players he worked with in Chennai and in Guangzhou with specific exercise and training regiments to work on to improve their individual games. “If we keep working hard, I feel that we can improve a lot,” says Vishesh, “I hope that the next time we can get up to the top 8 in the Asian games and at least be able to put up a good challenge against one of the greater teams in Asia.”

The Indian team that has now headed to Hong Kong has a very different look. For starters, Coach Harris has gone back, and the squad has been playing without some great performers such as Jagdeep Singh, Trideep Singh, Hareesh Koroth, and Eudrick Pereria. They lost their first two games at the Super Kung Sheung Cup to hosts Hong Kong and the Southern California Fukienese Association (SCFA).

Before heading to Hong Kong, Vishesh acknowledged that the Indian national teams suffered from a lack of consistency – the teams keep changing and the players hardly get an opportunity to gel well together. Players get separated to go and represent their home states or service teams, sometimes become a higher priority for them than the Indian national team. Before leaving, Coach Bill Harris had proposed the idea that the national squads should be chosen yearly only to live, train, and play together as a team all year round to help build better chemistry and understanding.

“It is a good idea to keep the team together, but we obviously need a good coach to make it work,” Vishesh said, “All of us really liked Coach Harris – he was straight-forward and honest with us.”

He continues: “Too often, you see good players coming together from different parts of the country, and when they play for India, their performance becomes much worse. You can check the statistics and see this is happening – as Indian players, we need to be together and improve together.”

Clearly, Vishesh has embraced the role of captain much beyond just the ceremonial position. He seems to understand that in India’s success lies his own success, and he is ambitious about his future with basketball in India.

His next challenge: the Sr. National Basketball Championship, set to be held at New Delhi on December 28th. Vishesh has been an integral part of the strong Indian Railways squad that has won back to back championships, and he is ready for another win. “We want to make it a three-peat at the Nationals,” says Vishesh, “We will have to show a good performance if we are to have a chance to win. Teams like Tamil Nadu, Uttranchal, Service, and Punjab will definitely put up a tough challenge.”

Whether it’s his UP College home court in Varanasi, the grand courts in Guangzhou and Hong Kong, or the Talkatora Stadium in Delhi, where the Nationals will be held, Vishesh continues to do what he loves most: the game of basketball. And as long as he the youngster keeps improving, it seems the future of Indian basketball is in good hands, and his own name will be added to the history of Varanasi basketball idols who have been making the city proud, over and over again.

No luck for Indian Paraplegic Basketball Team at the Asian Para Games

Now that the Asian Games are over, Guangzhou (China) is now hosting the first ever 2010 Asian Para Games, which will be held from December 12-19. A sports event for Asian athletes with disability, 19 different sporting events will be held at these Games, including Wheelchair Basketball.

But unfortunately for the team hoping to represent India's Wheelchair Basketball team, there will be no opportunity for them to show their skills at this event. India has a seven-member basketball team from the Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centre which has been practicing for this event for the past six months, but have been told that the Union Sports Ministry has no funds to sponsor them to China.

This is from an enlightening article written by Pranav Kulkarni for Indian Express:

“We were hoping against hope that the government would sponsor us, but a week ago, the Ministry conveyed to us that it has no money to ensure our participation and that it was too late to do anything,” said team captain Anthony Pereira.

The rehabilitation centre officials had been writing to the Sports Ministry for months, but received no response. Director Dr (Lt Col) SP Jyoti said, “Till 2006, it was the Indian Army that was funding us, but this year the Union Government has funded all teams, except this team. I fail to understand why.”
The team members — Pereira, V Nadar, TR Kulkarni, Prem Singh, CY Reddy, KN Reddy, K Shyamal Raju — had all become paraplegics during their service with the Indian Army. They have represented the country at various national-level wheelchair basketball tournaments and over four FESPIC games, including Busan in 2002 and Malaysia in 2006

Go to indianexpress.com to check out the rest of this amazing story.

This is pretty depressing news. If you check out their quotes from the rest of the story, you will see that the Indian Wheelchair Basketball players are obviously very passionate about the sport and about competing. They have been playing together for a few years, and this was a big stage for them to showcase their skills.

After officiating the Asian Games final, referee Ramesh Durairaju sets his sights on the Olympics

Tamil Nadu based referee Ramesh Kr. Durairaju vividly recalls a moment last week which he vows he will remember forever.

It was at the Guangzhou (China) Asian Games, where Durairaju was part of a small contingent of Indian referees officiating the basketball tournament. On the night of November 24th, Durairaju had been picked to officiate a Men’s Quarter-Final game between Iran and Jordan. He remembers returning to his hotel room late, around 1:20 in the morning, only to find two of his Indian colleagues – including his referring mentor Mr. Naresh Aneja – waiting for him.

They had a little bit of news to discuss with him: the 34-year-old Durairaju was to discover through his friends that he had been picked to be one of the three officials to referee the Final of the Women’s tournament the following day.

“I could hardly believe this news!” he exclaims, “We stayed up till 3 in the morning, as my friends congratulated me and Mr. Aneja discussed the game. It was a night I will truly never forget!”

Durairaju, a native of Thanjavur (Tamil Nadu) became only the second Indian since his fellow statesmen SK Subramanyam to officiate a final of an Asian Games basketball event. Subramanyam did it 28 years ago during the Delhi games in 1982. For Durairaju, it was a dream come true, but he insisted that he isn’t done dreaming yet.

Durairaju started officiating in 2002, and cleared the examination to become a FIBA referee in 2006. His first international didn't come till 2008, when he officiated at the Malaysia International Basketball Championship. Durairaju admits that he had a late start as a official, but he put in many hours of hard work to improve himself and get to the level he is at today. Through the course of his, he feels indebted to the advice and support of Aneja, a man Durairaju has described as his teacher.

The final match, a close fought affair between hosts China and South Korea, turned out to be a lively experience for the young referee. “Just stepping out on court was really nice – I hadn’t ever expected anything like this,” said Durairaju, “The infrastructure and the facilities were amazing, and the final was being watched by so many people in the arena and so many more around the world!”

He continues: “I had to be completely mentally prepared for this game on matchday. It was a great and easy game to officiate, as both teams were focusing on just playing the game of basketball and not committing too many fouls.” The game came down to the wire, before China pulled off a 70-64 victory in the end.

Naresh Aneja served as the Commissioner of the Gold Medal game, and Durairaju was accompanied by referees Elena Chernova (Russia) and Teerapong Yodsint (Thailand) on the floor.

Durairaju’s accomplishment has been another feather in the cap for Indian referees in 2010. In July this year, West Bengal’s Atanu Banerjee became the first Indian referee to officiate the final of a World Championship, as he was one of the referees at the final game of the FIBA U17 World Championship for Women in France.

Durairaju, too, has hopes to keep improving and keep rising. The Asian Games final was a great feat, but there will be no full stop to his story here. “I am back to work now, trying to improve myself and become a better referee every day,” he says, “My sights are set on the World Championships and the Olympics. The honour at the Asian Games has encouraged me to work harder to try and make it to that level.”

With ambition like that, there will be few doubting that Durairaju can one day stand amongst the world’s very best.

Interview with Bill Harris and Tamika Raymond: head coaches of India’s basketball teams at the Asian Games

American basketball coaches Bill Harris and Tamika Raymond have accomplished several historical feats over the last few months alone. The two became the first American head coaches of the Indian Senior Men’s and Women’s national basketball teams respectively. They led the Indian team into their first appearance in the 2010 Asian Games basketball tournament in 28 years. Under Harris, the Men’s team also won their first ever basketball game at the Asian Games, beating Afghanistan 83-76 in their pre-qualifying match-up.

The contract for both the coaches expires at the end of the month, and both Harris and Raymond will be returning to the USA after bidding farewell to the teams. The two have been working with the teams since the end of September/beginning of October at the Senior camp in Chennai. The Men’s team played a friendly game against Hong Kong before heading off to Guangzhou, China, for the Asian Games. After beating Afghanistan, the Men lost all their five group games to Qatar, Chinese Taipei, Iran, Philippines, and Japan.

Men’s coach Harris has over 30 years of experience as a head coach in the game of basketball across several institutions in the US. His most-recent previous appointment was with Wheaton College (1991-2009), where he had tremendous success posting the highest career winning percentage as a head coach in the institution’s history.

Despite India’s poor final showing, Harris showed his optimism and excitement for the experienced gained by the players. “This tournament was an opportunity for the players to compete against the best countries in Asia. While training, the Indian players got a chance to push themselves further than ever before and get a glimpse of their full potential if they keep working harder at it.”

“I am very proud of our win against Afghanistan,” he added, “It will also be a memorable moment for the players and for me, especially considering that we were the lowest seed in the competition and were not expected to beat them after the two losses to Afghanistan earlier this year [at the South Asian Games]. The win gave us the opportunity to qualify for the group stage and compete against Asia’s best.”

Both the Indian teams were amongst the youngest squads in the tournament, and the Men’s team was led by captain Vishesh Bhriguvanshi, who just turned 20. They also lost valuable players such as Trideep Rai to injury for three games, and leading scorer Jagdeep Singh also missed the last match against Japan. Despite this, Harris was impressed by the character that the Young Cagers showed in China.

“We played a good game against Iran, who are one of the strongest teams in the world,” Harris said, “After a bad first half, we played Iran even in the second period and lost only by 15 points. Against Philippines, we had a good first half, and were down only by one point then before letting them take a big lead in the second. Against Japan too, without two important players, we were able to stick close for three quarters. In The Japan game we were able to call upon Dishant Shah, who is at junior level, to start the game and play big minutes, which was very impressive.”

Harris was known to command a lot of respect amongst the players and brought a disciplined approach to the team during training in Chennai. “I have been tough and demanding on them, but they know that I did this because I cared for their success. During the training, they began to see gradually that they can develop into great players.”

Now, at the end of his tenure, Harris is leaving behind personalised training regimes for each of the players so that can continue to put in work into their ability. His only concern is that now without him, the players must become self-motivated to follow the regimes.

Discussing the future of the Men’s team, Harris stressed that it is important for the players to continue to strive for betterment. “The BFI and the NBA have to figure out a way to make sure that the national players can stay together and play together. I feel that India needs to get 20 of its best players for the national team and then keep them together all year round to train together, improve their team chemistry, and grow as a team.”

Harris said that it was hard to leave behind the team, who had become like a family to him. He will now be returning to US, where he is still undecided about his future but is looking forward to spending some time with this family.

Under Tamika Raymond, the Women’s team played a few practice games against professional teams from China in Chennai before heading to Guangzhou. There, they lost all three of their group games to China, South Korea, and Thailand. Raymond is a former WNBA player and NCAA Division I Assistant Coach.

“Getting beat that badly definitely wasn’t fun, but the kids learning so much is something that I wouldn’t trade for the world,” Raymond said, “For India basketball, sending a team to this tournament has been a great foundation to build upon.”

Raymond’s team was tested by the best in Guangzhou. They played first two games against China and South Korea, who were the two finalists of the tournament. China is ranked 4th in the entire world and South Korea 8th. After two big losses, India played well against Thailand in the third game before losing out by eight points in the fourth quarter.

One of the stand-out players for Raymond was Anitha Pauldurai, who played the most minutes for the team and showed much needed leadership and experience. Raymond added that Anitha showed a “coach’s mentality”, which was rare.

Another player for whom Raymond reserved special praise was Indian basketball legend Geethu Anna Jose. “Geethu is a very talented player, and has a great future,” Raymond said, “Unfortunately I don’t think that she has been challenged enough in India. To improve, she needs to play against other great players.”

Raymond added that the team’s point guard Akanksha Singh was the squad’s most hard-working player, showing great confidence and persistence against all the competition. She also mentioned youngsters such as Pratima Singh, Raja Priyadarshini, Sneha Rajguru, and Rajpreet Sandhu, who stepped their game up in China to offer the coach a pleasant surprise.

Raymond feels that the next stage for India to improve the quality of its basketball players is to focus on their conditioning. “To be as good as the teams we face, we first have to look like them,” she said, “We have the length, but we need the right kind of weight room training, nutrition, built, and strength to try and look like other strong teams such as China or Korea.”

“It was surprising at times that some of the basic training techniques that we worked with that players learn at a much younger age in America were new to these girls, but they enjoyed all the weight room training work that we did, where we worked particularly on their agility and fitness.”

Another factor that Raymond believes that India needs work on is improving their basketball IQ and their will to win. “It is not just important to play the game but also to think it,” she said, “They shouldn’t just play basketball; they should want to play smart and want to win. They should want to be great.” The players had to learn many things to improve their basketball IQ, such as plays and important defensive concepts.

Finally, Raymond feels that there is a need for uniformity in the coaching process in India, and a need for the coaches to be trained better, so that in turn they can pass on valuable information to the young players. This process, she feels, must start at the Junior level so that the players are comfortable with the system by the time they reach the Senior National team.

“The next stage for India should be to reach out again and bring in more quality coaches for their teams,” Raymond suggested, “The team’s future will depend on how much time they can spend together and on their future coach. It is sad that when the players return they get separated and go back to represent their separate regions and teams, and the lower level of play can hurt their development. In other countries, the national team stays and trains together to improve.”

“The NBA and BFI have a wonderful arranged marriage, and basketball in India can only get better!”

Raymond can be seen on ESPN in America, where she will be a sideline reporter for Women’s basketball. She added that there is a chance that she will also work at a few WNBA games when the season begins.

The secretary-general of the BFI Harish Sharma was very satisfied with Harris’ and Raymond’s work in India. “The American coaches came from a background of great work culture in basketball,” Sharma said, “Both of them have done well to improve the standard of basketball in India. It was good to see that, under them, our national players brought a level of much-needed discipline to their game. They improve their shot selection, and their defense improved tremendously under both coaches.”

“We want to hire more foreign coaches to replace them and lead the Indian senior teams for the next two or three years.” Sharma added.

Troy Justice, the NBA’s Director of Basketball Operations in India, who helped the BFI in bringing Harris and Raymond to India, confirms that the NBA will once again to an extensive global search for future national coaches for the Indian squads. “We will be looking not just for good coaches, but for coaches who will be right for India and will be committed whole-heartedly to India,” Justice said.

China wins double gold at Asian Games; India goes winless

Hosts China stamped their dominance over basketball in Asia after winning double gold in both the Women's and Men's tournament at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou. China defeated the Republic of Korea in both divisions to clinch the title.

Nan Chen led a balanced attack for the Chinese Women on Thursday, November 25th with 17 points and 12 rebounds to overcome the Korean challenge, 70-64. All of China's starters scored in double digits as the hosts prevailed in the close game. Yeonha Beon scored a game-high 23 points in Korea's losing effort.

Women

China 70 (Nan Chen 17 pts 12 rebs, Xin Guan 14 pts, Fan Zhang 7 rebs) bt. Republic of Korea 64 (Yeonha Beon 23 pts, Jung Eun Park 14 pts, Mi Sun Lee 5 stls). Halftime Score:38-29

Japan came third in the women's competition after beating Chinese Taipei 73-61 in the bronze medal game.

In the Men's final, China sustained a close lead for the whole game and fought off Korea's comeback to win 77-71. Former NBA player Zhizhi Wang scored 20 points to lead a balanced effort for China. Donggeun Yang for Korea added 17 points for the losing team.

Men

China 77 (Zhizhi Wang 20 pts, Jinhui Ding 14 pts 8 rebs, Yue Sun 14 pts) bt. Republic of Korea 64 (Dongguen Yang 17 pts, Joo Sung Kim 15 pts, Sungmin Cho 15 pts). Halftime Score:43-37

Iran won the Men's bronze medal after beating Japan 74-66

The Indian teams did not have a successful competition after qualifying for Asian Games basketball after 28 years, as the Men and Women's teams suffered defeats in all their group stage match-ups.

The Indian Men's team had early success as the won their pre-qualification match-up against Afghanistan to enter the tournament's group stage. Trailing by eight points at half-time, a balanced effort from India's starters led to a succesful comeback victory 83-76. Jagdeep Singh led a balanced effort from the Indians with 22 points. Trideep Rai (18), Hareesh Koroth (17), and Yadwinder Singh (15) also chipped in with important contributions.

But India's five group games saw them fall to 0-5 against their opponents. Despite Hareesh Koroth's 24 points, India lost big to Qater, 97-48. Chinese Taipei played a high-scoring game against India which they won 93-66, as Jagdeep Singh again led India with 22 points. Jagdeep continued his strong play in the tough game against Iran next, scoring 24 points in a losing effort, where Iran won 78-63. Yadvinder Singh also added 17.

India had a promising start in their last two games, against the Philippines and Japan, but succumbed to late game fatigue at lost both. Philippines beat India 78-57 and Japan won 85-58.

In the Women's tournament, India were baptised by fired in their first game against a strong Chinese squad, who won big, 107-39. The Women continued to suffer in a tough draw, as their next game was against eventual semi-finalists Republic of Korea, who won 98-44. The Girls showed a much improved performance in their final game, as Geethu Anna Jose powered to 20 points and 12 rebounds against Thailand, still to lose a close game 62-54 in the tough fourth quarter.

Although the box scores might have shown a dismal performance for the Indian team, the truth was that both the Men and the Women showed glimpses of competitiveness in all their games, just to succumb to problems regarding fatigue. The Indian teams were just not fit enough to hang with Asia's best for 40 minutes a game, which led to several epic second half collapses.

But first qualification in 28 years is still a positive step up. Hopefully the influence left behind by American coaches Bill Harris and Tamika Raymond paves the way for a brighter future for the game in India.

Anitha P. Won't Back Down

The Delhi Commonwealth Games may have missed out on a basketball tournament, but four years ago, the competition took place at the Games in Melbourne. Back in March 2006, the Indian Women’s team were baptised by fire in their very first game, as they played in the preliminary round against Australia, the hosts and the strongest team in the world. Australia made full use of their squad’s experience at the international level, and boasted by Lauren Jackson, one of the greatest women players in the world, they made mincemeat of the Indian team. The Australians went on to clinch the gold medal at the competition.

But during that blowout victory, the Indian eves, however outmatched, showed their bravest face against the world’s best. Leading the squad was a confident 21-year-old youngster that dared to challenge the world’s best player in her own court. Lauren Jackson (6 foot 4 in) may have scored 41 easy points against India, but the young and undersized forward Anitha Pauldurai (5 foot 6 in) from the Indian side didn’t back down, playing a game-high 36 minutes and leading her team with 21 points.

Four years later, Anitha remembers that game against Jackson as one of the most memorable nights of her life. Considering the way this 25-year-old has evolved her game, she can be sure that there will many more nights like that to come.


Anitha, a resident of Chennai, started playing basketball at the age of 11, but admits that early on, she wasn’t a fan of the sport. “I used to like volleyball and athletics more,” she said, “But when I was in school, the basketball coach recommended that I try the game. The more I played, the more interested I became in the sport.”

As she kept improving and working her way up the ranks, Anitha was also lucky enough to be part of a family that supported her ambitions. Her father, a retired police head-constable, gave her the green light early to do ‘whatever she liked’, and Anitha didn’t look back. “I didn’t really have a role model in the game,” Anitha said, “I just love sport and love to play. I joined the game of basketball, got good coaching, and so I continued.”

After years of success, Anitha now finds herself as in integral part of the Indian Sr. Women’s Team that is heading to Guangzhou, China, to take part in the 2010 Asian Games. The team is being coached by the former WNBA player and American head coach Tamika Raymond, who has seen great potential in the Tamil Nadu girl.

Anitha’s unique skill-set ensures that she can become a devastating weapon for India. She plays the small forward position in the team, or the “three” – but has the ability to control the ball and play point guard as well. This ability to switch between positions, her skill to drive in and attack the basket, and her high shooting percentage, all add up to create a great all-round player.


The team has spent the past month working with Raymond in Chennai, and is now ready to head out to China for the Asian games, which are set to kick off on November 12th. “I’m very happy to have Coach Raymond working with us,” says Anitha. “Her coaching style is very different. We know we are many years behind the world’s best, so we’re working hard with her to catch up. Our practices have been shorter, but extremely intense.”

The Women’s team is still searching for an identity, but Anitha hopes that a few practice games before the real tournament kicks off will help each player understand their role. Anitha is already looking forward to the challenge that the Indians can pose. “We have some good players,” she said, “Geethu has the potential to be in the WNBA. The rest of the squad is a young, exciting team. What they lack in experience they make up by aggression!”

Anitha seems to be the perfect archetype of the aggressive, confident, young Indian player. Her favourite move, she says, is to slash and drive in to the basket, wading by two or three defensive players, and scoring. She dreams of looking opponents in the eye and driving to score past them.

Be it competition like China, Korea, and Thailand that the Indian Women’s team will face in Guangzhou, or Lauren Jackson, the world’s best, one thing is for sure: Anitha P. won’t back down!

Indian Sr. National Teams named for 2010 Asian Games

The Sr. National Basketball teams to represent India in the Men’s and Women’s basketball competition at the Guangzhou (China) Asian games, set to be held from Nov 12-27, have been announced.

This is the first time that India will be taking part in this tournament in 28 years. Indian basketball teams had last played in the competition at the Asian Games in New Delhi in 1982.

Vishesh Bhriguvanshi (Men) and Prashanti Singh (Women) have been named the captains of their squads. For the first time, the Indian National teams are being led by American coaches: Bill Harris for the Men’s team and Tamika Raymond for the Women.

Teams

Men

Vishesh Bhriguvanshi (Captain)
Jairam Jat
Jagdeep Singh
Prakash Mishra
Sunil Rathee
Yadivinder Singh
Kiran Pal Singh
Trideep Rai
Hareesh Coroth
Dinesh
Eudrick Pereira
Dishant Shah
Head Coach: Bill Harris
Assistant Coach: Rajinder Singh

Women

Prashanti Singh (Captain)
Geethu Anna Jose
P Anitha
Bharti Netam
Pratima Singh
Akanksha Singh
Pushpa
Harjeet Kaur
Raja Priyadarshini
Sneha Rajguru
Smriti Radhakrishnan
Rajpreet Sandhu
Head Coach:Tamika Raymond
Assistant Coach: Sat Prakash Yadav

The Men’s team will face Afghanistan in Group D of the Preliminary Round 1 on November 13. If India wins, they will join the winners of Group B (either Philippines or Saudi Arabia) into Group F of the Preliminary Round 2. Chinese Taipei, Japan, Qatar, and Iran are the other teams in Group F. 17 men’s teams in total are participating in Asian Games Men’s Basketball.

The Indian Men's team will travel to Hong Kong on October 5th to play some friendly matches in preparation for the competition in China.

Only seven women’s teams are participating, and the Indian Sr. Women’s National Team has been drawn in Women’s Group X along with China, Korea, and Thailand.

Indian Men and Women teams drawn for Asian Games Basketball

The 2010 Asian Games are a little more than a month away, and preparations for the Indian senior basketball teams at the competition have been going on in full swing in Chennai. The men's and women's national teams have also been blessed recently with two new American coaches Bill Harris and Tamika Raymond respectively to guide them into this crucial competition.

Now, the draw has been made: the draw was held at a ceremony in host city Guangzhou (China) on October 7th, draws were made in in eight sports, including Basketball, Water Polo, Handball, Sepak Takraw, Rugby, Football, Volleyball and Gymnastics (Artistic, Rhythmic and Trampoline).

And if you don't know what Sepak Takraw is, neither did I until about three seconds ago. Okay - I did know the game, I just didn't know what it was called. Sepak Takraw is "kick-volleyball", where you combine football and volleyball together.

Anyways, back to the hoops draws. 17 Men's teams will be participating - and the Men's draw is looking complicated. The better eight of these teams (China, Korea, Uzbekistan, Jordan, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Qatar, Iran) have been placed into second round groups E and F. The rest of the team are spread across Groups A-D. The winners of Group A and C join Group E in the second round, and the winners of Group B and D join group F in the second round.

All good so far? Now, India is in Group D along with Afghanistan. If they win, they can move on to the next round to play Chinese Taipei, Jordan, Qatar, and Iran in group F. And it's not going to be a cakewalk, mind you, because the last time the Sr. Men's team were in competitive action at the South Asian Games, they lost to only one team (including the final): Afghanistan - who actually beat India twice in the competition.

The other teams in the men's pool are: Hong Kong, Kuwait, DPR Korea, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, Mongolia.

The Women's pool in the tournament only has seven teams divided into two Groups. Indian Women are in Group X, along with China, Korea, and Thailand. Chinese Taipei, Japan, and Maldives are in the Group Y.

The 16th Asian Games will be held from November 12-27, 2010