2011 FIBA ABC Review: China win final over Jordan; India end 14th

Oh, it was all good just a few weeks ago. In India's first game at the 2011 FIBA Asia Basketball Championship, we held a seven point lead in the final quarter over Lebanon, a team ranked 26 places above us in the FIBA world rankings. We ended up losing that game, by the way, and then, losing everything else that came in our way. A week later, our campaign ended with a loss to Indonesia as we finished the championship at 14th place. That was a depressing finish to my cautiously optimistic hopes before the tournament. Now, the tournament is over, and after weeks of unpredictable and exciting basketball, there is a familiar name at the top of the rankings.

In front of an electric crowd in Wuhan, hosts China rose to the top of FIBA Asia after a silver medal two years ago by edging out the tough Jordan side 70-69 in a classic final of the championship on Sunday. Led by tournament MVP Yi Jianlian, China claimed the gold medal and booked their place in the 2012 Olympic Games basketball tournament in London.

The final win was a culmination of a perfect 9-0 record in the competition. China lifted the FIBA ABC trophy for the 15th time.

Jordan walked out of the arena with their heads held high having entered the gold medal game for the first time. Jordan did extremely well beyond expectations to keep the contest even till the final buzzer. Despite finishing 2nd in their preliminary round group, and fourth in the second round group, Jordan did the impossible by defeating last year's champs Iran in a classic Quarter Final and then getting a win over a strong Philippines side in the Semis.

For China, Yi accounted for 11 of his team-high 25 points in the third quarter. Yi also had 16 points in the final. Yi continues to confound me, as he is such a dominant force back home but a super-flop in the NBA. Supposed to be China's next big thing after Yao, Yi has bounced around 3 NBA teams in the past four years, and has put up just 8.5 ppg in the course of his career, where he has never been able to earn major NBA minutes. He had his worst year with the Wizards last season, playing only 17.7 minutes a game and putting up just 5.6 ppg. He comes back home and completely DOMINATES Asia, averaging 16.6 ppg and 10.8 rpg as MVP of the championship.

Rasheim Wright was at the vanguard of the Jordanian cause in the Final with a game-high 26 points.

Earlier on Sunday, the 3rd/4th place match-up between Korea and Philippines was also a nail biting affair, won by Korea 70-68. Sungmin Cho led the way for Korea with 20 points. The high-scorers for Philippines were Marcus Douthit (27) and Jim Alapag (17).

Final Standings:

1. China

2. Jordan

3. Korea

4. Philippines

5. Iran

All Tournament Team:

PG: Osama Daghles (Jordan)

SG: Takuya Kawamura (Japan)

SF: Samad Nikkah Bahrami (Iran)

PF: Yi Jianlian (China) - MVP

C: Hamed Haddadi (Iran)

Meanwhile, the Indian contingent completed the tournament with a 1-4 record to end at 14th place. That record is misleading, by the way, because India didn't exactly 'win' a single game at the tournament: we were handed a victory in our 13-16 classification game over Qatar without even playing them. Qatar were made to forfeit their games after their players 'deliberately lost' a couple of earlier games after five of their players were disqualified without proper nationality documentation.

And we started off as well as we possibly could! Grouped with tough Lebanon and Korea, and with Malaysia, a team we were expected to beat, India needed just one win to move on to the next round. India played without a consistent starting lineup: Vishesh Bhriguvanshi, Jagdeep Singh, and Yadwinder Singh were our regular starters, and the other two places were rotated between Hareesh Koroth, TJ Sahi, and Trideep Rai.

We almost got our one win unexpectedly, against Lebanon. After trailing by 13 at the end of halftime, India went on an epic third quarter run, perhaps the finest quarter of basketball played by the Indian men's team in recent history, as they outscored the superpower Lebanon 32-14 behind a barrage of three and two pointers by Hareesh Koroth and TJ Sahi.

Less than two minutes away from the final buzzer, India held a one-point lead and were on the verge of making history. But a heroic performance by Lebanon's Jean Abd El Nour denied India its chance at history, as Lebanon survived to win 71-68. El Nour scored eight of his game-high 24 points in the dying minutes of the game to defeat the enthusiastic Indian outfit.

Hareesh Koroth had 20 points for India and TJ Sahi added 18.

The game against Malaysia the next night was to be our make or break game: we are ranked much higher than them, and if we had won, we would've immediately improved to our 13th place ranking from 2009 and had a chance to move into the final 12. But an end game burst by Malaysia saw them emerge as 71-67 winners and virtually clinched their place in the second round, giving India another last-minute heartbreak.

The game swung back and forth like a pendulum: India fell back once again at halftime in this match-up trailing to their opponents by 16 points at the break. But once again, India showed their third-quarter resolve, outscoring Malaysia 24-12 in the period and bringing the game close again. The fourth quarter see-sawed between both the sides, and with the game tied in the final minutes, lower-ranked Malaysia made a final run to edge out a close win.

Malaysia were led by Ban Sin Ooi, who scored 20 points in the game, although the game's best individual performance came from India's experienced big man Jagdeep Singh Bains, who had a heroic 25 points and 11 rebounds in the loss.

We were never expected to challenge Korea in our final group game, and we didn't: Korea scored the first eight points of the game and only grew in strength thereafter before romping through for a 84-53 win against India on Saturday to complete their Group A engagements with an all-win record. It was India's third consecutive loss in the tournament, which saw them finish at the bottom of the group and eliminated from the second round.

Trideep Rai’s 11 points was the only double digit score for India. Despite the disappointment, coach Natt looked at the positives after the game and commented: "We have a long way in terms of going anywhere in Asian competitions. But I think we are making a start with this young team."

Out of the Second Round and forced to settle for 13-16 qualification, India got a lucky break when we were handed a 20-0 win against Qatar because of the forfeit. We played Indonesia in the 13/14th place match, a team that, with all of our revamped efforts we should've defeated. But like our effort against Malaysia earlier, we once again came up short. India trailed most of the way in the competitive game and failed to close the gap between the two sides, as Indonesia won 84-75.

India’s sharp-shooter Hareesh Koroth continued his bright showing at the championship, with 22 points off the bench to lead all scorers in the game. India were close the whole game, and trailed by just seven points at halftime. Indonesia continued to slowly extend their lead, and a decent fourth quarter by the Indian side was a little too late to prevent the loss.

This tournament was the first large scale international exposure for the Indian team under new NBA coach Kenny Natt. Despite the low ranking, India showed flashes of their potential under the new coach, highlighted with the near-upset of Lebanon in their first game. It's tough to say why we under-performed against Malaysia and Indonesia, but perhaps the near-slaying of the giants Lebanon, and the eventual loss, may have been crushed the players' spirits a bit.

This tournament also gave the chance to several young Indian players to gain valuable experience, and the likes of Amjyot Singh and Amrit Pal Singh stepped up to make their contributions to the squad. Amjyot is the one player who really excites me for the future: playing limited minutes of the bench, Amjyot led India in rebounding (7.3 rpg) and had several important hustle points. Amjyot also averaged 1.8 blocks per game, good enough for second-place in the tournament, only to Iran's Hamed Haddadi, who plays for the Memphis Grizzlies!

With 1.8 steals per game, India's TJ Sahi finished at joint first place with Sun Yue (China), Osama Daghles (Jordan), and Ibrahim Ahmad (UAE) in steals average.

Our best player was Hareesh Koroth, who led the team in scoring (15.3 ppg) and was our only consistent scoring threat. Jagdeep Singh played pretty well, too, averaging 12.5 ppg and 6.0 rpg in the championship.

The biggest disappointment was Vishesh Bhriguvanshi, our former captain and a personal favourite of mine. Playing major minutes, and usually, a major offensive force, Vishesh had 17 points TOTAL in the tournament, averaging just 4.3 points per game shooting an awful 16 perfect from the field. Ugh!

All the stats above, by the way, were compiled by Siddharth Sharma for SportsKeeda.

At the end, our ranking actually fell one place from 13th to 14th this year. So, where do we go from here? I made a note in a post last week about India's glaring weakness - the point guard position - and Coach Kenny Natt's desperate need to find a consistent general to lead our side. Beyond that, the future doesn't look too bad for us, actually. This tournament ended on a sad note, but we have a *very* young squad who will only get stronger with this experience. I am talking about our young under 20 bigs Amjyot and Amrit Pal who are on a fast-track to improvement. And of course there's 15 year old Satnam Singh Bhamara, who got limited minutes in the tournament but will be better off with the exposure of this big stage.

Natt had only a few months with this team to not only raise the talent level of the players at hand, but to also attempt to change the culture and improve the system of hoops in India. With this championship over, he now has two more years until the next one, two more years to train the future crop of Indian players, and to help us make that long-awaited 'baby step' improvement on the international stage.

Congrats for the win China; and India will be looking forward to 2013.

Start dribbling kids; India needs a point guard

When I was younger, one of my favourite movies was the Michael Jordan/Bugs Bunny starrer Space Jam (Unshameful disclosure: it still is one of my favourites, actually). What I loved almost as much as the movie though was the soundtrack. Chris Rock and Barry White captured it best when speaking about the emotions of a young wannabe basketball star in 'Basketball Jones'.

Then one day, my mama bought me a basketball
And I loved that basketball
I took that basketball with me everywhere I went
That basketball was like a basketball to me
I even put that basketball underneath my pillow
Maybe that's why I can't sleep at night

Aah. How I wish to see the day when hundreds and thousands of young kids in India will grow up with the 'Jones'. When they fall in love with a basketball as much as they love the cricket bat. When they keep dribbling, day and night, so that the by the time they grow up the basketball becomes an extension to their own body.

No position on the basketball court has more of a 'basketball-an-extension-to-the-body' feel than the point guard. The PG spends (or should spent) more time than any other player on the court with the basketball in their hands, and in my opinion, clearly is the most important guy on the court.

Point guards are in fashion, aren't they; well at least, in the NBA world they are. Derrick Rose won the MVP award and made it possible for a point guard, for the smallest man on the court, to be a volume scorer and be in a fantastic winning team. Iverson of course did it first, but he was never strictly a PG; the likes of Eric Snow were deputised to bring the ball up for him and them let him go ballistic.

Where am I going with this? Well, a few months ago, the NBA brought over Brandon Jennings to India, another 6 foot tall (or short, by NBA standards) point guard who preached the good word that we didn't need to be tall to be an effective basketball player. It's an easy message to be bought by the Indian hoops loving public, because seven-footers (or six-foot-nines, or six-foot-sixes) are a difficult commodity to find. It was the same in China, of course, a country made popular in basketball by Yao Ming, but in reality, most of their aspiring stars, like ours are much shorter and dream of moulding their game in the Iverson/Rose/Nash/Paul etc blueprint.

So, selling point guards in India should be easy, right? If anything, we should be teeming with point guards behind every nook and cranny, basti, and gullie, right?

Wrong.

India is in desperate need of a point guard, or two. Our national team's performances at the FIBA Asia Championship (ABC) in China over the past week proved this point even further. India played four games, lost them all (even the ones we should've won). Our only 'win' was a Qatar forfeit, and we returned with a 14th place finish. It was a disappointing performance, and one that I will get into in more detail when the tournament finishes.

India hired former NBA coach Kenny Natt to be our head coach. Natt, a brilliant and experienced leader, has had some experience with good point guards in the past: he was the assistant coach to Jerry Sloan with the Utah Jazz, where a certain John Stockton (you know, one of the best PGs ever, who holds the NBA record for most career assists and steals blah blah blah) was at the helm. Natt chose to take a different challenge by coming to India, and even before the FIBA ABC began, he made clear that, despite his happiness with the team at hand, there was a little 'situation' in the point guard position.

This is what he said in an interview with The Mint at the beginning of August:

We’re pretty good with our small forwards, and the two guard, and four and five are in pretty good shape too, but our point guard situation is in limbo. Obviously Sambhaji (Kadam) has taken the lead in that respect. He’s a veteran and he’s shown leadership on the floor, but with his age who knows how long his body is going to hold up.

Sambhaji Kadam is the 'Jason Kidd' of Indian players: a smary, savvy veteran, known for years to be one of India's best ball handlers and creators. He wasn't without fault in his prime of course, but few are.

Unfortunately, Natt's worries about Kadam proved to be right, as an injury prevented the veteran from joining the team in China.

What happened next? India were left with able ball-handlers, who weren't strictly point guards, but were forced to play out of position without our one true leader. Vishesh Bhriguvanshi, a natural SG/SF, is a great all-round talent, but had a troubling championship because he forced to handle the ball too much and couldn't get into his natural flow of the game. Hareesh Koroth is one of the team's best shooters and perimeter defenders, but his handle and creation has always been kind of iffy. Prakash Mishra is a good guard, but not up to the elite level. And then there's Talwinder Singh 'TJ' Sahi, India's best answer to 'The Answer', who has modeled his game a little too much around Iverson: Sahi is a brilliant scorer but wasn't the kind of floor general/passer that fulfilled Natt's needs.

India did have, in my opinion, someone I felt who was close to the 'ideal' PG to fill in Sambhaji's exalted shoes: Arjun 'Golu' Singh. Arjun Singh is one of the best floor generals I have seen, and who has shown the ability to switch between perfect provider and perfect scorer with ease. But Golu has had a troubled year since his huge performance at the Federation Cup back in February: he suffered an injury that kept him out of the early days at the National camp in Delhi; then, when he was healthy enough to participate, he was found guilty of a minor illegal substance misuse issue; and then he got hurt again. He's still only 21 and may still make that comeback, but we wonder if he will ever live up to the potential that India needs of him.

There are other options of course. Experienced players who are just not good enough to make the cut. Young players with potential to be decent but not great. We need better than that.

After three losses at the FIBA ABC, and three games without a proper PG, this is what Natt said in an interview with FIBA.com:

Natt... I have been around long enough to know it's very hard to compete without a point guard, they're an extension of the coach out on the floor. Our guys have played hard without a point guard, they've shown they can come out and compete.
FIBA: Is it hard to develop point guards without little kids growing up in India with a ball in their hands, playing the game every day?
NATT: That's the way it happens. Even now I see basketballs being bounced in India, and that's when you know you are getting there. When you can drive down the street and you see the ball under the arm, or someone's dribbling the ball or they're playing basketball in the park, that's when you know they're getting the message of basketball. The Indian people love it, it's just a matter of us continuing to expose them to it.

What the great coach is talking about right there is what Chris Rock and Barry White talked about on the Space Jam soundtrack. The Basketball Jones. We need a child to love basketball so much that he never lets go of it. We need neighbourhoods of children competing on who's got the quickest crossover. We need players who become so familiar with the basketball that, in the game situations, they can focus on leading, passing, and creating the play, and letting the basketball do the handling for itself, like an extension of their own body.

So listen: you, 11-year-old in Mumbai or Ahmedabad or Chennai or Kapurthala, with dreams of becoming an NBA star: pick up that basketball and just start dribbling. Dribbling it when you're sitting down. Dribble it when you're standing up. Dribble it when you're studying and dribble it when you're watching TV. Dribble two basketballs, practice the crossover, get faster, dribble while you run, dribble, stop, and quickly start dribbling again.

As I've learnt from personal experience, few things in basketball are as difficult to master as great handle on the ball, but the younger you start, the more you master it. When you master it, you can look up and see the court, run back and forth, easily spotting the open man, deciding the right time to pass, or whether to pass at all. You will do what the Jason Kidds, Steve Nashs, Chris Pauls, John Stocktons, and Magic Johnsons of the world do best. And you will do this without needing to look down at the basketball, which will be doing the dribbling itself; it will become another part of your body, a weirdly-shaped limb that you can control to a certain extent.

India needs you kids: go out and get that Basketball Jones.

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.

India is going to the FIBA Asia Championship - Natt's team takes shape

We must start, as Kenny Natt would probably prefer it, with the defense.

As you may have already heard, the Indian Senior Men's Basketball team had a better than great week at the office, er, court. India hosted four other SAARC teams (Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan) and competed in the Middle Asia Zone Qualifiers for the 26th FIBA Asia Basketball Championship. The Qualifiers were held at the Thyagraj Stadium in New Delhi from July 13-15th; the FIBA ABC will be held in Wuhan (China) from September 15-25.

Yes, India were supposed to have an easy time against the SAARC rivals, but this easy? Former NBA Head Coach Kenny Natt, who was hired less than two months ago, saw the Young Cagers play in their first competitive international action under him, and the results were glorious. India won the qualifiers and booked their ticket for China, beating Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and then Sri Lanka again in the Final.

But back to the aforementioned defense. In those three games, India played its most inspired and organised defensive basketball I had ever seen. In the three games, India's hapless opponents made 37 field goals and committed 65 turnovers. India were ruthless, and they were ruthless from the beginning till the end. The turnovers led to quick offense and fast-break points on the other end.

These were your Final scores:

Pool A Game: India 99, Sri Lanka 42

Semi Final: India 120, Bangladesh 26

Final: India 89, Sri Lanka 35

India won each game by an average margin of nearly 68 points per game, and they managed it with only three players averaging in double digits! The defense was marvelous, with India holding their opposition to just 35 points per contest.

The next thing I must mention is balance: with the opposition giving less than an inspired challenge, Natt was able to play all of its 12 players on the roster regularly. Nobody played less than 10 minutes a game, and no one played more than 23. India played amazingly unselfish basketball, and looked like a real team. Whenever an extra pass could be made, it was. Wing players like Vishesh Bhriguvanshi, Hareesh Koroth, Trideep Rai, and Prakash Mishra got a large number of open looks from the three point line because of the great passing and spacing, and the players did well to convert their open looks.

Despite averaging over 100 points a game, India's leading scorer, Vishesh, only put up 15 a game individually. Jagdeep Singh, who was one of the most explosive players on the court, made it a point to fire up the crowd and indimidate the opponents by a wide array of dunks, and averaged 12.33 points a game.

The only other player to crack a double digit average was a surprise package - 20-year-old big man Amrit Pal Singh has really come into his own under Natt. Amrit Pal was amazingly efficient, playing just 12 minutes a game but averaging 13.33 ppg to become India's second highest scorer. His presence in the post will a boon for the Indian team in the future, and his combination of size, strength, and speed, will send shivers down opponents' backs if he continues to improve the way he has.

I was also impressed by India's backcourt bench players, Koroth and Mishra, both of whom played the most amount of minutes in the qualifiers. They were both very influential in both creating the offense for others and of course, scoring themselves.

Natt's squad had great balance to it in terms of youth and experience. Two players thought to have been left behind by Indian Basketball's youth wave - Sambhaji Kadam and Riyazuddin - made great comebacks to the national side. Kadam was India's starting point guard, led the team in assists, and had a Jason Kidd-esque veteran role as the team's mature leader. Riyaz came off the bench to give valuable minutes as a glue-guy.

And then there's the youth: Punjab's young, big men Amjyot Singh (19) and Satnam Singh Bhamara (15) took important strides as their made their India debut. Both youngsters showed nervousness at times but also showed flashes of their incredible potential.

Oh, yes, you read that last paragraph right. Satnam Singh Bhamara, 15. That same 15-year-old, seven-foot-one, son of a Punjabi farmer, who is currently at a basketball scholarship at the IMG Academy in Florida (USA), and in his holidays, made a debut with the Indian national team and led them in rebounds (yes, he did). Bhamara is still nervous, still makes silly mistakes, still has slow reactions. But hell, he's FIFTEEN. Bhamara has a long way to go, but this tournament was a crucial first step in his development as a star for India.

Natt, a former NBA coach, had little knowledge or experience with Asian competition, but he did a great job in keeping India disciplined, no matter how ridiculously lopsided the advantage seemed.

So that was India - mostly good news and positivity. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for our opposition. And that is what concerns me, and that is what clearly concerned Natt, who will of course be playing against much upgraded competition in Wuhan. India has been grouped alongside Lebanon, Korea, and Malaysia. There will be no more 94 point wins and Natt will have little room to experiment with the bench. The FIBA Asia Championships will be a different animal, of course, and against certain competition, India may well be at the receiving end of the kind of punishment they have handed the SAARC competition.

"We're still a young group of guys, and we will still be getting better as a defensive team after each game," Natt told reporters after his first game as coach, "I'm really looking down the road, looking to get better defensively for the future."

And just as it had begun, we must also end with the defense. India will rarely get easier challenges than they did this week, but to toughen up against the big boys, it will be defense that will dictate the team's future.

Indian Men's Basketball: Dream Team

India has sent several different Men's teams to international competitions over the past year. These have included the South Asian Games at Dhaka in January, the Asian Games at Guanzhou in November, and the Super Kung Sheung Cup at Hong Kong in December. Additionally, a talented bunch of Indian youngsters represented the country at the Junior FIBA Asia Championships at Yemen in September. Of course, many fans got a chance to watch their favourite players in action for their states/clubs at the National Championship that was held at New Delhi in December/January.

Now, with all these different squads, which have included several new omissions, players left out due to injury/behaviour reasons, or other changes, it is hard to decide what would be India's strongest Men's side.

Fear not: what I have decided to compile here is my personal favourite pick of Indian players. If I was India's coach/selector, this is the squad of 12 I would pick to represent the country in International competitions. I have tried to pick a good blend of players with different sizes and abilities that I feel will complement each other. Also, this team should be a good blend of youth and experience - seniors to help lead the squad, players in their prime, and youngsters to provide the right kind of energy and hunger.

My Indian Dream Team

Starting Five
PG: TJ Sahi
SG: Vishesh Bhriguvanshi (Captain)
SF: Trideep Rai
PF: Jagdeep Singh
C: Yadivinder Singh
Bench
Hareesh Koroth
Dinesh CV
Dishant Shah
Arjun Singh
Amjyot Singh
Sambaji Kadam
Jai Ram Jat

As you may notice, I've picked players like Sahi and Kadam, who are now in exile from the national system, but I feel who are strong enough to still make a difference at the biggest stage.

Here are some players who I would like to give honourable mention to: S. Robinson, Kiran Pal Singh, Prakash Mishra, Eudrick Pereira, Bobby Singh, Sunil Rathee, Ajay Pratap Singh.

Over to you now: if you could pick your Indian Men's Dream Team, what would it be?

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.