A North American pro sports league first: NBA to play preseason games in Mumbai, India

[Desert Fox]

I used to think the same too....till I watched this movie, particularly this scene:

And they'll walk out to the bleachers, and sit in shirt-sleeves on a perfect afternoon. They'll find they have reserved seats somewhere along one of the baselines, where they sat when they were children and cheered their heroes. And they'll watch the game, and it'll be as if they'd dipped themselves in magic waters. The memories will be so thick, they'll have to brush them away from their faces.

The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time.

This field, this game -- it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good, and it could be again.

Ohhhhhhhh, people will come, Ray. People will most definitely come.

I mean can you really disagree with the mighty Vader-Mufasa himself?

@Joe Shearer @Retired Troll @Avicenna @VCheng @Hamartia Antidote @LeGenD @Desert Fox @Signalian @RabzonKhan @Cobra Arbok @OsmanAli98

One of the best films I have seen from my childhood, along with Sand Lot.

 

[Nilgiri]

One of the best films I have seen from my childhood, along with Sand Lot.

I just found a great comment on youtube heh @KAL-EL , I think it would speak to lot of Americans in the end:

I don't understand how NFL has become the top sport when there players are nothing but jackasses who care more about big contracts then playing the actual game. When a player holds out on a team for more money during a season then why bother playing the sport you love? Then you got the NBA who now they can't get passed a playoff with out people shouting it's rigged. That's why I always love baseball. It's poetry in motion. It's a game where anything can happen in a long season and teams can make a comeback like that. When in football you have sixteen weeks and you basically know already who's going to the playoffs by week seven. I can't recall a football stadium (maybe besides south bend but that's college) where I would get goosebumps just by walking in the gates. Places like Wrigley Field and Fenway Park are one of those places. Sorry for the rant it's one thirty in the morning where I live. But I love this game.

 

[Cobra Arbok]

Yep the NFL for me, nothing encompasses the American dream like American football. I remember growing up in the 80's watching the snow covered stadiums to the sunshine lit grass of the warm states where teams such as the New Orleans Saints played.
Just magical.
I support the indianapolis colts by the way, as that's where my father was given an opportunity to live for the rest of his life, citizenship and all, until my grandpa said "son I love it here" and that was that. It would have been my home.

My dad moved to Boston about 20 years ago, and since then he has been a die hard patriots fan. It's kind of funny because here in Florida there are not really any good NFL teams(we only have the Miami dolphins and the Jacksonville Jaguars), so most people support the teams of wherever they used to live, since most people here have moved from somewhere else. The Yankee vs. Red Sox rivalry is as strong here as it is up north. @KAL-EL @Nilgiri

 

[Novice09]

It is becoming more popular. The last time I was in Mumbai, I saw many schools, rec centers, and Housing compounds that had basketball courts.

It is popular and current generation have required physique...

 

[jamahir]

@jamahir

Not an admirer of basketball.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Yep the NFL for me, nothing encompasses the American dream like American football. I remember growing up in the 80's watching the snow covered stadiums to the sunshine lit grass of the warm states where teams such as the New Orleans Saints played.
Just magical.
I support the indianapolis colts by the way, as that's where my father was given an opportunity to live for the rest of his life, citizenship and all, until my grandpa said "son I love it here" and that was that. It would have been my home.

Hmm..you related to the old webmaster? Since he was living in Indianapolis and was a big Colts fan. https://defence.pk/pdf/threads/nfl-season-2014.329971/page-5#post-6653561

 

[VCheng]

“The sport is experiencing tremendous growth in India and we are excited about continuing to expand the NBA’s reach to fans across the globe,” he said. “The world wants to watch basketball, and India is a fast-growing new frontier."

So India follows USA into basketball like Japan did with baseball. That is great!

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

So India follows USA into basketball like Japan did with baseball. That is great!

Seems to be very big in China.

 

[VCheng]

Seems to be very big in China.

The Yao Ming effect?

 

[waz]

Hmm..you related to the old webmaster? Since he was living in Indianapolis and was a big Colts fan. https://defence.pk/pdf/threads/nfl-season-2014.329971/page-5#post-6653561

Nah no mate I've never had any relations on this website.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

The Yao Ming effect?

Certainly that helped.

 

[waz]

It is popular and current generation have required physique...

Two things here do you mean a physique for the game in India or to be able to compete against the Americans and other nations?
If you mean the game in general then Indians have no way a physique suited for basketball. You do realise you need to be tall to be competitive in the game don't you? Male professional basketball players tend to be about 9 inches taller than the average American male, according to NBA.com and Dr. Steven Halls on Halls.MD.com

The average American male is 5ft 9, although US Caucasians are taller than this i.e. 5FT 10/11 upwards, so you can do the maths right there.
The average Indian male is 5ft 4, way too short to be competitive in terms of US standards.

 

[Cobra Arbok]

Two things here do you mean a physique for the game in India or to be able to compete against the Americans and other nations?
If you mean the game in general then Indians have no way a physique suited for basketball. You do realise you need to be tall to be competitive in the game don't you? Male professional basketball players tend to be about 9 inches taller than the average American male, according to NBA.com and Dr. Steven Halls on Halls.MD.com

The average American male is 5ft 9, although US Caucasians are taller than this i.e. 5FT 10/11 upwards, so you can do the maths right there.
The average Indian male is 5ft 4, way too short to be competitive in terms of US standards.

Thee is a reason why most of the famous basketball players and most football players are African American. They tend to be taller and have more muscle mass than other races. However, keep in mind that there are communities in India that do have the required height to compete in basketball and other competitive sports, such as rajputs and Jatts. It is these people who currently dominate sports in India.
Anyway, here is the roster of the current Indian national basketball team.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India_national_basketball_team
There are a couple of giants there.
Amritpal Singh: 6 ft 11
Jagdeep SIngh: 6 ft 6
Rikin Pethani- 6 ft 8
Gurvinder Gil- 6 ft 7
Satnam Singh- 7ft 2
Akilan Puri- 5ft 10
Most of them are jatts and rajputs, mostly from Punjab. Anyway, the real challenge is not geight or physique, but appropriate training and facilities, which India lacked until recently. But tbh, the US is just in a different league when it comes to basketball, because it has over a century of experience with the sport. The likelihood of another country beating it is about the same as the US winning the World Cup.

 

[Novice09]

Two things here do you mean a physique for the game in India or to be able to compete against the Americans and other nations?
If you mean the game in general then Indians have no way a physique suited for basketball. You do realise you need to be tall to be competitive in the game don't you? Male professional basketball players tend to be about 9 inches taller than the average American male, according to NBA.com and Dr. Steven Halls on Halls.MD.com

The average American male is 5ft 9, although US Caucasians are taller than this i.e. 5FT 10/11 upwards, so you can do the maths right there.
The average Indian male is 5ft 4, way too short to be competitive in terms of US standards.

Thee is a reason why most of the famous basketball players and most football players are African American. They tend to be taller and have more muscle mass than other races. However, keep in mind that there are communities in India that do have the required height to compete in basketball and other competitive sports, such as rajputs and Jatts. It is these people who currently dominate sports in India.
Anyway, here is the roster of the current Indian national basketball team.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India_national_basketball_team
There are a couple of giants there.
Amritpal Singh: 6 ft 11
Jagdeep SIngh: 6 ft 6
Rikin Pethani- 6 ft 8
Gurvinder Gil- 6 ft 7
Satnam Singh- 7ft 2
Akilan Puri- 5ft 10
Most of them are jatts and rajputs, mostly from Punjab. Anyway, the real challenge is not geight or physique, but appropriate training and facilities, which India lacked until recently. But tbh, the US is just in a different league when it comes to basketball, because it has over a century of experience with the sport. The likelihood of another country beating it is about the same as the US winning the World Cup.

The craze for this sport is growing... facilities and diet are playing a BIG role...

 

[waz]

Thee is a reason why most of the famous basketball players and most football players are African American. They tend to be taller and have more muscle mass than other races. However, keep in mind that there are communities in India that do have the required height to compete in basketball and other competitive sports, such as rajputs and Jatts. It is these people who currently dominate sports in India.
Anyway, here is the roster of the current Indian national basketball team.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India_national_basketball_team
There are a couple of giants there.
Amritpal Singh: 6 ft 11
Jagdeep SIngh: 6 ft 6
Rikin Pethani- 6 ft 8
Gurvinder Gil- 6 ft 7
Satnam Singh- 7ft 2
Akilan Puri- 5ft 10
Most of them are jatts and rajputs, mostly from Punjab. Anyway, the real challenge is not geight or physique, but appropriate training and facilities, which India lacked until recently. But tbh, the US is just in a different league when it comes to basketball, because it has over a century of experience with the sport. The likelihood of another country beating it is about the same as the US winning the World Cup.

African American men are not the tallest, white folk are and they also have the greatest average heights around the world. African Americans do have more muscle mass, but lack the brute strength white athletes can produce, as their abilities are of the "fast twitch" variety so quick reactions, bursts and agility, hence excelling at Basketball. Whites can stack strength better, look at the world's strongest men, all white winners.
Right I understand that but still in terms of sheer numbers the US has more of a talent pool as the Jatt and Rajput numbers are only a fraction of the US population.
As for the team it is possible to assemble men similar to the benchmark height as they would already stand out in a very small Indian pool.
I do agree with the whole facilities thing and India or any country with the will to invest can have some degree of success.