Mumbai, April 24:National Basketball Association (NBA) champion Harrison Barnes of Sacramento Kings will visit India to promote basketball growth in the country and the upcoming NBA India Games 2019, the association said on Wednesday. Barnes, who won an NBA Championship with the
More
Mumbai, April 24:National Basketball Association (NBA) champion Harrison Barnes of Sacramento Kings will visit India to promote basketball growth in the country and the upcoming NBA India Games 2019, the association said on Wednesday.
Barnes, who won an NBA Championship with the Golden State Warriors in 2015, will first stop in Delhi NCR on April 28 to attend the Reliance Foundation junior NBA National Finals at The NBA Academy India.
He will then travel to Mumbai for live television appearances on Sony Ten 1 and Sony Ten 3’s NBA wraparound shows on April 30, before returning to Delhi on May 3 to attend the National Finals of the fourth ACG-NBA Jump, India’s national basketball talent search programme.
“This trip to India will be a great opportunity for me to get a sneak peek at the local culture before the upcoming pre-season games in Mumbai this October,” said Barnes.
“I look forward to being a part of that historic event, and I’m excited to help support the NBA’s various basketball development initiatives in India,” he added.
Now in its sixth year, the 2018-19 Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA programme has engaged more than 6.3 million youth in 34 cities nationwide. The programme – the largest in its six-year history – focuses on inspiring youth to adopt a healthy, active lifestyle by integrating basketball into the physical education curriculum of the 7,900 participating schools.
New Delhi, March 26: With an aim to revolutionize basketball in India, Red Bull Reign, a unique 3-on-3 global basketball tournament, will start in India for the first time.
This summer, Red Bull has invited ballers from across the country to test their skills at this global high-endurance tournament.
Starting on April 7, the basketball tournament will be held across 12 cities: Chennai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Goa, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, Aizawl, Guwahati, Delhi, Ludhiana and Jaipur.
The city winners will battle it out at the national final in Mumbai in the first week of June and the India winner will represent the country at the World Finals later in the year.
Open for men who are 16+ years, Red Bull Reign will use a unique set of rules based on the gameplay of the International Basketball Federation’s (FIBA) rules.
Beijing, March 13: The Chinese men’s national basketball team is aiming to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, and to make their best effort to achieve good results, Yao Ming, president of the Chinese Basketball Association, has said.
The FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019, which will be held in China from August 31 to September 15, will be a vital test for Chinese men’s national basketball team. “To achieve direct access to the Tokyo Olympics, we must be first in the Asian Zone of the World Cup,” said Yao.
It will be the first time ever for the tournament to be held in the world’s most populous country, reports Xinhua news agency.
“I hope some Chinese basketball players can come to the fore through this event and be remembered even after a decade,” Yao said.
Yao, also a CPPCC National committee member, submitted a proposal to China’s top advisory body last year about promoting “small basketball,” which features a smaller size ball, a lower basket and a smaller area to help youth of different ages to avoid injury.
“A hundred thousand small basketball players have been enrolled in the Chinese Basketball Association after one year. We hope the promotion of small basketball can gain more support from parents, which is of great importance to lay a solid foundation for China’s basketball development,” he added.
Los Angeles, Feb 27: Legendary centre Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is auctioning hundreds of items from his memorabilia collection, including four of his five NBA championship rings he won with the Los Angeles Lakers, his website said.
Most of the proceeds from the auction, which is run by Goldin Auctions, will go to his “Skyhook Foundation” charity to help children learn about science, technology, engineering and math, according to the website statement issued on Tuesday, reports Efe news.
In addition to the championship rings from 1980, 1985, 1987 and 1988, which he won as a member of the Lakers, Abdul-Jabbar is also auctioning the signed and registered uniform he wore during his final game in 1989.
During his brilliant 20-season professional career, the first NBA player to do so, Abdul-Jabbar broke the all-time best by scoring 38,387 points.
In his career, he also achieved 17,440 rebounds and 3,189 blocks in the 1,560 games he played, first with the Milwaukee Bucks team, with whom he won his first NBA championship ring. Then he got five more with the Lakers.
“When it comes to choosing between storing a championship ring or trophy in a room, or providing kids with an opportunity to change their lives, the choice is pretty simple. Sell it all,” Abdul-Jabbar wrote in his blog about why he auctions the valuable memorabilia of his sports history.
Abdul-Jabbar, 71, also writes that “Looking back on what I have done with my life, instead of gazing at the sparkle of jewels or gold plating celebrating something I did a long time ago, I’d rather look into the delighted face of a child holding their first caterpillar and think about what I might be doing for their future. That’s a history that has no price.”
Some of the championship rings start with a minimum bid of $60,000. T-shirts, uniforms, trophies and even several keys to the cities he received are also available on the website.
“Since my life is still happening and ever-evolving, I am less personally attached to those items than I am to my desire to create new history for myself-and futures for others,” Abdul-Jabbar said.
“Giving low-income children the opportunity to grow up as students of science, mathematics, technology and engineering is a big deal,” he added.
New Delhi, Feb 6: Former Olympic champion Jennifer Azzi is confident that the NBA schools in India will change the scenario for bastketball in the not too distant future.
The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) legend, who is currently the head coach of the women’s team at the University of San Francisco, asserted that with the NBA carrying out several programmes in India over the last few years, Indian players will soon feature in the top leagues around the world.
“I don’t think the day is too far away when India will be a force to reckon with, at least in Asia. The NBA has started basketball schools in India in partnership with different organisations. I think it is just the matter of time and it is just the matter of exposure,” Azzi told IANS in an interview.
Azzi said if proper infrastructure and grass roots training were put in place, the sport had potential to grow in India.
The 50-year-old was in the country to conduct an NBA Academy camp in Greater Noida and was impressed with the talent on display.
“Definitely, basketball can be the sport for the Indian women. Access is pretty easy, you can go up by yourself with the ball. It’s a great sport and an international sport. Everyone around the world knows basketball,” she said.
“India has such tremendous potential for young boys and girls to play the sport at such high level. I think what is lacking is the infrastructure for youngsters,” said Azzi.
“So that’s one advantage that we have in the US is that it is very organised at a young age and there are opportunities that are pretty clear and messages are pretty clear because we see it on television, we see it on all around us in school, and basketball is a very popular sport there,” she explained.
Azzi was happy the NBA Academy is nurturing young talent with their development programmes.
“Here I have seen the emphasis on education is huge. Parents here are very much involved in children’s education. I think that’s very synergistic with our messaging with NBA and NBA academy that we want to see young people use the sport as a way to get education and there are great places around the world,” she said.
Washington, Dec 26: Basketball star LeBron James injured his groin and will take a MRI test later on Wednesday.
James left halfway in the third quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers’ 127-101 win over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday. He did not come back for the rest of the match, reports Xinhua news agency.
“He will get a MRI tomorrow and we will have a better understanding of what he has got going on,” Lakers coach Luke Walton said.
The victory snapped Lakers’ 11-game losing streak on the Warriors’ home court in six years. James had 17 points, 13 rebounds and five assists before he left.
New Delhi, Nov 15: India’s Sanjana Ramesh has received a Division I basketball scholarship with NAU women’s team for the 2019-20 season.
On Wednesday, Northern Arizona head coach Loree Payne announced Sanjana Ramesh (Bangalore) and Emily Rodabaugh (Lynnwood, Washington) as the newest Lumberjacks after the pair signed their National Letters of Intent.
Both Sanjana and Rodabaugh will be incoming freshmen for the 2019-20 season.
“With only two scholarships, we had to get two impact players and we did,” Payne said.
“Sanjana is an athlete who has international and national experience in India. We’re trying to get our foot in the door in the international recruiting scene and for us, Sanjana is everything we’re looking for.
“She’s a joyful kid and very thankful for the opportunity to come here and she’s going to be a heck of a player. Her potential is limitless.”
The 17-year-old became the second Indian-born female player to receive a Division I basketball scholarship.
In 2017, Sanjana had captained India’s U16 team in FIBA’s U16 Asia Cup.
There, the team went undefeated in Division B and won promotion to Division A for the next edition of the tournament.
She averaged 6.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game during the tournament and then proceeded to play for India in the 2018 William Jones Cup held in Taiwan.
Sanjana had also participated in The NBA Academies Women’s Program camp in May at The NBA Academy India.
Dwayne Bravo, on Wednesday, announced his retirement from international cricket, thus ending his 14-year journey with West Indies.
Dwayne Bravo will not be seen in a West Indies jersey again as he brought down curtains on his international career that began way back in 2004. He made his international debut during an ODI against England in 2004 before making his Test debut in the same year at the iconic Lord’s.
One of the most sought after allrounders in the world at the moment, Bravo, however, will continue to play franchise cricket and first-class cricket.
Read More – Rohit Sharma Pens Down Emotional Message For Praveen Kumar
“However, I must accept that for me to preserve my longevity as a professional cricketer, I must do as others before have done, leave the international arena for the next generation of players.”
Also Read – MS Dhoni Steps Out to Clear the Ropes With Ease
Bravo recently made himself available for the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force in the ongoing Regional Super50 in an attempt to get into the ODI side ahead of the World Cup. Bravo, who does not share an amicable relationship with West Indies Cricket Board, has not played an ODI since 2014.
The WICB had previously made it clear the high-profile names would need to perform in the Super50 to make their case for World Cup inclusion. But despite, Bravo making featuring in the domestic tournament, the WICB ignored him for the ongoing series in India. In fact, they did not include the allrounder in the T20 squad either despite his exploits in franchise cricket across the globe. This year, he helped Chennai Super Kings to the IPL title and successfully led Trinbago Knight Riders to an unprecedented title defence in CPL.
Must Read – Faf du Plessis rubbishes reports of AB de Villiers’ comeback
Bravo thus ends his career with just 40 Tests. He scored three centuries and 13 half-tons as a middle order batsman in the longest format of the game. With the ball, he took 86 wickets with two five wicket hauls and a bowling average of 39.83.
He represented West Indies in 164 ODIs, scoring two centuries and 10 half-centuries. He also took 199 wickets at an average of 29.51. His contribution in T20I was even more. In 66 games, he scored four fifties, picked up 52 wickets and helped the Caribbean outfit win two World T20 titles.
Also Read – Mohammed Hafeez praises ‘humble human’ Virat Kohli
La Laguna (Spain), Sep 27: The Spanish women’s basketball team defeated Senegal 63-48 and moved to the quarterfinals of the 2018 Women’s Basketball World Cup.
Spain was struggling with Senegal’s three-point shots in the first 20 minutes of the match (34-34) on Wednesday night.
Then, thanks to its defensive tactics, the Spanish squad ended the match comfortably with a victory over Senegal, reports Efe news. Spain will now face Canada in the quarters.
Ruse (Bulgaria), Sep 18: Brazil has defeated previously unbeaten Canada 3-1 (25-22, 19-25, 25-23, 25-18) to guarantee themselves a berth in the second round of the Volleyball Men’s World Championship.
After losing 3-1 to the Netherlands on Sunday, the reigning Olympic gold-medallists rebounded in spectacular fashion in front of 3,000 people at the Ruse Arena on Monday.
The first set was fairly even and Canada led 12-10 at one stage before succumbing 25-22 to a Brazil side powered by Wallace’s nine points, reports Efe news.
Canada reacted in the second set, dominating throughout to prevail 25-19 before falling 25-23 in the hard-fought third set.
The Brazilians cruised to a 25-18 decision in the fourth set to seal the victory.
Wallace led all scorers with 24 points. Canada’s most effective player was John Gordon Perrin, who scored 18 points.
With Monday’s outcome, the Dutch continue to lead Pool B with 11 points, followed by Canada (9) and Brazil (8).
Sixteen of 24 teams (four from each of the four pools) will advance to the second round of the championship, which runs through September 30 at venues in Italy and Bulgaria.
