The National Basketball Association (NBA), a mix of athleticism and entertainment, will go live for the first time in India on Friday. Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers, two squads from the American league, will play two pre-season games against each other at NSCI indoor stadium, Worli, as part of a venture to popularise the sport in Asia.
For one of the most famous basketball stars from Mumbai, Abbas Moontasir, there is more to be learnt from the dynamic sport than points and rebounds. “NBA players are probably the best athletes in the world. Our hockey or football players will be much better on the fitness front by watching these top pros; if not in the stadium then at least on television.”
A former India men team captain (1969 and 1975 Asian Basketball Championships, and selected on the Asian All-Star team in 1970 after displays at Bangkok Asian Games), he built a reputation for aggressive play and was fiercely competitive on court. “Our sportspersons must watch not only their ball handling and rebounding ability, but particularly their physical fitness. After seeing the Kings and Pacers train and play, I hope our players get ready to work harder,” the 1970 Arjuna awardee said.
He said, “As I was interested in the NBA, I went through the biodata of big names like Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell… to know about their practice schedule. It was unbelievable. Later on, I read about Kobe Bryant shooting 700 balls. I would be in hospital the next day had I shot that number of balls in training. I am sure Steven Curry (current NBA star with Golden State Warriors) must be doing the same thing, perhaps more.”
Mr. Moontasir developed through the ranks in city basketball at Nagpada’s Bachoo Khan ground, playing at school, college and university levels before breaking into the Western Railway and Indian team. Encouraged by brothers, he took up weight training to develop a physical playing style. Hoopsters were supposed to be thin and wiry, be he went against the convention to build a physique to match aggression on court in local and national competitions. He lost a chance to play in Europe when a proposed tour by the Asian All-Star squad did not happen, but educated himself about training via literature on NBA stars of his time. Because of his sheer competitiveness, the fiery young player had, on many occasions, invited the ire of match officials.
The 77-year-old Nagpada ace said these NBA teams are coming with top-class players, spending money on travelling to India.
“Some of them may go on to play in the Olympics, where over 200 nations compete for medals. In basketball and volleyball, the Olympic medal is bigger than the World Championships. Football is different where the World Cup title is bigger than an Olympic gold. I hope our players get motivated by watching these NBA players in action and aim for the Olympic Games.”
Mr. Moontasir admires Indian sporting skills and hopes the national players in different disciplines develop the fitness to go with them. “Better level of fitness will help our players last in the closing stages of a match. It applies to basketball, football and even hockey; our national teams face pressure in the closing stages and find it tough to handle. We have lost big games in the closing moments across sports; our players sometimes walk on court when they should be running.”
About watching NBA action on television, he said, “I used to love watching NBA about 20 years ago; the sport has changed today. NBA has its own rules while basketball played under FIBA (the sport’s world governing body) has its rules. The game is more physical than pure skill.”
As India captain, Mr. Moontasir had led the men team to fourth place at the 1975 Asian Championships. He retired from active play in 1986 at the National Championships, representing Maharashtra for the last two years of his career, and was active in local tournaments till 1990.
