While the nation raises a toast to Satnam Singh, the state of the Indian men’s basketball team here provides a sobering effect. The players, who are training at the Sree Kanteerava Indoor Stadium here, do not have much to cheer about.
The preparation camp for the upcoming South Asian Basketball Championship is being supervised by various national selectors, as the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) is yet to officially appoint a coach to take over.
The playing surface found in the indoor courts is made of recycled vinyl, which poses a huge injury risk. Wooden flooring – a standard feature in all international basketball venues – is surprisingly absent here.
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The national team also suffers from a lack of quality match-practice. While many Asian countries conduct tours to the USA and other highly-competitive basketball environments, the Indian team has competed in only five tournaments in the last year. In order to improve their skills, the squad members must be frequently pitted against players of a higher calibre. This is sorely lacking.
In the case of Satnam Singh, his career took a dramatic turn for the better when he was noticed by scouts from the IMG Academy. He then moved to Florida - where the academy is based - at the age of 14. The world-class facility catered to his every need - basketball skills, diet, fitness and workout schedules. The Indian team, however, receives no such benefits. Satnam's owes his rise to the timely intervention from IMG, for if not for his voyage to the USA a few years ago, all this success would have been nearly impossible to achieve.