India national basketball team
India  IND |
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| FIBA Ranking | 58th | ||
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| Joined FIBA | 1936 | ||
| FIBA Zone | FIBA Asia | ||
| National Federation | Basketball Federation of India | ||
| Coach |  Kenny Natt |
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| Olympic Games | |||
| Appearances | 1 | ||
| Medals | None | ||
| World Championships | |||
| Appearances | None | ||
| Medals | None | ||
| FIBA Asia Championship | |||
| Appearances | 22 | ||
| Medals | None | ||
| Uniforms | |||
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The India men's national basketball team represents India in international men's basketball. It is controlled by Basketball Federation of India.[1]
Affiliated into FIBA since 1936, India has one of Asia's longest basketball traditions. Throughout its history, Team India qualified for the FIBA Asia Championship 22 times and is placed in the top-5 in appearances in this tournament.[2]
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[edit] History
[edit] 1965-1975
India appeared at the international stage for the first time ever at the 1965 Asian Basketball Championship where it started out as moderately competitive. In the following years, India became a regular at the event and had their most successful tournament in 1975 when the team even reached the final four.[3]
[edit] 1980-2010
[edit] 1980 Olympics (Soviet Union)
Plagued by a lack of popularity and support for basketball at home, at times, India faded into oblivion and only had a handful of successful performances. Its most noteworthy tournament appearance was at the 1980 Summer Olympics when the team got its chance to represent Asia due to the cancellations of some teams who took part in the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics. A few of the world's top basketball powers at that time (such as the United States and Canada) withdrew from the tournament. India finished 12th out of 12 in the Olympics after getting knocked out in the Preliminary Round by losing all three of their matches and then losing all five of their matches in the Classification round.
While the results did not go India's way one game in particular caught the attention of basketball fans worldwide. India played against the Australian Team, one of the world's top basketball teams. India, which was made up solely of voluntary basketball players competed against the elite team of Australia for almost the whole game until it finally ceded to the Aussies 75-93 after leading at halftime 41-37.[4]
Many Indian players also made headlines while in the Soviet Union as well. Ajmer Singh gained worldwide attention as he was amogst the top 10 shooters there and became the 10th best pivot player in the tournament there.
[edit] 1990-2010
The late 90s saw the emergence of Sozhasingarayer Robinson the first Indian basketball player who gained considerable international attention. Robinson led India to a surprising victory over South Korea, one of Asia's top teams.[5] Later, he became the first Indian player ever to get a contract offer from another continent when he signed for Negar sang Sharekord in Iran.
In 2005, however, Robinson complained that the structure and support for basketball in India was still mediocre and government officials did not do enough to support the sport. As a protest, he retired from the national team.[6]
[edit] 2010-present
Despite the immense loss that the absence of Robinson brought to India, there have been steady improvements in the past. The National Basketball Association in America has long recognized the increased importance of the Indian market worldwide and has supported the development of Indian basketball and its national team. At the 2011 FIBA Asia Championship India were coached by former Sacramento Kings of the NBA head coach Kenny Natt.[7] Further, for the first time ever, India had its own strength and conditioning coach. Even though the team lost most games, its performance against Lebanon, which had made it to the final four at the previous tournament, superseded expectations.[8] Officials still work towards the goal that India will eventually become truly competitive at an international level. The establishment of a professional league has been recognized as a major step to make this goal come true. In 2011, plans for the establishment thereof were officially agreed upon.
[edit] Roster
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2011 Team Roster roster
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[edit] Competitive record
[edit] Olympic Games
[edit] FIBA World Championship
[edit] Performances[edit] Olympic Games record
[edit] FIBA World Championship recordyet to qualify [edit] FIBA Asia championship[edit] FIBA Asia Champions CupSince 2003, the majority of India’s national basketball players compete under the team name “Young Cagers” at the annual Asian Club Championships.[9] [edit] See also[edit] Referenceswww.jumpsportsindia.com
[edit] External links
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