Princepal Singh
| G League Select Team | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Power forward | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | 3 January 2001 Firozpur, Punjab, India | ||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Indian | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 102 kg (225 lb) | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
Medals
| |||||||||||||||
Princepal Singh (born 3 January 2001) is an Indian professional basketball player for the G League Select Team. He attended the NBA Academy India in Delhi and the NBA Global Academy in Canberra, Australia.
Early life and career
Singh is a native of Dera Baba Nanak, Punjab, India and grew up playing volleyball. In 2014, he travelled to Ludhiana to try out for a volleyball academy but instead drew the attention of Jaipal Singh, a coach at the Ludhiana Basketball Academy (LBA).[1][2] Standing 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) at the time, he soon joined the LBA and learned how to play basketball from Jaipal Singh.[3] In 2016, Singh earned a three-year full scholarship, worth $75,000, to play at SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio but was unable to join the program after his visa was rejected twice.[4]
Singh trained at the NBA Academy India in Delhi for 18 months, before being called up to the NBA Global Academy, a training center at the Australian Institute of Sport Centre of Excellence in Canberra, in May 2017.[5] Singh trained at the Global Academy on a two-year contract.[6] In October 2019, he was named most valuable player (MVP) at the Indian Junior National Championship after leading Punjab to the title and scoring 40 points against Rajasthan in the final.[3] Singh helped Punjab capture a gold medal in the under-21 category of the Khelo India Youth Games in January 2020.[7]
Professional career
On 28 July 2020, Singh signed a one-year contract with the NBA G League and joined the G League Select Team as a part of the league's new developmental program operating outside its traditional team structure. He became the first NBA Academy India graduate to sign a professional contract.[8]
National team career
Indian junior national team
In September 2017, Singh led India to the gold medal at the SABA Under-16 Championship in Kathmandu, Nepal. He was named tournament MVP after scoring 20 points in a 131–50 win over Bhutan in his final game.[9] In April 2018, Singh competed at the FIBA Under-16 Asian Championship in Foshan, China, averaging 22.7 points and 13 rebounds per game.[10] At the 2018 FIBA Under-18 Asian Championship in Nonthaburi, Thailand, he averaged 15.5 points, 9.8 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game as the captain of the Indian team.[11]
Indian senior national team
In December 2018, Singh made his debut for the Indian senior national team at the Super Kung Sheung Cup International Championship in Hong Kong.[1] In February 2020, he was selected to represent India for Window 1 of the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup qualification stage.[12] In his first game, on 21 February, Singh recorded three points, five rebounds and two assists in 12 minutes in a 68–67 loss to Bahrain.[13]
Personal life
Singh's father, Gurmej Singh, is an electrician.[14] His father stands 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) and his mother, Hardeep Kaur, stands 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in).[15]
References
- ^ a b Sen, Debayan (5 December 2018). "Meet Princepal, Indian basketball's 'next big Singh'". ESPN. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Hope to make it to the NBA one day: Indias Princepal Singh". Outlook. Indo-Asian News Service. 24 December 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ a b Raj, Pratyush (30 October 2019). "Gurdaspur hoopster is the new 'Prince' of Indian basketball". The Times of India. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Senthil, Anjana (5 December 2018). "Princepal's tryst with destiny". The Hindu. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Matange, Yash (8 May 2020). "'The NBA Academy experience has been great for me' - Princepal Singh says while discussing the three-year journey and more". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
- ^ Menon, Anirudh (17 January 2020). "'I will play in the NBA' - Princepal Singh has eyes firmly set on the big prize". ESPN. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Matange, Yash (22 January 2020). "Khelo India Youth Games 2020: Princepal Singh leads Punjab to gold in U-21 category as Kerala grabs most basketball medals". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
- ^ "Princepal Singh Becomes First NBA Academy Graduate To Sign With NBA G League". NBA G League. 28 July 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
- ^ "India crowned 2nd SABA U16 Zone champions". Ekalavyas. 9 September 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Princepal primed to be the Next Big Singh for India Basketball". FIBA. 31 July 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Flojo, Enzo (8 November 2018). "Which other youth standouts can play at the senior level now?". FIBA. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Matange, Yash (17 February 2020). "FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers: Princepal Singh and Amaan Sandhu part of India squad for Window 1". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Princepal Singh". FIBA. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Sampat, Amit (1 June 2016). "The Story Of Prince Lal Singh, An Electrician's Son Who Realized His US Basketball Dream". India Times. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ Mahendra, Vikram (1 June 2016). "Punjab teenager Prince Pal Singh earns $75,000 scholarship to train in USA, could play in NCAA by 2020". Sportskeeda. Retrieved 19 June 2020.