NRI basketballer Shahid Ahmad Bhat feels the sport can be unfair on those who want to go professional

Bhat (third from right) believes in Indian basketball talent
Bhat (third from right) believes in Indian basketball talent

Shahid Ahmad Bhat is a Indian-origin basketball player based in Kansas, USA. I have been in contact with him for the last three years, discussing various basketball topics. Here are the excerpts of my recent interview with him:

What are you up to these days with respect to basketball?

There’s a lot of good basketball going in Kansas City. I'm playing a lot, mostly pickup games at health clubs, a few different churches and rec centers, and outdoor courts also. As far as leagues, I'm playing in the Overland Park Kansas League from September to November, one of the better leagues in KC.

The ABL-KC League (Asian Basketball League of Kansas City) spring season finished in June and the next season starts in the winter. After those finish, I'm coming back to India for the 8th year in a row.

What prompted you to take up basketball in India?

I grew up in playing basketball for Grandview Junior and Senior High School in the public school league, the toughest conference in Kansas City. I don’t recall playing with or against any other players of South Asian ancestry, I was the only one. Later on, I played in a few desi basketball tournaments in America and Toronto, Canada in early 2000s.

I’d been visiting Kashmir off and on throughout my life for family visits and figured why not play ball over there. I tried to contact the BFI to see if I could catch with them in some way. I also wrote to the Basketball Association in my home state of J&K. I didn't receive a response, so I just started my own program during a visit in 2009.

You have come to India every year since 2009; what have you learned in that time?

There are many other people like myself, persons from outside India who come back and get involved with the game. Americans and other NRI's have had a positive impact on basketball in India. Not only coaches, but even a few excellent basketball players who have Indian ancestry have returned and contributed; even though it's not possible to play for India or in BFI events, they just want to give back.

Tell me about the work you've done in Kashmir.

On one trip I had a friend tell me that what I did in sports in Kashmir is unprecedented. I went to the four largest high schools and four largest universities/colleges in Srinagar to hold camps for both boys and girls students. There had been sports teachers, but not at so many institutions at once, and most certainly not in basketball.

In addition, I organized an Adult Recreational League and refereed the games. I held the best basketball training sessions in that region’s history. I also organized a few tournaments, and created a club team SKBC, which has won all its games.

Before that, Kashmir basketball hadn’t really been placed on the map, nobody knew what was going on there. I overcame a lot of restrictions.

Can you give more information on the American Leagues you play in?

I believe the Indian senior national tournament is essentially a government sponsored event, so in America cities have parks and recreation leagues for adults in basketball. In Kansas City, there are leagues held continuously throughout the year in multiple suburbs of the city. The top leagues have players who played high school, college and professional basketball in their careers.

If you don't play professionally, it’s a good second option to fall back on to continue playing. This year I averaged 24 ppg in the ABL-KC, came overseas and won two SKBC games over IUST and NIT, while holding boys and girls basketball practices at a local school. I'm about to play in the OP League also, so it was a successful year.

Did you ever have any offers to play college basketball or professional basketball?

I played high school Varsity Basketball and got mild interest from smaller colleges. I attended the University of Kansas because it was the main University in my state and I liked the social scene. I didn't want to live in a smaller town. I bypassed the chance to play NAIA Basketball.

As far as professional basketball is concerned, no, but in 2013, I was contacted by a coach in Uruguay who wanted me to try out for their pro league. On two other occasions after games, I met people who offered to contact pro representatives in Iran and Jordan, but I didn't follow up on it. I'm going to attend a D-League open tryout with the Iowa Energy on October 11th.

Even though I wasn't on the KU team, I played basketball anyways. The gyms there are great and the pickup games every night are very good. There’s a league for students. Off campus there are city gyms and Recreation Leagues organized by the city of Lawrence, Kansas with a lot of talent.

What I'm doing in India is in some ways to me like an overseas basketball career. The majority of my career is streetball pickup games and open gyms. Basketball can be an unfair game if professional is your goal.

In what way?

A lot of great players never played pro. For one thing, since height is an advantage in basketball, if you're very tall teams are going to select you for your height. Which is okay because I understand the point of the game for the coach is to win, and he thinks having that tall guy will help him win. But I've been around long enough to know that some of those tall guys aren't actually great at basketball. They don't dribble or shoot or pass or do a lot of things as well as a 6-foot guard with skills.

Most of those tall guys, if they were 6 foot, would be average. So to me, I would rather be that skilled 6 foot guard, even if you never played pro, than a tall guy who is not so skilled, but his height got him selected for teams by the coaching staff. But that’s just how it goes in this game. I don’t think there’s any other sport where height makes such a difference.

Can you explain how height is such an advantage?

When you shoot, the ball has less distance to travel to reach the rim, and every time the ball is in the air during a pass or rebound or shot attempt, the taller guy will have the advantage to grab it first. They can also alter shots easier with their reach. If you’re a shorter guard, you’re going to have to be the most skilled player on the court, the best conditioned and the smartest.

Think of Stephen Curry, the MVP. He had to be ridiculously skilled to make it in the NBA at his size. Now think of DeAndre Jordan; he can barely shoot a free throw, but his size and ability to play above the rim make him an All-Star player.

What's the level in an American Rec League comparative to India’s BFI National Tournament?

I've played and practised with the J&K state team, which is ranked near the middle compared to other states in India, and I've also spent time in Delhi playing with the best University players, and even with Indian National Team players, so I can speak from personal experience. Rec Leagues in America vary in terms of difficulty, but the Leagues in the largest cities are near the level of some foreign pro leagues.

A league like ABL-KC is comparable to the BFI Tournament, except the Senior Nationals will have taller players, because it draws from throughout India, whereas the ABL is confined to KC. The Korean-American team I play for in the ABL is better than the J&K state team; the players are better conditioned and understand the strategy of playing basketball as a team more.

But the top state teams in India are very good teams. It’s a mistake to underestimate the talent level in India at the top. I think it just falls off a lot after you get past the first 100 guys.

Who is your favorite Indian basketball player?

I like Vishesh Briguvanshi; he seems like a good player with good character. I like to play on teams with guys like that. I also like Aukif Khan from the J&K state team.

Who do you think is the best NRI player in the world?

I don't know.

Who do you think would win a game between the Indian National Team and an All-Star Team of NRI's?

There are many talented players throughout India because of the huge population and the increasing number of people playing the sport. In a hypothetical game, I think the NRI's might have an advantage, but it would be a close game.

What advantage does an NRI player have compared to an Indian player?

Developing skills like dribbling and shooting, or even some aspects of conditioning and strength training, can be done anywhere. But the regular competition and high level of play are what separate the two.

In India, players wait a long time in between tournaments, and don't play as regularly against good players. For example the Indian Senior National comes once a year, and lasts a week or so. Over here, you can find games every day where the level is the same. It’s like playing Senior Nationals every day throughout a year. The advantage from that kind of regular training atmosphere is hue.

What did you think about the UBA pro league?

I thought it was a good step, but I'd like to see them open up a few roster spots on each team for NRI's, because it would finally give us the chance to play basketball in India and it would increase the level of play and make it more exciting. It would benefit the Indian players also to face some outside competition.

Eventually they should allow a player or two on each roster with no connection to India, like the Chinese Basketball League or other pro leagues. If they keep it the way it is then it’s fine too, but I don't think the level of play will be as high as necessary for a good pro league. It should also be longer than a week or so; that’s too short for a league.

With reference to your time in Kashmir, what interested you the most and what, if anything, surprised you?

I wanted to see what basketball was like on that side of the planet. What interested me the most was the opportunity to revisit my homeland and get in touch with my heritage. I knew that J&K had a history of political instability and I wanted to see if basketball could help alleviate some of that.

What surprised me was how low the level of play was amongst the players of the city. I did a lot of things, but to continue in the same way would be repetitive. In the future I want to visit some schools outside the city of Srinagar, in the villages and promote health through exercise, sports, diet and lifestyle. I also want to add education and career counseling to the program.

You used to come to Delhi earlier. Any plans to do the same now?

I used to come just for a few days at a time. The last two years I had some unfortunate things happen which forced me to cancel my plans, but in the coming year I'll be there. I'm going to be staying in a flat with a friend and hopefully there'll be some event I can do. I really want to, and if I have time, I will.

Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions; any last thoughts?

I want to contribute to the growth of basketball in India in the future if possible, in my own way. Eventually, I'd like to travel India visiting cities where the most players are at, holding camps and meeting players and seeing the country. I plan on playing basketball in America as long as possible, and maybe getting into coaching also at the high school level.

Hopefully, basketball in India will continue to grow and in the future the standard and infrastructure will increase.

Edited by Staff Editor