I.J. NEWS SERVICE
SACRAMENTO, CA - The National Basketball Association has its first-ever player of Indian origin-Sim Bhullar, 21, a center from New Mexico State University, has signed a summer contract with the Sacramento Kings despite not having been drafted in last month’s NBA Draft. This means that although...
SACRAMENTO, CA - The National Basketball Association has its first-ever player of Indian origin-Sim Bhullar, 21, a center from New Mexico State University, has signed a summer contract with the Sacramento Kings despite not having been drafted in last month’s NBA Draft. This means that although...
he may not end up playing for the Kings when the 2014-2015 season begins later this year, he will be on the roster, and that marks a historic first for Indian-American athletes. Bhullar who is 7’5" and 360 pounds will be the largest player in the NBA. His basketball career has been watched by scouts and the sports media since he was a teenager in his native Canada. The son of immigrants from Punjab, Bhullar’s height is in his genes— his father is 6’5" and his mother is 5’10". In an interview with The Globe and Mail, Bhullar has explained why he decided to leave school after his sophomore season to enter the draft. “Guys my size don’t have very long careers and you have to take advantage of it and do the best you can with the time you have to play,” Bhullar noted to the Globe and Mail. “I didn’t want to get hurt in another college season and ruin my chances. And I’m not the kind of guy that’s doing it just to make money right away; I just want to play at the highest level.” At New Mexico State, the 21 year-old center proved incredibly adept at playing in the paint, averaging 7.8 rebounds, 3.4 blocks, and 10.4 points per game in his two-year career. Those numbers may not jump off the page, but they are solid and point towards significant potential in the big leagues. The signing of the NBA’s first Indian-origin player marks yet another milestone for the Kings organization, which, in 2013, became the NBA’s first team to have an Indian-origin majority owner: Vivek Ranadive. Since taking the reins of the Kings, Ranadive has transformed the organization into one of the league’s most worldly, especially with regards to India. Meanwhile, Bhullar’s younger brother, Tanveer, is also playing college basketball at New Mexico State, and hopes to join the NBA as well in the next year or two. Like Pau and Marc Gasol, the NBA could have another pair of brothers who turn into venerable “big men” in basketball – only time will tell.
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