ITV

Tag: Sacramento Kings

  • Slam dunks and music beats: NBA and Budweiser launch India’s first BUDX NBA House

    Slam dunks and music beats: NBA and Budweiser launch India’s first BUDX NBA House

    MUMBAI: The NBA is bringing its A-game to India with a full-court press of culture, music and sport. Teaming up with Budweiser, the league is set to debut the country’s first-ever BUDX NBA House on 7 and 8  June at the Dome, SVP Stadium in Mumbai.

    Timed to coincide with the 2025 NBA Finals, the two-day carnival promises more than just hoops. Think meet-and-greets with five-time NBA champion Derek Fisher and Hall of Famer Gary Payton, high-flying stunts by the Sacramento Kings dunk team, and DJ-fuelled chaos courtesy of Slamson the mascot and the Kings Dancers.

    “The first BUDX NBA House will be a must-visit destination for the passionate NBA fans in India to come together and celebrate their love of the game amid the excitement of the NBA Finals,” said NBA Asia head of strategy and NBA India country head Rajah Chaudhry.  “We look forward to bringing this signature showcase of the NBA, music and culture to India at a time when there is incredible momentum around basketball in the country.” 

    BudweiserVP  of marketing and trade marketing in India Vineet Sharma, called the event a “trendsetting experience” designed to blend hoops with high-octane youth culture. “We’ve long championed music and immersive fan moments. Now we’re turning up the volume with basketball.”

    Produced and ticketed by Zomato, the event has also roped in Brand USA, Emirates and Visit California as partners. More sponsor activations and programming are expected to drop soon.

    The NBA has previously taken its signature ‘House’ format to Brazil, France, Canada, Mexico, the US and the UK. Now it’s India’s turn to feel the bounce.

  • Netflix content offering includes Satnam Singh doc

    Netflix content offering includes Satnam Singh doc

    MUMBAI: Satnam Singh Bhamra, first India-born basketball player to be drafted into the National Basketball Association (NBA), has received another big honour. His life has been made into a documentary.

    Titled, One in a Billion, the film was released on 6 December in the US. What’s even more exciting is that the documentary has been picked by streaming juggernaut, Netflix.

    The 90-minute long doc has been directed by RGTV founder Roman Gackowski and is produced by OBB Pictures CEO Michael D Ratner. Netflix has acquired streaming rights to telecast the documentary, which also features NBA commissioner Adam Silver, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and NBA’s senior director of international basketball operations Troy Justice.

    One in a Billion depicts Bhamra’s life from being born in a small, remote village of Ballo Ke in Punjab’s Barnala district to the night of 25 June 2015 when he created history when he was drafted into the NBA in New York. He was selected by Dallas Mavericks as 52 pick and presently plays as a centre for Texas Legends in the NBA development league.

    Bamra’s father Balbir Singh is excited about the movie based on the life of his son and is on cloud nine.

  • Netflix content offering includes Satnam Singh doc

    Netflix content offering includes Satnam Singh doc

    MUMBAI: Satnam Singh Bhamra, first India-born basketball player to be drafted into the National Basketball Association (NBA), has received another big honour. His life has been made into a documentary.

    Titled, One in a Billion, the film was released on 6 December in the US. What’s even more exciting is that the documentary has been picked by streaming juggernaut, Netflix.

    The 90-minute long doc has been directed by RGTV founder Roman Gackowski and is produced by OBB Pictures CEO Michael D Ratner. Netflix has acquired streaming rights to telecast the documentary, which also features NBA commissioner Adam Silver, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and NBA’s senior director of international basketball operations Troy Justice.

    One in a Billion depicts Bhamra’s life from being born in a small, remote village of Ballo Ke in Punjab’s Barnala district to the night of 25 June 2015 when he created history when he was drafted into the NBA in New York. He was selected by Dallas Mavericks as 52 pick and presently plays as a centre for Texas Legends in the NBA development league.

    Bamra’s father Balbir Singh is excited about the movie based on the life of his son and is on cloud nine.

  • Sony Six hopes for improved NBA viewership with Bhullar’s debut

    Sony Six hopes for improved NBA viewership with Bhullar’s debut

    MUMBAI: Toronto born Indian Gursimran Bhullar (SIM) is all set to make his National Basketball League (NBA) debut with Sacramento Kings. He will be the first player of Indian origin to feature in NBA.

     

    Multi Screen Media’s (MSM) sports channel Sony Six is the official broadcaster of NBA in India and the Indian’s debut in NBA will boost viewership for Sony too. Talking about Bhullar’s debut, Sony Six business head Prasana Krishnan said, “Sim is now a part of Sacramento Kings and would hopefully play on Monday as speculated. It would be a historic event and would hopefully be a big boost for Basketball and NBA in India.”

     

    In various schools and colleges across India we see kids playing cricket on basketball court with dreams to become Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly or Mahendra Singh Dhoni. While, India has a many idols to follow when it comes to cricket, there is serious crisis when it comes to other sports and especially basketball. Micheal Jordan, Kobe Bryant were inspiration for hardcore basketball fans but lack of local connect always played the spoil sport. Bhullar’s NBA debut will certainly lay foundation in bridging the local connect gap.

     

    NBA India in association with Sony Six has already started many initiatives to popularise the sport at the grassroots level. A few among them being, school and college basketball leagues, roping in Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan as the brand ambassador of the sport and his participation in the NBA-All star game. The activities have so far been able to rejuvenate the sport in India.

     

    When asked about the historical debut of Bhullar and its impact on Indian NBA growth, NBA India managing director Yannik Colaco told indiantelevision.com, “I think Sim’s NBA debut is one of the few points that may ignite the growth of the sport in India. We have been making a lot of efforts to popularise the sport at a grassroots level by providing advanced facilities to the aspirants. NBA now is an established venture amongst Indian sports and is growing thick and fast. Sim’s debut is a great moment for Indian history and we should have more Indians playing at the top level.”

     

    After going undrafted in the 2014 NBA draft, Bhullar joined the Sacramento Kings for the 2014 NBA Summer League. On 14 August 2014, he signed with the Kings, becoming the first player of Indian descent to sign with an NBA team. However, he was later waived by the Kings on 19 October 2014. On 2 November 2014, he was acquired by the Reno Bighorns as an affiliate player.  Bhullar made his D-League debut on 6 December with 4 points, 8 rebounds and 6 blocks in Reno’s 141–140 loss to the Los Angeles D-Fenders. On 22 February 2015, he recorded his first career triple-double with 26 points, 17 rebounds and 11 blocked shots against the D-Fenders.  On 2 April 2015, Bhullar signed a 10-day contract with the Sacramento Kings.

     

    “It’s a big moment in the history of the NBA and the history of my country in India. I know my family’s going to be proud of me and everybody’s going to be proud of me and cheer me on the court,” Bhullar had earlier told the Associated Press.