India's first NBA draft pick Satnam Singh thanks coaches, IMG-Reliance for support

New Delhi: Satnam Singh Bhamara, who made history by becoming the first Indian to make the NBA draft, has thanked his coaches and IMG-Reliance for supporting his efforts to make it to the top-level American basketball league. Hailing from a small village named, Ballo Ke in Barnala district of Punjab, the 7-feet-2-inch hoopster went to US in 2010 on an IMG-Reliance scholarship programme. [caption id=“attachment_2313442” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File photo of Satnam Singh getting drafted by Dallas Mavericks. Getty[/caption] Satnam, 19, created history by becoming the first Indian to be drafted into the USA’s prestigious National Basketball Association when he was picked up by Dallas Mavericks. “Thank you to everyone for the support and I am so excited to start with the Dallas Mavericks. I finally now have a chance to say thank you to some very important people as without their help I could not be here,” Satnam wrote on his ‘Facebook’ page. “Thank you to the late Dr Subramaniam who saw something in me and started coaching me when I was 8 years old. Thank you to to Mr Teja Singh Dhaliwal and Mr RS Gill for always helped [sic] me, coached and took care of me when I was in India.” “Also, thank you to (late) Mr Harish Sharma who gave me the biggest opportunity to come to US to begin the journey. Thank you to Mr and Mrs (Mukesh) Ambani and IMG-Reliance for the scholarship which allowed me to attend the IMG Academy,” he added. He also thanked his family, trainers and teammates. “To everyone at IMG Academy - thank you all so much. All the coaches, staff, trainers, teammates, and teachers who helped me. I could not be here without you. Of course, thank you to my family and especially my mom and dad who saw something great from a young age and sacrificed so much for me,” Satnam said. PTI