Priority is to do well in NBA, Indian team will have to wait: Satnam Singh

On 26 June, with their 52nd pick of the 2015 NBA draft, Dallas Mavericks made Satnam Singh Bhamara, the first Indian ever to be drafted into the best basketball league in the world.

Fast forward a fortnight and Satnam has now played over 20 minutes for Dallas Mavericks in the NBA’s summer league.

“I thought that that whatever time I get - one or two minutes, I should give my all and come out and then if the coach puts me back in — I should play again by giving my all. I told myself I had to play my game freely," Satnam said on a conference call with the media.

“I did not feel any pressure nor was I nervous,” he said. “The only thing I was telling myself. I have come here as first Indian now let’s see how it goes.”

The summer league in NBA is an offseason tournament where franchises try out draftees and reserve players in order to evaluate and develop them. The Las Vegas Summer league is the biggest of its kind, with 24 teams participating in it. For Satnam, who has played just high school basketball during his time at the IMG Reliance Academy, this is a big step. But he is confident of doing well and well-aware of the platform he has been given to impress.

“Work, work, work. That’s what the coaches keep telling me. It is very important show your bosses what you can do. As far power is concerned, I am not far away from the players here but the game is much faster. What I am lacking right now is balance, as I have had surgeries on my knee and ankle. The coaches are working with me to get my footwork right."

Satnam is very clear about his immediate targets: Do well in the summer league and D-League and get a place on the Mavericks’ main roster. He didn’t shy away from the implications of his choice either.

“I can’t play for the Indian team now, maybe not next year. My focus is solely to get into the main team in the NBA,” said Satnam. “I want to play 10-15 years in the NBA main team and get more players from India to follow me.”

Satnam also said that the coach (Rick Carlisle) and owner (Mark Cuban) of the franchise have been in constant touch with him and have told him to concentrate on training hard instead of focusing on results. “They told me ‘You might dunk on someone, someone else might make a dunk on you, you might shoot and miss but don’t worry about all that, just work.’"

Satnam has obviously attracted a lot of attention in India, and also in the United States, for becoming the first Indian player to be drafted in the NBA but he doesn’t seem affected by it.

“I know there will be a lot of attention, but I’m just focused on what the coaches tell me to do. The fact that so many Indians want me to do well, I’ll use that as a motivation to succeed in the NBA.”