India Basketball League gets NBA backing in bid to grow sport in country

The league, which is set to formally launch in 2027, is supported by former NBA players who believe India has the talent, audience, and potential to emerge as a major market in the coming years.

Backed by former NBA stars, the push for a bigger basketball footprint in India received another boost, with the India Basketball League (IBL) outlining plans to build a professional ecosystem for the sport. The league, which is set to formally launch in 2027, is supported by former NBA players who believe India has the talent, audience, and potential to emerge as a major market in the coming years. ''The future is bright,'' former Detroit Pistons star Isiah Thomas told PTI Videos on the sidelines of the BudX NBA House event New Delhi. ''You have a lot of young people playing right now. Not only are they playing, but you've invested in the game,'' he added while speaking about basketball's growth in India. Olympic gold medallist DeMarcus Cousins echoed similar sentiments but stressed that India's rise in basketball would require patience, infrastructure and systematic development. ''To start talking about a gold medal, that's a huge jump, but the potential is there,'' Cousins said. ''You have to grow the sport within the region first, develop the talent, gain knowledge, gain experience through play, practice, skill training, strength and conditioning,'' he added. The four-time NBA All-Star stressed that the process would need to happen gradually, ''step by step, day by day, year by year.'' The league, announced in 2025, hopes to tap into India's expanding youth culture while creating a sustainable professional structure for Indian basketball. ''The basketball market here is just ready to catch fire,'' India Basketball League Commissioner Jeremy Loeliger told PTI Videos. ''From a basketball point of view, all of the macroeconomic indicators are there - the population growth among Gen Z and Gen Alpha, who are the core digital audience, the core basketball audience, and the core fans of the culture surrounding the game,'' he added. Loeliger believes the absence of a long-standing professional basketball setup in India has created a major opportunity for the IBL. ''The fact that there has been a gap in the professional basketball market here for a long time was just crying out to be filled,'' he said. The IBL is also positioning itself as more than just a sporting competition. The aim, according to Loeliger, is to build an entertainment-driven league that appeals across demographics. ''We want to be that sports entertainment product that young Indians, families, men, women - people of any age - can come together around and enjoy,'' he said. A major part of that vision involves creating visibility and aspiration for young basketball players in India. Thomas and Cousins were present during promotional activities around the league, something Loeliger considers critical for the sport's growth. ''It's an incredibly important factor,'' he said. ''We want to create a professional league here so that 'seeing it and therefore being it' becomes more local.'' He added that basketball's growth in India would require support from every stakeholder connected to the sport. ''It has to come from all parts of the game - from the NBA, FIBA, the Basketball Federation of India, and now the IBL,'' Loeliger said. ''We all have a role to play in making sure that young Indians who want to play the game and any Indians who want to watch the game have somewhere to go.'' Thomas believes exposure to elite athletes and professional structures can significantly accelerate India's development in the sport. ''You're bringing people like myself and Boogie (Demarcus Cousins) over to inspire and talk to young people playing. So I think the future is very bright,'' he said. Both Thomas and Cousins agreed that India already possesses the raw athletic potential needed to eventually produce professional-level basketball talent. Thomas believes the focus now must be on building the right coaching and developmental systems. ''The athletes are here,'' Thomas said. ''It's just a matter of putting the right coaching and framework around them.'' Cousins echoed similar views while also highlighting the role physical attributes can play in basketball. ''The genetics are there. It's just about everything else that follows,'' Cousins said. ''With the way they're investing in these guys, there's definite potential to have a pro player come out of this country, male and female.'' Thomas even predicted that India could produce a genuine professional basketball prospect within the next decade. ''In 10 years' time, you'll probably have a potential pro player prospect coming out of here,'' he said. Another key pillar of the IBL's strategy is cross-sport integration, particularly with cricket continuing to dominate the Indian sporting landscape. Loeliger believes basketball's growth could accelerate if leading cricketers publicly embrace the sport. ''Once young Indians see that cricketers think basketball is cool, a lot of them will follow in their footsteps,'' he said. Drawing parallels with Australia, Loeliger recalled how Australian cricketers would often attend basketball games after Test matches, something he hopes India can eventually replicate. Athletes like Neeraj Chopra and Manu Bhaker have already participated in basketball-related events, signalling the possibility of wider collaborations across sports. Cousins also got a brief taste of cricket during his India visit and admitted he was surprised by the sport's difficulty. ''I think I've got potential to be a star, but that's just me and my delusion,'' Cousins joked. ''It's actually really difficult, similar to baseball in a way. But it's a really cool sport,'' he signed off.