MUMBAI: India’s pro basketball league ‘Elite Pro Basketball League’ has announced that the inaugural pre-season will kick-start from 11-20 March 2023 at the Noida Indoor Stadium. The icing on the cake is the expansion to 16 teams from 12 teams which will give more players a chance to turn pro. Nagpur Knights, Goa Saints, Surat Diamonds and Eastern Tigers are the new four teams that are added. The league will also include a minimum of two university players on each team giving them a chance to go professional.
The pre-season which will be held for ten days will have all 16 teams, coaches and staff coming together for the first time. The pre-season will help players get to know each other and gel together as a team. The most attractive part of the pre-Season is the additional salaries and perks the players will get. This became the first Basketball league in India to pay hefty salaries to all players, something that was missing.
Elite Pro Basketball League CEO Sunny Bhandarkar said, “We are excited to announce the expansion of four more teams, this will make the league more competitive and will give more players the opportunity to showcase their talents. We have been working on our dream of having a Pro Basketball league in India for the past year and now it is turning into a reality and we are quite excited about it. The pre-season will help players and coaches gel with each other and start working on a strategy.
“We have got the best players in the country playing in the league and we will leave no stone unturned to make this a landmark league and hope that it inspires the growth of Basketball in the country.”
Indian basketball player Prudhvi Reddy said, “A league like this is what Indian Basketball requires, attractive salaries, great coaches and staff, a platform where people can showcase their talents. Never in India has a basketball league been conducted in such a way with preseason and I am sure this will help grow the sport in a big way in India.”
The key signings include Indian national team players, state players, local players and University players. Mumbai Stars, Pune Pythons, Jaipur Giants, Kochi Pachers, Chandigarh Conquerors, Hyderabad Hoops, Lucknow Swarm, Chennai Turbos, Punjab Gladiators, Ahmedabad Aces, Delhi Dominators, Bengaluru Stallions, Nagpur Knights, Goa Saints, Surat Diamonds, Eastern Tigers concludes the team.
