Aryan – India’s tallest basketball star

The 7’2 India centre is a long-term project, says national head coach Matic

Aryan was a good cricketer at school. He was a fast bowler and had played the inter-zonals in New Delhi.

Aryan was a good cricketer at school. He was a fast bowler and had played the inter-zonals in New Delhi.

“I like cricket, but I think basketball is a much more interesting game. When you see basketball from outside you really want to play it,” said the 19-year-old, a member of the Indian basketball team which played the recent FIBA World Cup Asian qualifiers, in a chat with The Hindu here.

At 7’2, Aryan is the tallest player in the Indian team and perhaps the tallest top-level player in the country. He also towered over the rest in the Indian National Basketball League which finished its first phase in Kochi on Thursday,

Aryan took to basketball at 15, possibly a bit late. He was in the NBA Academy for two years and then in the national camp for another two years before making his debut in a World Cup qualifier against the Philippines in Philippines in July.

“I got a lot of experience from that. Basketball here and outside India are very different,” said the India and INBL’s Delhi Dribblers centre.

Aryan has a very promising road ahead but he is not in a hurry.