MUMBAI and NEW YORK – The National Basketball Association (NBA) today announced the launch of NBA Basketball School, a network of tuition-based basketball development programs around the world open to international male and female players ages 6-18.

The first NBA Basketball School launched today in Mumbai, India, as part of a multiyear agreement announced today with India On Track (IOT), one of India’s leading sports management, marketing and development companies.  Additional NBA Basketball Schools will be launched in India and around the world in the coming months.

The new initiative adds an additional layer to the NBA’s existing basketball development efforts, including the Jr. NBA, Basketball without Borders (BWB) and NBA Academies.

The Jr. NBA, the league’s global youth basketball participation program for boys and girls, will help identify young players who have the talent to attend NBA Basketball Schools.  From there, the top players at each NBA Basketball School will have the opportunity to be selected to attend NBA Academies, the league’s network of elite basketball training centers around the world to develop top international male and female prospects.  Registration to attend the NBA Basketball School in Mumbai is now open at indiaontrack.nba.com.

“Our goal is to inspire more young male and female players to learn the game under the guidance of established coaches with proven training techniques,” said NBA Vice President, International Basketball Operations & Head of Elite Basketball, Brooks Meek.  “The NBA Basketball School builds an additional track between the Jr. NBA and NBA Academies with the goal of increasing the pool of players who have the talent to attend our academies around the world.”

“There has never been a more exciting time for the growth of basketball in India,” said NBA India Managing Director Yannick Colaco.  “Between NBA Academy India welcoming 24 elite prospects and the launch of NBA Basketball Schools with our partner India On Track, we are investing more than ever in identifying and training India’s aspiring young players.”

“We are now at the cusp of a new phase in India’s sporting journey, and to ensure its continued growth we need to lay down strong foundations for basketball,” said India On Track Founder and Chief Executive Officer Vivek Sethia.  “This initiative jointly executed by the NBA and India On Track will help to create a platform to identify and engage the untapped basketball potential in India thereby creating a larger talent pool for academies to choose from.”

Each NBA Basketball School will feature year-long, tuition-based programs open to international male and female players ages 6-18.  The NBA Basketball School curriculum, which is designed to help players, parents, coaches and organizations better understand the process of improvement, has been developed by the NBA’s Elite Basketball Development team in consultation with current and former NBA coaches, former NBA players, and player development experts.  The comprehensive curriculum covers oncourt training, strength and conditioning, and basketball education for young players ages 6-18 and will be implemented by local coaches working directly with the NBA’s International Basketball Operations staff around the world.

The NBA Basketball School in Mumbai builds on the NBA’s existing basketball and youth development initiatives in India.  The Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program has reached more than 3.5 million youth and trained more than 3,000 physical education instructors nationwide since its launch in 2013.  In November 2016, the NBA announced its plan to launch NBA Academy India, an elite basketball training center in Delhi National Capital Region (NCR) for the top male and female prospects from throughout India.  NBA Academy India, the first of its kind in the country, will open in May.

About the NBA
The NBA is a global sports and media business built around three professional sports leagues: the National Basketball Association, the Women’s National Basketball Association, and the NBA Development League.  The league has established a major international presence with games and programming in 215 countries and territories in 49 languages, and NBA merchandise for sale in more than 125,000 stores in 100 countries on 6 continents.  NBA rosters at the start of the 2016-17 season featured a record 113 international players from 41 countries and territories.  NBA Digital’s assets include NBA TV, NBA.com and the NBA App, which achieved record viewership and traffic during the 2015-16 season.  The NBA has created one of the largest social media communities in the world, with more than 1.3 billion likes and followers globally across all league, team, and player platforms.  Through NBA Cares, the league addresses important social issues by working with internationally recognized youth-serving organizations that support education, youth and family development, and health-related causes.

About India On Track
India On Track (IOT) is one of India’s leading sports management, marketing and development companies, which partners with top sporting entities to bring best-in-class sports thinking and philosophy to India.  Each partnership focuses on the amalgamation of technical expertise of these leaders in world sport and IOT’s management experience and vision for India.