On one shoulder was my family, one another were 1.3 billion people: Satnam Singh

“In almost 70 years of the NBA, there had been no Indian player. When somebody told me that, I said, ‘Oh my God’. On one shoulder was my family, one another were 1.3 billion people, and it all felt really heavy. But once the draft was over, the load was lifted. I felt light. I felt I did a good job for India. I thought, ‘I’m here only because I worked hard. That’s why they made One in a Billion. To show kids how hard you have to work.’ Now all I have to do is carry on working hard,” Satnam was quoted by The Hindu. 

However, he didn’t get enough chances to prove himself. In his two seasons, Satnam featured in a total of 27 games, averaging 7.1 minutes per match. So when his contract ended, he packed up and left. He admitted that he was frustrated about not getting enough game time. Moreover, he didn’t improve playing there and while he admitted that he did learn a few things here, he never actually got to try them out in a game. 

“It was really, really bad. I didn’t have anything for my family. My father tries to work on the farm even when he can’t. My mother handles the house. My brother, the poor guy, had to quit his studies to help my father on the farm. He doesn’t have a life of his own. We need to make arrangements for my sister’s wedding. I have a lot to take care of. And I got no financial benefit from the D-League. Kuch nahinhua. Mera teen saalbarbaadhua (I lost three years),” the 7 footer revealed. 

The 22-year old revealed that when was picked in the draft in 2015, he was just 19 years old. Hence, the biggest problem was that he could not go to college. 

“Nobody does it. They all wish that you get worse... the worse you get, the better it is for them. I’ll say it straight. Nobody will help another player out. Everyone thinks, ‘I want to go up first,’” he said.