Today's Toronto Star features a story about two Punjabi-speaking broadcasters who have been calling hockey games for the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) and now will begin a regular gig calling Toronto Raptors games. Bringing in new fans is unequivocally good for the NBA, of course. My co-bloggers imagine me to be a staunchly Tancredo-voting conservative, but I support this kind of development.
Last January, I ruminated on why so few (viz., zero) men of Punjabi background have made it to the big leagues of basketball, despite their unusual height. Obviously there are plenty of tall children of Punjabi immigrants in North America who have no problem following the Association and aspiring to be the Jordan of their driveway skirmishes. However, they all want to be doctors, so they may be a lost cause. This new CBC service could help to make basketball the new "it" sport of north India. As I indicated in the third comment on this post from Saturday, Commissioner Stern needs to find a way to market hoops to the cricket-crazed people of South Asia. Ironically, the great Punjabi hope may be in mother Bharat and not here Stateside; given that the returns to education are so much greater here, tall people with athletic potential in India are less likely to be tempted by the traditional professions.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Too-Tall Jones, Nay, Grewal
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4 comments:
Vegetarianism is an obstacle to Indians who want to play sports. Name pro-athletes in strength sports who are vegetarians. I think this is a much bigger factor than cultural influence.
Chuck, that is a good point. Most Punjabis eat meat, however.
Blake Griffin is one of the few ballers who eats veggie.
So far this blog has been fun to read, but I did not understand this post. What is "Grewal"?
Ramiro: Too-Tall Jones was a defensive end for the Dallas Cowboys. Grewal is a common Punjabi name. Hope that helps! My post titles are usually a bit obscure.
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