Friday, 25 June 2010

• Sports Xpress Recruiting Xclusive: Tanveer Bhullar

  By: Cody Porter
  

  

   Earlier this week Sports Xpress caught up with 2013 recruit Tanveer Bhullar. The 15 year old from Toronto, Canada along with his older brother have been one of the more interesting recruits to tweak the curiosity of Big Blue Nation after a Yahoo! Interview profiling them stated that Kentucky may have the inside track on the twin towers, Tanveer and Sim due to their coach, Daryn Freedman’s relationship with Kentucky head coach John Calipari. Freedman is a longtime college and NBA assistant and yes you did read that right, Tanveer has an older brother, Sim, who is 17 years old that he plays at The Kiski School in Pennsylvania along side of, making them the true definition of twin towers. During his freshman season Tanveer averaged about 12 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks a game. Below is a Q and A session I had with Tanveer about how recruiting has went for him, his abilities, and whether he would like to play with his brother at the next level.

   Me: What schools are recruiting you?
  

  Tanveer Bhullar: Schools that are recruiting me are West Virginia, Duquesne, Florida State, Kentucky, LSU, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Stanford, Texas, UMass, USC and Washington State.

  Me: Do any of those schools stand out?

  Tanveer Bhullar: Stanford standouts because of the Lopez brothers, Kentucky stands out because of DeMarcus Cousins, and Pittsburgh stands out because of DeJuan Blair.

  Me: Has the University of Kentucky staff contacted you? If so, who?
  Tanveer Bhullar: Kentucky hasn't really talked to me or my brother yet, but they talked to our coach and I’m not sure who.

  Me: What is your relationship like with the Kentucky staff?
  Tanveer Bhullar: My coach and John Calipari are close friends.

  Me: What is your relationship like with the other coaching staffs?
  Tanveer Bhullar: I only went to see a game at WVU and their facility is amazing and the staff is very nice.

  Me: What is your time table for a decision?
  Tanveer Bhullar: I have 3 years to choose and I will not be surprised if I pick my school in the last couple of months of high school

  Me: How would you describe the way you play?
  Tanveer Bhullar: I’m most a post player but I can also step out and take the shot, 20 footer or a three.

  Me: What are some key things that you will use in your decision making process?

  Tanveer Bhullar: A school that has a history with big men being successful.

  Me: Which schools do you plan to visit?

  Tanveer Bhullar: I am not sure if I am going to visit any school yet.

  Me: Any players you'd like to play with?
  Tanveer Bhullar: I would like to play with a couple of close friends who are pretty good and I’ve been playing with since I started playing basketball as a kid.

  Me: What is the best part of your game?
  Tanveer Bhullar: I think the best part of my game is my post presence on the offensive and defensive end.

  Me: What areas of your game do you feel like you need to improve on?

  Tanveer Bhullar: I would like to improve on my conditioning and ball handling; I think I have a pretty good shoot for a big man.

  Me: Do you have a top 5? If so could you list those teams?

  Tanveer Bhullar: West Virginia, Pitt, Kentucky, Stanford, and USC.

  Me: What is your true height?

  Tanveer Bhullar: 7’2”

  Me: I believe I saw your brother say on his facebook profile that the two of you would be the first from your country to play in the NBA if you make it that far? What would it mean to reach that accomplishment?

  Tanveer Bhullar: We are trying to be the first people with Indian decent to make it to the NBA. There is no Indian NBA player and we want to be the first and second. Kids in India would start playing more basketball and I would love to see Indian ball players after me.

  Me: Did you move to Pennsylvania from Canada?
  Tanveer Bhullar: We did not move as a family. I still live in Toronto, Canada. We just live in dorms during the school year.

  Me: Did that move have to do with Basketball being much bigger in the States or academics with The Kiski School being one of the top academic schools in America?
  Tanveer Bhullar: Basketball, and then Kiski added the academics to so it is a great fit, so it was like 2 in 1.

  Me: Does playing with your brother in college intrigue you as a possibility? If so tell why.

  Tanveer Bhullar: I am not sure if I want to play against him or with him.

  Me: Do the two of you get the Lopez twins comparison quite often?
  Tanveer Bhullar: Not really

  Me: I would find it hard to imagine that the two of you along with your 6’9” teammate could really be beat at the High School level, especially with the two of you having a mid range game not commonly associated with men of your size. How does playing on the high school level compare to the AAU Level where the talent may be more of what you will see once you make it to college?

  Tanveer Bhullar: I believe the AAU circuit is going to be just like college because in college if you go to a good basketball school you’re just going to face other good Basketball schools.

  Me: Is there anything you would like to tell fans that they may not know about yourself?

  Tanveer Bhullar: I just want to say they better watch out, I’m certain I am not going to be like other 7 footers.

   

  Video of both Sim and Tanveer Bhullar in action.
  

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1Y04AMkvdg
  

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