Sacramento Kings' new center addition Sim Bhullar now holds two records in the NBA circuit - the first man of Indian descent to play professional basketball for the association and the tallest basketballer in the current rosters.
Bhullar, who has roots in Punjab, dropped out after his sophomore year in college and was drafted into last month's official NBA draft. And despite being criticised for his inability to move fast on the floor, he was picked up by the Kings for the summer play-offs.
Bhullar, who is described as having a wide body, measures in at a whooping 7'5", thereby rendering him just three feet short of the basket.
Height is something that runs in the Bhullar family as his father measures in at 6'5", his mother at 5'11" and his younger brother Tanveer (a redshirt freshman at the university) at 7'2".
With his titanic physique, it was obvious for Bhullar to take up sports as his career option, with basketball having featured prominently in his college years, where he played center for his college New Mexico State University.
Having had a per game average of 10.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.4 blocks, he was quickly noticed for his gameplay.
"Guys my size don't have very long careers and you have to take advantage of it and do the best you can with the time you have to play," Bhullar said in an interview to The Globe and Mail.
"I didn't want to get hurt in another college season and ruin my chances. And I'm not the kind of guy that's doing it just to make money right away; I just want to play at the highest level," he stressed.
Despite having the height to play the game, Bhullar had to endure a lot of physical training to prepare his body for the NBA. He cites teammate DeMarcus Cousins as his idol and also being responsible for pushing him into the right direction.
"I have already had several work-outs and I was pitted against Cousins in my first game," Bhullar stated.
However, he will not be the first Indian to be associated with the Kings, as Vivek Ranadive happens to be a majority owner of the team.
After not playing in their first match, Bhullar recently made his debut for the Kings in the match against Charlotte Hornets, where he played for a total of nine minutes, during the first quarter of the match and provided for a block of the Hornets' center Joe Shaw. Kings went on to win the match 72-65.
Bhullar said that the passion for the sport runs in his family.
"My brother Tanveer is 7'3 and he is also a basketball player, so was my sister until she turned her attention to becoming a lawyer," he revealed.
Bhullar, who is said to have visited India for the first time a couple of years back, was apparently taken aback by the response he received from the general public.
"A crowd of 200 were following us whenever we stepped out of the car."
