When young talent is nourished to excellence, the journey is a fairy tale come true. Twenty such young hoopsters from India are off to live a dream-like journey with the primer academy to be established here at National Capital Region by the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the ACG Worldwide Group in April 2017.

Following a nationwide trial ‘ACG-NBA Jump National Finals’, 21 ballers were named for the initial batch to receive scholarships and training at NBA Academy India. However, three more hoopsters will join the initial batch through a wild card sort of equation.

“These are 21 best kids, which we have selected after sitting with four different coaches watching and analysing their performance and development in the past three months,” NBA India Managing Director Yannick Colaco told thestatesman.com in an exclusive​ interview.

ACG-NBA conducted tryouts in six regions, including Mumbai, Delhi, Ludhiana, Kochi, Chennai and Kolkata, following the finale at Jaypee Greens, Noida on Saturday, featuring top 45 prospects from across the country.

Colaco said he has seen “tremendous potential” in Indian kids for the game of basketball over the past two-three years and aims for the paramount with such initiatives for the growth of the game.

"We are focused on grassroot development program. Besides this, we have junior NBA program, which has now near 40 lakh kids in it. We continue doing these things to facilitate the growth of basketball in India, both for talent development as well as for creating a fan base,” he added.

Refining the very best talent out of the whole lot wasn’t an easy task for Colaco and his team as he called this three-month tryouts “a scouting process to find young talent” out of both – who played for national at various levels as well as those who always strived for one big chance.

“We wanted to see how developed they are as a basketball player and what is the potential for them to become better," Calaco said.

The 21 selected hoopsters reflected different shades of a single hue as the lot consisted players from all across the nation. Each kid will be staying here in the academy premises throughout the completion of the course.

The 14-year-old baller from Chhattisgarh, Rishabh Jaiswal, who was the last boy to make the cut in the final 21, counts it as the biggest ever opportunity for him and other selected boys.

“Coaching staff and facilities here are amazing and I am happy that I’ve got selected. We’ll stay here and learn a lot of new, good skills,” the humble hoopster said.

Rishabh has been playing basketball for the past three years and has featured in the Nationals, Open Nationals and School Nationals in the past. He has also captained Chhattisgarh state team that brought him under the spotlight in front of the NBA.

“It’s a great platform for youngsters like us as there isn’t much things happening for the growth of basketball, in compare to other sports. We hope to benefit best out of it and do great with the sport in future,” 14-year-old hoopster form Uttarakhand, Riyanshu Negi joined in.

“I am excited to be a part of this academy and it feels like stepping up closer to my dream,” Prashant Rawat, 16, six-feet-six-inches-tall shooter from the city of lakes Nainital, said.

The 24 players will get scholarships and training at the NBA Academy India, the first of its kind institute in the country and the NBA’s fifth elite training center globally.

Selected batch: Manoj Sisodiya, Md Ali, Riyanshu Negi, Amaan Sandhu, Sejin Mathew, Virat Dhakad, Achintya Krishna, Rajveer Bhati, M Shanmugam, Shaurya Kohli, Prashant Rawat, Vivek Chauhan, Jagshaanbir Singh, Brijesh Tiwari, Arvind Kumar, Robin Banerjee, Digvijay Shekhawat, Preshit Pawar, Suraj Phathak, Parth Sharma, Rishabh Jaiswal.