Boru Breaks Barriers with Basketball Camps in India

(PITTSBURGH – Pa.) – When sophomore men's basketball player Keerthi Boru started making phone calls to India, the world's second-most populated country, to inquire about holding basketball camps he had no idea that within a one-week period he would be booked at three schools and two basketball organizations for a total of eight sessions.  

Boru arrived in Hyderabad, India, where the first indoor basketball court was built only a few years ago.  He had always been passionate about helping kids in India with basketball fundamentals, so when his family offered to help him make the opportunity a reality, he decided to take the chance and follow his heart.

Upon his arrival in mid-July, Boru was expecting a quiet trip touring the country while teaching the fundamentals of basketball to children along the way.

"I thought there would be about 20 kids a session," Boru chuckled. "When we got there and one group of kids was playing, they all wanted to play. One session we had about 80 kids on one court." 

Each session was two hours long and included ball-handling drills, shooting drills and passing drills followed by a talk on nutrition and the importance of a balanced lifestyle.

Boru, alongside his 17-year-old sister, worked with more than 300 kids from ages six to 19.

"I met a couple kids who could definitely play collegiate basketball here and want to play in Europe," Boru said, "They didn't even have any coaching; the only thing they had was YouTube. That is just amazing to me."

According to Boru, in India, although "there have been leaps made in this area in the last few years," sports are generally discouraged due to the belief that education is the primary priority.

Boru spent some time during the camps teaching the kids the importance of balance in their lives.  "Academics without a doubt comes first, but you have to at least pick one hobby and go after it almost just as hard."

Boru shared some advice with the kids that he has learned from Carnegie Mellon University's head men's basketball coach, Tony Wingen: "Academics are #1, but one tiny step below that is basketball."

"I always appreciated what I have, but when you go to India and put on these camps, it is such a different experience." Boru smiled as he said for the third time, "I am just so glad to be here and to have such opportunities."

Boru would love to go back to India next summer and expand on the work he has already done over there. Although unsure of how feasible it would be, Boru thinks it would be a great experience to get some teammates involved to help the kids improve their fundamental skills even more.

Check out this video of Keerthi working with the kids: