Nitin Paul Dhiman is an Indian – American physician and former professional basketball player. He is 6 ft 3 in tall and plays guard. He has played professionally in the Dominican Republic in the Baloncesto Superior de Santo Domingo, the American Basketball Association (ABA), and the NBA Southern California Summer Pro League.
Early life and education[]
Born on July 24, 1980 in Overland Park, Kansas to immigrants from Punjab, India. He attended and played high school basketball at The Pembroke Hill School in Kansas City, Missouri winning two Missouri 2A state championships along with future NBA playersJaRon Rush and Kareem Rush. He led the team in three-point field goal percentage at 44.4%. The state titles were eventually stripped after his AAU Coach Myron Piggie pled guilty to a conspiracy charge for paying $35,500 to high school players on his Kansas City-based team from 1996 to 1998. The players included JaRon Rush, Kareem Rush,Corey Maggette, Korleone Young; and Andre Williams [1]
Basketball career[]
College: After graduating high school from the Pembroke Hill School he received interest to play collegiate basketball at Depaul, Southern Illinois, and University of Missouri–Kansas City. Instead he attended Iberoamerican University in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic where he was a standout guard on the basketball team. From 1999-2003 Dhiman scored 2,334 points and became the school’s all-time leading scorer and set numerous school scoring records.[3]
Professional: In 2002, Dhiman was added to Villa Francisca of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional of the Dominican Republic.[4] In 2004-2005 season, Dhiman signed with Ivan Guzman Klang (I.G.K.) in the Baloncesto Superior of Santo Domingo. He averaged 15.4 points and was named to the all-star team his rookie season and won the three point contest. In 2005, Dhiman returned to the United States and played at the NBA Summer League and was coached by former NBA center Olden Polynice. The following season he was signed as a free agent to the ABA’s San Diego Wildcats.[5] Former NBA Co-rookie of the year, Bill Tosheff, served as Dhiman’s agent.
During the 2006-2007 season, Dhiman returned to I.G.K. in the Dominican Republic but missed 4 weeks due to an eye injury. In July 2007, Dhiman teamed with former NBA player Steffond Johnson at the NBA Summer Pro League in Los Angeles.[6] After a brief hiatus to return to practicing medicine, Dhiman again participated at the 2012 NBA Summer Pro League in Los Angeles while playing for former NBA veteranJerry Reynolds. In 2013, Dhiman joined sports ministry, Athletes in Action, to compete on an exhibition tour against teams in Puerto Rico [7]
2002: Villa Francisca
2004: I.G.K.
2005: NBA Summer League
2006: ABA: San Diego Wildcats
2006-2007: I.G.K.
2007: NBA Summer League
2012: Southern California Summer Pro League
2013: AIA
Career Highlights[]
2004 All-Star - Baloncesto Superior de Santo Domingo
2004 All-Rookie Team - Baloncesto Superior de Santo Domingo
2004 Three-Point Shootout Champion - Baloncesto Superior de Santo Domingo
2006 Three-Point Shootout Champion - Baloncesto Superior de Santo Domingo