The Fraser Valley Bandits are back for their fourth season with a totally new look, playing at a new venue — the Langley Events Center — and holding a completely reconstructed roster featuring Surrey’s own Sukhman Sandhu. Sandhu went to high school at Tamanawis Secondary School and played three seasons with the UFV Cascades, where he averaged seven points per game. Sandhu currently attends UBC where he still plays (and had one career year) as a Thunderbird, and where Sandhu boosted his scoring to an impressive 16 points per game. The Cascade had the opportunity to have a chat with Sandhu about what it means to be a pro and the growing basketball scene in our community.
How does it feel to be a professional basketball player?
It’s exciting; it’s definitely something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. Especially with this new league, the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) and how much it’s grown in this short amount of time, to be drafted has been a milestone. I’m really excited for it, looking forward to it, and hopefully this is just the beginning for me and my professional career.
How do you feel about the basketball scene in our area, from club basketball to professional?
I think it’s become more prevalent since even when I was in high school. I think the [high school] provincials this year, with just how packed the Langley Events Center (LEC) was, is a good indicator; I’ve never seen LEC like that. On social media you’ll see a lot more pages covering local high school basketball and all different levels. I think the interest is definitely growing. It’s definitely been good to see, even with the Bandits moving over to the LEC just like the high school provincials. It’s caused a lot more excitement; I think people are really getting behind this big boom with basketball, and how popular it is becoming with younger and older people.
Can you speak about your move from UFV to UBC and what went through your mind at that time?
Well, at that time, it was an odd time because it was [during] COVID-19. It just hit, so it was a lot to figure out. Two of my really good friends, Sukhjot Bains and Parm Bains, had just graduated, so with them not being at UFV, it was a bit of a culture change. With that, I checked all of the options I had to see where I wanted to go. I knew some UBC alumni so I reached out to them and things just started going on from there, and it worked out really well. There was a lot of preparation I wanted to put in during the summer, just to prepare for that upcoming season. There’s a lot of drills and a lot of practicing; I really wanted to make sure I didn’t fall behind in anything. I really did as much as I could to stay sharp and stay on top of the game.
What did Abbotsford and the UFV community mean to you?
It was great. It’s a bit of a smaller school with not as many people living in residence. But to see the support, to see the turnout we’d have every day, to see the community come together and really appreciate us and accept us as basketball players out there, and just having the Indo-Canadian community was awesome to see and was really fun to be a part of. It was something that I’ll definitely cherish for as long as I can remember.
What is some advice that you would give to an 18-year-old Sukhman?
I’d tell him to just stay consistent. The biggest thing is perseverance. Things are definitely gonna get bumpy, there’s not going to be a straight, narrow path; it’s going to be a little convoluted and a little disheartening in some places, and exciting in other places, but just stay consistent throughout. Continue to, or start to, work hard. At that point, I don’t think I was really working hard. So build that work ethic, stay consistent, and develop those skills that are traditional for a taller player. But at the higher level, you have to be able to play any position.
Interview edited for length and clarity.
Esher is a second year law & communications student who is invested in sports. When he isn't filming and writing about basketball, he can often be found washing cars or cutting the grass. Esher hopes to one day enter the field of law enforcement and start his own media group.