The UK-based, internationally published, freelance photographer's primary focus is covering the sport.
During a career spanning 30-plus years, Mansoor has covered many prestigious domestic and international events including the Olympic Games. He is a veteran of 16 EuroBaskets, six World Cups and various other prestigious events around the globe. He has strong links to domestic leagues too, working for the likes of Basketball England, both the Men's and Women's British Basketball League and British Wheelchair Basketball in both an official and commission basis over many years.
Ahmedphotos has received commissions to produce images for individual players, clubs, leagues, publishers, sporting goods companies and photo agencies worldwide, as well as high level leagues such as the NBA, WNBA, FIBA, FIBA Europe and the EuroLeague.
A sampling of Mansoor's clients include Nike, Adidas, And1, Sports Illustrated, ESPN and the Jordan Brand.
Mansoor, who had visions of being a pro basketball player, had trials with Manchester United back in the late 80s but couldn't quite cut the mustard. He later remarked: "My jump shot didn't get me into the league but my snapshot did!"
In this photo essay, Mansoor shares 10 of his favourite basketball shots from his vast collection of work and what makes them so special - part of Basketball England's celebration of South Asian Heritage Month and the figureheads in the British basketball community.
All images - Mansoor Ahmed
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'Gatorade Shower' - Nick Nurse gets drenched after finally landing the coveted playoff title for Manchester Giants at Wembley. Love this pic of a young Nick for whom the starry lights of the NBA awaited. Who would have thought that he would one day lead an NBA team to a championship on the back of stints in foreign climes!
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Ahead of the 2012 Olympic Games on home soil, GB pulled off a coup by organising a friendly game versus USA. Tickets were snapped up in record time, and even if the scoreline was a one-sided affair, the MEN Arena was packed to the rafters to see the likes of Kobe, Carmelo, LeBron, Durant et al. GB v USA was arguably the biggest ever game that Manchester or indeed any other city had hosted. This picture showed that even in the 'nose bleeds' the fans didn’t care if they could see their favourite NBA ballers up close and personal. The fact that they were there was all that mattered.
This picture speaks volumes, as a trio of Russian players, including star man Andrei Kirilenko, try to stop the one-man offensive juggernaut that is Luol Deng of Team GB.
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There is no one that plays the game with more heart than Johannah Leedham-Warner. A tough 86-76 loss against China in the opening game of the FIBA Olympic Games qualifiers meant that GB were on the back foot from the get-go. Leedham-Warner in the post-game press conference couldn’t hide her disappointment, with tears in her eyes. Times like this you just want to down tools and go give her a hug.
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The two-game road window for GB Women in 2018 came with two of the team's taliswomen in Temi Fagbenle and Johannah Leedham-Warner unavailable, but the GB resilience shone through and they won both games versus Portugal and Israel, respectively. This picture, taken moments after the buzzer sounded, stands out for a variety of reasons. First the elation of having beaten a tough Israeli outfit on their home soil but more importantly taking a huge step to EuroBasket 2019 qualification. Another reason why this image stands out is the look of horror on the faces of the Israeli fans, some with hands over their heads, others just shocked at what they saw.
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Hometown cooking - Myles Hesson returned to his hometown to lead England to Commonwealth Games Gold in dramatic fashion, as his three-ball in overtime defeated rivals Australia in an enthralling game. Love the emotion that Hesson exhibited not just in the final but throughout the tourney, as he remained locked into the goal at hand.
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Two of the worlds greatest generational players in Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol lock horns in the gold medal game at the London 2012 Olympics. Teammates with the Lakers but foes when it came to playing for their country. Bryant was out to defend the gold from four years ago in Beijing, whilst Gasol was trying to atone for the silver at the very same Olympics. In the end, it was Bryant again that would lead USA to the win with 17 points in the 107-100 win. Pau finished with a near triple-double of 24 points, 8 boards and 7 assists. This picture stands out for me as Kobe, in his usual gravity-defying self, gets the better of Gasol’s outstretched hand.
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The captains of all the WBBL clubs line up for a photoshoot ahead of the 2019-2020 season. Love this picture for the fact that it looks very gladiatorial amid the backdrop of the ruins of Colchester Castle. The picture also poses a significant event that transpired a few months down the road, when news broke out that Covid-19 had spread and had shuttered the remainder of the 2019-20 season.
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The Diety. This pictures capsulated everything great about our game. The air, the hang time, the outstretched hand of the Olympiakos player, as if Jordan himself is saying you can’t touch me! And then there is the GOAT himself, his classic turnaround jumper, his trademark gaze locking in the basket, his Jordan’s, his undershorts, everything about this shot screams MJ. At times, you wanted to put down your camera and just watch in amazement at this God-like figure went about his business. A player that everybody idolised, and still do, doing his thing on the international stage.
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In what has been dubbed arguably the most exciting and exhilarating league clinching game the British Basketball League has ever seen. Going into the contest in the 1998-99 Budweiser Basketball League season, both the Giants and Sharks were locked with a 30-05 record, and the winner would be crowned league champs. Played in front of a packed MEN Arena house of over 13,000 fans, live on Sky Sports, the game came down to the last 3.5 seconds. Terrell Myers hit an 18ft jump shot as the buzzer sounded to land Sheffield its second league title. This picture was taken moments after the buzzer sounded, and you can see Head Coach Chris Finch hugging Myers, Travis Conlan doing laps on the other side of court, and Assistant Coach Brian Aldred playing catch up. You can also just make out the shadowy figure of Tony Holley of Manchester in the background.
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