National pride, NBA dream driving Sotto

By Liam Santamaria

Adelaide 36ers recruit Kai Sotto has a large weight on his shoulders.

A rising star of Filipino basketball, Sotto carries the expectations of a hugely-populated, basketball-loving country.

If you scroll through social media you’ll see them: hordes of hoops fans from the Philippines desperate for their next big thing to succeed.

Already a member of his country’s national team, Sotto is being willed to become an impact player in the NBL and, eventually, an NBA draft pick.

For most, those expectations would feel like a heavy burden. Perhaps even an overwhelming one.

However, speaking with NBL Media last week from his apartment in Adelaide, Sotto made it clear that he doesn’t see it that way.

Playing for the people of his homeland is a dream come true, he says, and the support they give him only makes him stronger.

“Representing my country and representing my family’s name is an honour,” Sotto explained.

“It gives me all the strength to go all out on the court because I know my family’s behind me and my whole country’s behind me, supporting me.

“I’m just very thankful and very blessed to have those people behind me, trying to push me to work even harder and help me reach my dreams. Just to have their support is a big thing for me.”

That support is most strongly felt when Sotto suits up for his country’s national team, Gilas Pilipinas, like he did at last year’s Asia Cup Qualifiers and earlier this year at the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Serbia.

The 19-year-old averaged 9.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game across the Philippines’ two match-ups in Serbia, including a memorable encounter with NBA giant Boban Marjanovi.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">New <a href="https://twitter.com/Adelaide36ers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Adelaide36ers</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL22?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL22</a> recruit Kai Sotto (<a href="https://twitter.com/kzsottolive?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kzsottolive</a>) went head to head with Boban overnight at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament. <br><br>Sotto finished with 10 points and 5 boards after getting the start but his ?? squad fell 83-76 against Serbia ??<br><br>?+? via <a href="https://twitter.com/FIBA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FIBA</a> <a href="https://t.co/lh2Z19NS8r">pic.twitter.com/lh2Z19NS8r</a></p>&mdash; The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1410493503486849025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 1, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


It was an experience that gave Sotto a taste of top-level FIBA competition – something he’s eager to play in more often. Right now, however, he’s focused on making a strong first impression in Adelaide.

“One of my biggest dreams was to represent my country, especially playing in FIBA tournaments,” Sotto said.

“But right now I’m going to be playing in the NBL and I’m the only Filipino to play here. The performance that I show will reflect on the Philippines so I have to make sure that I play the right way and play my best every time I step on the court.”

The son of a former pro baller, Sotto is a 7-foot-3 centre (he claims to have recently grown an inch) with an intriguing and versatile skillset. He can handle the rock, has a nice stroke, has good touch around the rim and has a knack for finding the open man. He’s also shown some impressive instincts as a rim protector – something Sotto believes will provide a starting point for his role with the 36ers.

“I’m a rookie so I’ll start with my specialty, which is defence and rim protection,” he said.

“Offensively we’re a good a good team and we share the ball so offence will come to us naturally.”

Sotto’s other focus this season, he says, is on making constant improvements to his game. Much of that will take place in the weight room, as he needs to add muscle mass, but there’s also plenty to be done on the floor. All in the name of advancing towards the best league in the world.

“Right now I’m just trying to be the best player that I can be every day. Just trying to be 0.001 percent better every day,” Sotto said.

“Before I sleep at night I just make sure that I did my best to help myself and help other people get better.

“The long-term goal is always to make it to the NBA. Hopefully next year or the following year. That’s the ultimate dream.”

The challenge for Sotto over the next few months, however, will be establishing a regular role in Adelaide’s rotation.

Daniel Johnson and Isaac Humphries are the presumptive starters at power forward and centre, with Humphries still working his way back from the foot injury he sustained last season. Beyond that, there’s not a lot of depth in Adelaide’s frontcourt. Emmanuel Malou will play some back-up minutes at power forward, import Todd Withers is a three who can slide to the four while the 36ers appear poised to add injury-plagued former NBA big man Cam Bairstow to their roster in the coming days.

The bottom line: there are minutes there for Sotto if he’s good enough to grab them. That’s no easy task, however, especially when you’re battling one of the league’s best scorers every day at practice.

“The best match-up I’ve had on this team is Daniel Johnson,” Sotto said.

“I haven’t really practiced with Isaac because he hasn’t really practiced fully, but just guarding Daniel Johnson is a challenge for me every day.

“You can’t predict what he’s going to do because he can pass, he can shoot, he can post up and he’s got good strength.

“Going to practice and guarding him is a challenge but when we play with each other, now that’s a good feeling. That’s a good sight to see.”

How often we’ll see that combination on court together will be interesting to watch. We’ll definitely see a lot of it in the pre-season, as the 36ers carefully progress Humphries towards opening night. Those games in the Blitz will be Sotto’s first big chance to impress.

One thing’s for sure, there will be plenty of fans in the Philippines keeping a close eye on his progress. Especially the millions of young Filipino ballers for whom Sotto is already paving the way.

“A lot of them message me on Instagram and some of them, when we meet in person, they say ‘Kai, you inspire me to play basketball and do great.’ That’s like a dream,” he explained.

“I use basketball as a tool to inspire the next generation to fulfil their dream and help others to share the love.

“That’s the biggest blessing I’ve had and I’m going to continue on doing that.”