Filipino basketball prodigy Kai Sotto will be showcasing his talent in the “Land Down Under” after he signed up to play for the Adelaide 36ers in the National Basketball League-Australia.
The development, which was first reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic, means the 7-foot-3 Sotto will be honing his skills in the same league that helped catapult LaMelo Ball to stardom in the NBA. Ball played for the Illawarra Hawks and won Rookie of the Year honors before eventually getting selected third overall in the 2020 NBA Draft.
Sotto has signed for two seasons with an option for a third. Sotto is coming off a campaign with the NBA G-League Ignite Team.
"We are delighted to welcome Kai, both to the Club and the City of Adelaide. Attracting a player of Kai's potential from Asia, and more recently the United States, to Adelaide will only enhance the Club's reputation for identifying and developing elite basketball talent," said the team’s chairman Grant Kelley in a press release.
Meanwhile, Sotto also announced on Wednesday that he would be playing for Gilas Pilipinas in the FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers and the Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
The Asia Cup Qualifiers will tip off this June in Clark, Pampanga while the tournament proper commences on August 3 to 15 in Indonesia. The Olympic Qualifying Tournament will be in Belgrade on June 29 to July 4. (JNP)