Kai Sotto misses NBA G League opportunity in a mutual agreement to part ways

Kai Sotto’s highly-anticipated NBA G League debut won’t be happening (usatoday.com)

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

 

Kai Sotto will no longer be suiting up for his team Ignite in the NBA G League after league president Shareef Abdur-Rahim’s confirmation.

It was a roller-coaster ride the last few weeks for Sotto and his camp following the hosting cancellation of the Philippines for the FIBA Asia Qualifiers due to travel restrictions.

With the ultimate goal of re-joining his prized PH national team and make his Gilas Pilipinas seniors’ debut, Sotto’s run was cut short due to the cancellation and spent almost three weeks complying with safety protocols only for the event to be cancelled.

Meanwhile, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) assured Sotto and his camp of a definite G League return to compensate for the time he spent in the country despite FIBA’s scrapping of the qualifiers.

However, things did not go how they expected with the G League’s final decision prohibiting Sotto from re-joining their bubble and finishing the season.

“Kai and the team both understood the challenges for him to rejoin Ignite given the current international travel constraints, quarantine times, and health and safety protocols,” said league president Rahim.

As of now, Sotto and his camp have not bared future plans but they will most likely stay in the US for a while and continue with individual workouts.

“Kai will always be a part of the extended Ignite family, and we wish him continued success as he pursues his NBA dream,” Rahim ended.