By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Will we finally see the first full-blooded Filipino in the NBA?
After days of speculation and waiting for the next major plan in his young basketball career, Filipino hoops sensation Kai Sotto officially announced that he has already declared for the upcoming 2022 NBA Rookie Draft.
The seven-foot-two center made his announcement through his social media account and posted a lengthy message on Instagram.
“I have declared for the 2022 NBA Draft. Please pray for and support me during my quest to fulfill my ultimate dream,” wrote Sotto on his Instagram post.
Before making it official, Sotto first tested the waters of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL) and played for the Adelaide 36ers.
Despite an injury-plagued start in Australia, Sotto was able to recover after several games and finished strong for the 36ers.
The towering Filipino center became a solid backup big man for Adelaide and was always a defensive and offensive threat whenever he was on the floor.
Sotto finished his last remaining games in Australia on a high note and dropped two consecutive double-digit scoring outings: a 16-point production against the SEM Phoenix and 12 points, four blocks, and seven rebounds over the New Zealand Breakers.
Initially, Sotto already expressed his intent to join last year’s NBA Rookie Draft and even signed with NBA G-league team Ignite but a quick change of plans urged him to go home and play for the Gilas Pilipinas under head coach Tab Baldwin.
Sotto didn’t disappoint when he played for the national team after helping them sweep the mighty South Korean squad in the last FIBA Window.
Sotto also helped Gilas’ decent finish during their Olympic qualifying campaign and was close to upsetting the NBA-filled Serbian national team.
If ever Sotto will be drafted, he will be resuming the halted dreams of Kiefer Ravena, Bobby Ray Parks Jr., and Japeth Aguilar who became the last aspirants to enter the world’s biggest basketball league.
