NBL22: ‘Special’ Filipino big man Kai Sotto giving Adelaide 36ers a big boost as he chases his NBA dream
There isn’t anywhere the Adelaide 36ers play that they don’t attract significant support — and one player is responsible for much of that.
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The Adelaide 36ers have enjoyed the support of an entire nation in NBL22.
Home games are always loud and proud but, whenever the Sixers hit the road, there is an unusually large support for them in the stands.
It’s all down to the hype around their towering big man Kai Sotto.
The 19-year-old is the darling of basketball-mad Philippines and has put the Aussie league on the map in the island nation — social media posts from the Sixers and the NBL tend to go viral when the 218cm giant is mentioned.
With almost 300,000 Philippines-born people living in Australia, Sotto’s pull is so strong that opposing clubs target advertising to the local Filipino communities in their states in a bid to boost crowds.
“Filipinos, they love basketball,” Sotto said after another large contingent of his countrymen and women turned out to support him at Melbourne’s John Cain Arena.
“I just appreciate that everywhere I go, everywhere I play, I feel their support.
“The team is thankful for that, as well; just very happy to have them supporting us and it gives us the extra energy to push forward. All the fans for the 36ers help us.”
So why all the hype? Because the kid is good. Real good.
He’s a live NBA prospect — a teen who is long, lean, moves well and can shoot the ball from deep like a guard. It’s the prototypical skillset teams in the big league covet.
He’s still thin — an off-season in the weight room will help with that — but don’t call him raw.
“The big fella’s got big goals and big dreams, which he should have, he’s very special,” coach CJ Bruton gushed about his young charge.
“He’s going to be special when he gets that opportunity moving up to the next level. Right now, he’s with us, he’s been great, he’s delivered in spades and he’s got better every single day.
“He’s young but he’s not raw. He’s developing.
“The NBL has really provided a pathway for him to grow in that space and showcase his talents.”
Sotto agrees with Bruton’s sentiments.
“I expected NBL to be competitive,” he said.
“It’s just every day a challenge for me, from practice to the games — it’s a great experience and it’s really helped me a lot develop as a player and as a person.
“I think this season, for me, really helped me get a lot better.”
Sotto is well spoken, but has an understated maturity about him — at least in the public eye — that belies his tender age.
He’s well-versed in the art of deflection, too, giving the classic ‘one-day-at-a-time’ response when asked about his future.
“My goal, every day, is to get better and develop and I always focus on the now,” Sotto said.
“I’ll focus on the future after the season and that’s when I’ll decide on some stuff. Right now, we have one more game and my goal is to finish strong.”
That game is in Tasmania against the New Zealand Breakers on Sunday.
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Originally published as NBL22: ‘Special’ Filipino big man Kai Sotto giving Adelaide 36ers a big boost as he chases his NBA dream
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