Kai Sotto and a world of opportunity
MANILA, Philippines — When I think of what Kai Sotto is doing — his mission to make it to the NBA — I think of Drazen Petrovic.
Petrovic is a Croatian basketball star who broke into the NBA during the 1989-90 season with the Portland Trailblazers. However, it was when he moved to the New Jersey Nets in 1991 where he saw his star dramatically rise. He died tragically not soon after the 1992-93 season during a car accident in Germany.
When Petrovic was brought back to Croatia, one fan informed his grieving mother, “You may have given birth to him, but he (Drazen) belongs to all of us.”
Sotto, of course, is still very much with us. My allegory to Petrovic refers what he represented and meant for the young country of Croatia following their war of Independence from the Yugoslav Republic. He was Croatia’s global ambassador who represented their hopes and dreams.
Allowing Kai to pursue his dreams of making it to the NBA is the right thing. Why? Because this is bigger than anything he might accomplish locally. It's because Kai represents a nation’s fervent hope of a homegrown hoopster making it to the world’s elite. While there have been NBA players with Filipino lineage such as Raymond Townsend and Jordan Clarkson, a Philippine-born cager making it is totally different.
I remember when the late Ric-Ric Marata was recruited by the University of British Columbia in the late 1980s. He was coming off a sterling international invitational tournament with Swift where they won the title. Going abroad to play basketball seemed even far-fetched, and his exploits were followed by the local media during this pre-internet age. Unfortunately, the loneliness got to Ric-Ric and he eventually returned home where he found more fortune playing in the PBA.
When Japeth Aguilar left Ateneo in 2005 to go to Western Kentucky University, every Filipino got excited. However, he didn’t do much and was injured. He was drafted 109th overall during the 2012 NBA D-League draft but he was eventually waived by the Santa Cruz Warriors.
I think also of how Ray Parks had an opportunity when Georgia Tech came calling. But he initiated ties with National University, which paid a pretty penny to recruit him. He did work out for the Utah Jazz, Brooklyn Nets, Atlanta Hawks and the Boston Celtics.
It was with the Dallas Mavericks though where he had that big chance suiting up for their Summer League team, where he averaged 3.0 points and 1.7 points per game. His NBA dream stayed alive by playing for the Texas Legends in the D-League, where he struggled for playing time and to perform. The Westchester Knicks provided one more opportunity but Parks was waived in November of 2015.
The next season, another Ateneo stalwart in Kiefer Ravena worked with the Texas Legends as a developmental player but was unable to land a roster spot.
Kobe Paras had the right mind to go to the US for his high school and early college years. He excited Filipinos everywhere as he did well with Middlebrooks. Imagine the excitement when he signed a letter of intent to go to UCLA. That was such a high-profile school and program that counts big names and legends such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton, Jamaal Wilkes, Marques Johnson, Reggie Miller, Russell Westbrook and Zach LaVine to name but a few.
Paras withdrew from UCLA after he was unable to meet their academic requirements and he went to Creighton. Kobe played sporadically and left for Cal State Northridge in search of more playing time. When his Cal State coach, former NBA star Reggie Theus, was fired, Paras moved back to the Philippines where he is now with the University of the Philippines.
As a former college teacher and mentor to a few kids, I always tell them to put themselves on the path to their dreams. There is a roadmap to one’s dreams.
One has to determine what the stops are in between to learn, soak in knowledge, and gain experience that will vault him to the next stage of that journey. Doing things that are off tangent will not lead to that dream.
Aguilar, Paras and Sotto have placed themselves on that path. I always thought that it was wrong for Parks and Ravena to stay home instead of immediately going abroad to pursue that dream.
I even once thought that if Ray couldn’t get past UST’s Kevin Ferrer, then how much more the competition in the United States where there is talent on every square inch of the country.
Remember when NBA scouts in town took a fancy to Johnny Abarrientos and Jayson Castro. The fancy only amounted to news chatter for the heck of news chatter.
You need to get used to the high level of competition. You need to work your way through a system whether it is correct or even prejudiced. You need to let your talent shine. You need to perform on a big stage.
It might not be in the United States; it could be in Europe; the FIBA World Championships or even the Summer Olympics. Wherever it is, you need to put yourself on that path that will lead to your dream. And that path will demand sacrifices.
You’re all seeing the sacrifices and the path that Michael Jordan put himself on to become the Greatest Basketball Player not only in the NBA but all over the world in the gripping documentary "The Last Dance".
Foregoing college to pursue a sports dream might sound risky, but in Kai’s case, this is a magnificent opportunity. He has received all sorts of advice from not only his family but others. And the kid has considered everything. I have to give it to him as he is single-minded and resolute in his pursuit of this dream.
When I say that he belongs to all of us, he represents that dream. If he succeeds in making it to the NBA, you can bet that scouts will begin taking a longer and harder look at Philippine talent.
When the Dallas Mavericks selected Wang Zhizhi 36th overall in the 1999 NBA Draft, the seven-foot center paved the way for Chinese players to enter the league. And Wang got playing time and even made the Mavericks playoff roster. After Wang, five other Chinese players made it to the NBA, with Yao Ming being the most accomplished and famous of them all.
After Satnam Singh became the first Indian national to be drafted into the NBA (by those forward thinking Dallas Mavericks), two of his compatriots, Amjyot Singh and Princepal Singh, are being closely followed by NBA teams.
It stands to reason the same could happen with Sotto – if he makes it.
Kai is now going to the NBA’s G-League with a buzz that he has every chance to make it to the world’s best basketball league. Embrace this opportunity because he belongs to all Filipinos.
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