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Ignite head coach Brian Shaw has expressed support for Kai Sotto’s decision to play for Gilas Pilipinas, but admits he is unsure whether the 18-year-old center will still be able to make it to the team’s campaign next season. of the G League 2021..
At a virtual press conference in the early hours of Thursday (Manila time), the three-time NBA champion-turned-coach said he and the rest of the team officials are very open about allowing their players to represent their respective teams. countries in international tournaments.
Sotto’s teammate Princepal Singh briefly left the team bubble in California last November to dress for India in the second window of the 2021 FIBA Asian Cup qualifiers, and the 7’3 “Filipino is about to do the same after committing to see action for Gilas in the third and final window scheduled next month.
“At the end of November, Princepal, who is now on our India team, went to play for their national team to try and help them qualify for the games they were going to play in,” shared Shaw.
“One of the things (that we made a commitment to) before all these guys came into the program was, you know, we weren’t going to stop anyone. We congratulate our players for wanting to represent their countries in that way. That was a decision that Kai and his team wanted and thought was important to him, so we supported him to go and be a part of it. “
However, this means that Sotto will miss a large part, or possibly all, of the 15 Ignite games that will be held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
“Unfortunately, a lot of that is during the time when we will be in the bubble. And so we wish him the best. We have worked with him up until the moment he left, and hopefully he will be able to go there and perform well,” Shaw said “.
Ignite and 17 other teams will compete in the four-week one-site tournament through March 6, with a tiebreaker taking place March 8-11 for the top eight teams.
Behind Filipino-American guard Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga, who are projected in the top five in next year’s draft, Ignite will begin its season against the Santa Cruz Warriors on February 10.
Meanwhile, Gilas’ games will be held on February 18 and 22 against South Korea and Indonesia on February 20 at a new venue after a travel ban to the Philippines forced FIBA officials to cancel. the bubble in Clark, Pampanga.
Although Ignite and East West Private have agreed that Sotto will fly back as soon as the games are over, there is still no guarantee that the 7-foot-3 center will do so due to the quarantine protocols in place for international travelers.
“And then depending on the timing of everything, especially since he’s traveling internationally, the quarantine times can be much longer. So we don’t know how that will play out when all is said and done in terms of whether he comes back and joins the team or not. “Shaw said.
“But we want him to do well in those competitions and then if the moment (is right) and (he) comes back, you know, we’ll see what happens.”
