The development of Kai Sotto as a dominant big man has impressed Gilas Pilipinas national men’s basketball team assistant coach Tim Cone.
Cone said the 7’3” Sotto has shown a lot of maturity and talent in his game in the last three years and this would likely show in his future games.
“He is a dominating force in Asia and will continue to be for the next several years. He will dominate Asia for quite a while, quite a long time with his ability to protect the rim,” said Cone in his talks with newly appointed Philippine Sports Commission chairman Noli Eala on his weekly television program “Power and Play.”
The 64-year-old Cone made this observation at the end of fourth window of the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers after the Philippines lost to Lebanon in an away-game and then beat Saudi Arabia in a home encounter.
Cone, who recently returned from his stint as one of the assistant coaches of Miami Heat in the NBA Summer League, was not present in the Saudi Arabia game after he contracted COVID-19, while in Lebanon as he had to take a break.
The arrival of Utah Jazz cager Jordan Clarkson made Gilas a complete squad. And it showed Cone what it was like when Sotto interacts with his teammates and with the NBA star.
“His instincts to defend are off the charts for a big man like him. I think that his offense will continue to grow and grow and grow as he grows older, as he fills out his body,” said Cone.
Maturity in Sotto’s game is finally showing after he spent a year in the United States, while training with NBA G-League team Ignite, and two years in Australia, where he is now playing for Adelaide 36ers in the Australian National Basketball league.
In his last two games with Gilas, Sotto averaged 13 points, 10.5 rebounds, and three blocks in 26.8 minutes of action.
With the growth that Sotto is showing, Cone feels that he will even be better than Wang Zhi Zhi of China.
The 7’0” Wang was a dominant player in the Chinese Basketball Association during his time as a player with the Bayi Rockets, and has also see action for three teams in the NBA.
“Of all the players I’ve coached against, the guy he reminds me the most of at this level, at this point, and he’ll go beyond this, is Wang Zhizhi of China. He was the absolute beast. Kai is kind of a little like him, I think a little bit better than Wang Zhizhi, and has a lot more room to grow,” said Cone.
Cone feels that the current roster of Gilas should be kept together for a long time.
That’s because there are two guards, Jamie Malonzo and Calvin Oftana, who can back up Clarkson real well at the point guard position.
“The athleticism in terms in this team is really exciting,” said Cone.