Green Keen on Sotto's NBA Dream

By Dan Woods - NBL Media

Although Kai Sotto's NBA dream may have been delayed, Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green believes it's just a matter of time before the exciting Filipino centre joins him in the USA.

Sotto will run it back with the Adelaide 36ers this season after failing to land a team in the NBA Draft, despite working out for multiple teams in the lead-up to the recruiting process.

Green is well aware of the talents the 20-year-old Sotto possesses, with the pair linking up for the NBA G-League Ignite in 2020.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kai Sotto&#39;s former G League Ignite teammate, Jalen Green is a BIG believer in his fellow Filipino&#39;s game.<br><br>More at <a href="https://t.co/F3UJxKj8Yy">https://t.co/F3UJxKj8Yy</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/ABSCBNNews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ABSCBNNews</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBLxNBA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBLxNBA</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> <a href="https://t.co/jOJF1bpATP">pic.twitter.com/jOJF1bpATP</a></p>&mdash; The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1558971355739361280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 15, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


Green says if Sotto has the desire to reach the NBA, he’ll likely be there sooner rather than later.

“"I love Kai's game, [it's] super good … he’s just on a different journey right now,” Green told ABS-CBN News.

"Everyone has their own path and this is his story, he can make it what he wants to.

“He loves the game and wants to get to the league, so I think he's going to achieve it."

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A number of NBL stars found their way to the NBA this off-season with Ousmane Dieng, Luke Travers and Hugo Besson all being selected in the NBA Draft, while Jack White has been signed to a two-way contract with Denver.

Green says the international nature of the game means there are NBA opportunities available for those who put in the work.

"Anybody can get to the NBA, it's a worldwide league. You’ve just got to put your mind to it, stick to the grind," he said. 

"Don't lose yourself because you had a tough day or you feel like nothing's going your way, that's where you're really going to prevail the most.

 "Those are the moments you have to live for, the days that you feel like you struggle with or nothing's going your way, you need to capitalize on it."

"Just stay in the lab and work."