Two days after announcing his departure from the Adelaide 36ers of the National Basketball League in Australia, Kai Sotto’s next destination has been confirmed. On the social media pages of the Japan B. League, a message from the 20-year-old Filipino center has been posted saying that he looks forward to playing for one of the league’s top teams in the Hiroshima Dragonflies.
According to Hiroshima Dragonflies General Manager Shuji Okazaki, they were already in pursuit of Sotto’s services back in 2022 but the timing was off. The organization, however, continued negotiations, which included the promise of supporting the 7-foot-2 prodigy’s dream of playing in the NBA. This time, everything fell into place as the terms of the contract have been agreed upon.
“I made this announcement in order to once again express my intention to aim for the B. League championship in the shortest possible time and grow into a top club. In a few years, Japan’s B. League will change into an even bigger “New B1 League”, the General Manager said. Entering the “New B1 League” will be a big obstacle, but we would like to run up to the “top” together with everyone,” Okazaki added.
It seems like Sotto is bound to fill a role with his new team that’s way more substantial than the one he had in the NBL. The erratic minutes he saw with the 36ers may now be a thing of the past. And that would be great for his fans and of course, for his development more importantly. The Hiroshima Dragonflies are currently among the best squads in the B. League, boasting a 27 and 9 record. With Kaiju coming in, the team will look to become even better in the coming games.