CHICAGO - Rooting for Kai Sotto and watching him rep our red, white and blue, is a matter of national pride.
Unfortunately, it is also a test of patience, loyalty, and endurance.
We've seen this movie before where the ending vacillates between anti-climactic or sad. Like that lower back injury which sabotaged his 2023 NBA Summer League stint, or the rib injury that put a damper on his phenomenal showing at the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament last July.
And then on Sunday, Kai Sotto crumpled on the floor after his left knee buckled while attempting a low-post move.
Here. We. Go. Again.
It's exhausting, the type that pushes fandom on the edge of surrender. But we'll keep the faith. And we will never give up on Kai.
STROKES OF BAD LUCK.
Because none of these are his fault. Human beings are not meant to sprout to 7-foot-3 tall and engage in physical activity that requires a ton of running, jumping and banging against thick, muscular bodies.
Three days since the latest scare, the medical updates coming out of Kai's camp have so far been a tornado of nothing, their hands tied by health privacy concerns, their knowledge limited to whatever trickle leaks from the Koshigaya Alphas.
READ Gilas holds breath as it awaits news on Kai Sotto's knee injury
And so we wait, pray, and hope for the best. We can also choose to curse at the basketball gods for thrice being so randomly unkind.
Meanwhile, Gilas Pilipinas is skipping some heartbeats as it awaits the fate of Sotto's availability in the upcoming February Fiba window. It shouldn't have to unnecessarily stress over this.
The February match versus Taipei and the February 23 showdown against New Zealand are both glorified exhibition games that don't require Kai to rush in returning from whatever it is he is dealing with right now.
Gilas needs Kai in the actual Asia Cup 2025 but not in these two road games.
MAYBE IT'S QMB'S DESTINY.
Instead of moping over what would have been, Gilas must view this potential Kai absence as an opportunity to insert Quentin Millora-Brown in the line-up and allow him to supplement the dearth of bigs in our team.
Gilas coach Tim Cone is open to the idea of adding another extra large on the pool, telling reporters: "If you can tell me there's another big out there that matches Japeth's (Aguilar) size and ability, I'll be happy to look at him."
QMB could well be the ice cream to coach Tim's cone.
READ QMB confirms he's eligible and willing to play for Gilas
Millora-Brown, who's smart as a whip and took engineering at Vanderbilt, is an inch taller, 10 pounds heavier and 13 years younger than Aguilar.
QMB also has US NCAA Division 1 credentials and has a fully healthy back despite having just carried the UP Maroons to the UAAP Season 87 title last month.
For months, Cone defiantly stood his ground and stuck to his handpicked Gilas pool amid calls for new call-ups in the wake of injuries that took out Jamie Malonzo and AJ Edu.
With this latest injury scare, Cone, no doubt, can't ignore the calls no more.
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