CHICAGO - Kai Sotto and the Orlando Magic are in Vegas for the NBA Summer League this coming July 7 to 17.
Participated in by all of the league's 30 teams, the 17th edition of the tournament will be held at the two attached venues - the Thomas and Mack Center and the Cox Pavilion just minutes off the world-famous Strip.
With more than 90,000 Filipino nationals residing in Las Vegas, per The Star-Ledger, huge contingents of Pinoys are expected to gobble up the tickets during days when the Magic are scheduled to play.
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What is still to be determined is how much playing time will the 7-foot-3 youngster be able to showcase his skills in front of hs kababayans.
Amid unconfirmed reports that several teams had manifested interest in inviting Kai to their Summer League roster, the former Ateneo high school star's camp chose Orlando on the premise that the Magic provided "the best opportunity."
"Does this mean Kai will have playing time?" we asked Tony Ronzone of Wasserman Sports.
"Kai will have to earn everything out of the opportunities. Three mini camps and Summer League. Nothing is guaranteed," said the primary architect of Sotto's reinvigorated trek to make it to the NBA,
IT'S ALL UP TO KAI NOW.
In other words, Ronzone and the influential agency behind him have done everything in their power to give the 23-year old prospect the best chance possible in achieving a childhood hoops dream that almost an entire nation shares with him.
Ultimately, there are limits to the magic Ronzone can weave. And in the end, nobody else can run this race of a lifetime but Kai himself.
Like finding love, this latest test for Kai will be a long and difficult road.
But the door is wide open.
As constituted, the Magic's Summer League roster only has two legitimate bigs - 6-foot-10, 230-pound DJ Wilson, a five-year NBA veteran, and 6-foot-11, 205-pound Robert Baker II.
Between the two, only Baker is a true center.
Guided by the experience of having practiced with his Summer League teammates five times since arriving in Orlando, the hope is that Kai has learned enough of the sets coach Dylan Murphy likes to run so he can shine when his number is called.
Three days to go.
And the beginning of what is deemed as perhaps the final reckoning starts.
BOL BOL OUT, KAI IN?
When news trickled out that the Orlando Magic waived 7-foot-2 center Bol Bol two days ago, fans got super excited over speculations that a roster spot may have opened for Kai.
That isn't necessarily so.
Bol, who averaged 9.1 points and 5.8 rebounds in 70 games last season, was waived before his $2.2 million contract for next season would have been guaranteed.
The 23-year old also had a well-documented history of foot problems including season-ending surgery last February.
After signing veterans Moe Wagner and Joe Ingles, the Magic's 15-man roster is now full. But there are a pair of two-way contracts that Orlando can offer.
If he does well at the Summer League, Kai can snag one of those available spots and meander his way to the main roster from there.
He can also get signed outright by another team which needs a versatile big that has plenty of upside but may still require some time to fully blossom.
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