AFTER a stint in the Summer League opened no doors to the NBA, Kai Sotto must make an impact while playing for co-host Philippines in the Fiba Basketball World Cup if he wants to revive his dream.
Guesting at the SPIN POV podcast on Tuesday, Serbian coach Rajko Toroman said the 7-3 Filipino youngster must seize the opportunity to play in the August 25-Sept. 10 showcase and prove that he can stand his ground against the world's best big men.
READ: Kai Sotto coming home to rest, plot next move, says Ronzone
"I think he must play for Gilas and make some impact. With Gilas, he must prove that he can play in the NBA," said the former national coach. "It should be step by step. You cannot go from elementary school to college."
Toroman said Sotto mustn't only show up; he must stand out.
"He should make an impact in tough games at World Cup now before thinking about the NBA," he said. "Competition is tough at the World Cup. That's his big chance to prove to everybody that his dream about the NBA is not just a dream."
Asked what's the next best step for Sotto, who is under contract to return to the Hiroshima Dragonflies in the next Japan B.League season, the veteran coach reiterated his view that Europe is the way to go for the youngster.
However, Toroman warned Europe's top leagues won't be easy for Kai.
"Europe I think is the best station to prove himself. But even at this time, I don't think he can play Euroleague because it is too strong, too many American players, too many NBA players. Maybe [another European league], somewhere he can prove himself.
"The point is, wherever he's going, he must play. That's the point, he must be the main player and play 30 minutes," Toroman warned. "Otherwise, he will not improve, he cannot improve himself [if he's not playing]."
Even before Sotto joined the NBA draft last year, Toroman had aired his view that the youngster needed a year or two more of seasoning to better prepare him for the world's biggest basketball stage.
Now that he has seen Sotto bounce around from the NBA G League to the NBL in Australia to Hiroshima in the Japan B.League, each step not bringing him any closer to the NBA, Toroman looked back on Sotto's career path with a tinge of regret.
"For me, the people who are guiding him always try to do one or two steps more than they're supposed to do," Toroman said. "He's supposed to go step by step. If he's good, somebody will pick him ayway.
"Don't push; the things will come to him. And all his career, they're pushing some things that what in that moment was impossible. This is the reason why as I said, Gilas is the best option before they start thinking about Europe, G League or the NBA."
Basketball, Toroman added, has evolved so much over the years that being 7-foot-3 alone is no longer enough to make it to the NBA.
"He has to prove something. It's [no longer] the time when you're 7-foot-3, you are [already] good enough. No, you're not good enough. You have to prove yourself," said the former national coach of Iran, Jordan, Philippines and Indonesia.
"In the times that I was watching him, he was just a talented and skilled guy who can shoot the ball for his size. But he was not quick and athletic enough," he added. "With his size, if he can run the floor and be competitive with his body [against] big guys, I think he has a future."
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