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Kai Sotto was trending again on Twitter on Thursday night — and for good reason. The Filipino big man finally made his NBA debut for the Orlando Magic in the NBA Summer League — much to the delight of the basketball-crazed Filipino nation. It wasn't exactly a mind-blowing debut for the 21-year-old, but the fans at least got their wish of seeing the highly-touted young man play on an NBA court for the very first time.
Both the supporters in attendance and NBA Twitter went crazy as soon as they saw Sotto take the floor:
Kai Sotto just took off his jersey! Filipino fans cheering! Here we go! Finally Kai in an @OrlandoMagic jersey on an NBA court! This is historic! pic.twitter.com/mBezu7M76Z
— TJ Manotoc (@tjmanotoc) July 14, 2023
Kai comes off the court to a big applause from 🇵🇭 fans behind the @OrlandoMagic bench and from his teammates and coaches 🙌🏼 all around
Played almost 8 mins. Got 2 rebounds, a block and 0-1 FG.
Let’s see if he gets minutes again in the 2nd half and looks for his shot more.
— TJ Manotoc (@tjmanotoc) July 14, 2023
Sotto had a few big plays during his limited time on the court, and naturally, it sent Filipino social media into a frenzy:
KAI SOTTO GINULAT ANG PORTLAND. SINABAYAN SI SHAEDON SHARPE! SAPAL ANG INABOT!!! pic.twitter.com/IRyAVvMbAh
— Ryan Alba (@_alba__) July 14, 2023
Kai Sotto finally made his Summer League debut and his first bucket!
🇵🇭
— Pack Mamba (@Pack_Mamba) July 14, 2023
KAI SOTTO WITH HIS FIRST SUMMER LEAGUE POINTS pic.twitter.com/SrKqjDmWAd
— The Jover (@305heatbuckets) July 14, 2023
kai sotto midrange MONEY pic.twitter.com/Tmx3aCG9k0
— gilasmuse (@pilipinasmuse) July 14, 2023
Kai Sotto has ARRIVED
4 PTS, 3 REB, 3 BLK in 10 minutes so far.
Not great, but good, and he's still 21. Probably needs to show more to get an NBA roster spot
— august (@3isthenew1) July 14, 2023
THAT’S WHAT YOU’VE BEEN MISSING IN YOUR LAST 3 GAMES @OrlandoMagic
Kai Sotto can give you solid minutes on defense. 4pts 3blks and 3rebs already
— GRAPIKEN (@grapiken) July 14, 2023
Kai Sotto 3 blocks!!!! Let's go!!!! @SouthBayLakers @wassbasketball @Wasserman
— anthony carlo (@carlo8_carlo) July 14, 2023
Kai Sotto ended up logging 13 minutes in his debut, finishing with a respectable six points on 3-of-7 shooting, four rebounds, an assist, and three blocks. It was by no means an eye-popping performance from the 7-foot-2 center, but at least he was able to provide some quality minutes off the bench for the Magic.
After logging two straight DNPs in his first two games, Sotto finally got a taste of some playing time. A lot of Filipino fans still weren't happy about it, though, as they rued Sotto missing his chance to really showcase his skillset ahead of a potential NBA call-up:
Ronzone said that the Orlando Magic is the best option for Kai. With simple eye test, that's not even remotely close. Are we taken 4 a ride? Those teams that did mini-camps for Kai probably did not even invited him. I really feel bad for this kid. Massive disappointment for Tony!
— Edper (@edpertech) July 13, 2023
look at the body language, they just fucking with this kid mental health at this point. Its crazy. Still Gotta stay ready though.
— notLTD (@lophytee) July 13, 2023
Feel for your kid…He just looked devastated. That's very poor handling by Magic organization. Wilson ain't NBA worthy anymore IMO. Bruh is 27 yrs old. Yikes.
— Kylo ren jr 123 (@123_Kylo) July 13, 2023
Our boy looks defeated.. 😢💔 A young man can only endure so much.. These coaching staff doesn't deserve Kai. A third rate organization will do third rate things… Dallas would have been a better choice at this point..
— I Love This Game! (@WadabStreamz) July 13, 2023
It's great to see Sotto finally play in an NBA Summer League game, but the bad news for him is that the tournament is almost over for the Magic. The entire Filipino nation will now be hoping against hope that the kid somehow finds his way to an NBA roster after this extremely brief stint.
