Gilas star Kai Sotto finally cleared to play as FIBA World Cup preps ramp up

MANILA, Philippines – Kai Sotto has finally gotten medical clearance to participate in practice, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) said on Tuesday, August 15.

SBP chief Al Panlilio said during a special edition of the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum held at the Meralco Gym that the center’s doctors and the SBP’s medical personnel huddled up on Monday and produced an agreement.

“That’s good news. He’s been cleared to play and again, we’re looking forward to seeing him play also in the friendlies to get ready, I mean for everybody to get ready when the games starts on the [August] 25th,” detailed Panlilio.

“We didn’t see any MRI results. What we wanted to do to really put closure and also move forward and really just focus on the games,” he added.

Since his arrival from the United States following a stint in the NBA Summer League, Sotto has been hampered by lower back issues that forced him to seek medical intervention.

According to sources, Sotto underwent an MRI scan and then lightly participated in Gilas practice sessions.

The 7-foot-3 beanpole already participated in full contact practice since last week, according to sources within his camp.

Panlilio urged Sotto to work on his conditioning, as he noted that the big man was getting tired a bit quicker.

Meanwhile, the local organizing committee (LOC) has pegged its preparedness at 95%, with the remainder likened to the “last two minutes of basketball.”

While Panlilio has noted the anticipation of the final 12 members of the roster, he said that the team may wait out the August 23 deadline before revealing the lineup.

“The difficulty now is deciding the final 12,” rued Panlilio.

“I thank everybody in the pool who have sacrificed for Gilas even though they’re not guaranteed a spot.”

Opening day at the Philippine Arena on August 25 will be an important one for the LOC and the SBP as they are looking to surpass the 32,616 attendance mark set in 1994 in Canada.

Per LOC deputy event director Erika Dy, the organizers have already sold around 28,000 tickets, with Panlilio adding that they would like to double the current figure.

“We’re confident that we can pass that. I think we want to achieve the 50,000 mark, at least. We’ve hired 400 buses to make it convenient.”

Dy expounded that some of the pickup points for the point-to-point buses include Ayala Cloverleaf, One Ayala Makati, PITX, SM Megamall, SM Pampanga, SM North EDSA, TriNoMa, SM Baliwag, Market! Market! and Araneta City.

The 2023 FIBA World Cup is co-hosted by the Philippines, Indonesia, and Japan.

The goal of the Philippines is to claim an outright spot in the 2024 Paris Olympics as the highest-ranked Asian team.

Gilas is joined in Group A by world No. 10 Italy, No. 23 Dominican Republic, and No. 41 Angola. – Rappler.com