FILE – Andray Blatche and Kai Sotto sit courtside during a PBA game between Barangay Ginebra and TNT on August 1, 2019, at Araneta Coliseum in Cubao. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — Andray Blatche is hoping for redemption when he gets to lead a loaded Mighty Sports squad set to compete in the Dubai International Basketball Tournament later this month.
“Definitely, what happened in China left a bad taste in a lot of people’s mouths,” he said after the team’s practice in Makati on Monday, referring to Gilas Pilipinas’ last Fiba World Cup stint.
“I don’t expect to come back here without getting a championship in Dubai. We got the right pieces, the right players and a good situation going on,” he added.
Blatche was obviously thrilled with the idea of spearheading an exciting mix of talent—one that will parade the likes of fellow international veteran Renaldo Balkman, teen NBA hopeful Kai Sotto, UAAP and Gilas pool standouts Thirdy Ravena, Javi and Juan Gomez de Liaño, and Dave Ildefonso.
Mighty Sports leaves for the Emirates on January 21 two days before the competition tips off.
The 6-foot-11 center was also ecstatic on the thought of playing alongside Sotto.
“He’s got high basketball IQ,” Blatche praised.
“It’s basically off [his] smartness and [his] feel for the game—the spaces, the cuts, and the screens. He should be good.”
Mighty Sports hopes to improve its third-place finish in 2019 where they fell to Lebanese powerhouse Al Riyadi in the semifinal.
“I think it’s a great mix. I think they did a wonderful job putting this team together. All the guards and the bigs. It’s going to be exciting and fun,” said Blatche.
Sotto will be joining Blatche and the rest of Mighty Sports in Dubai as he is fulfilling prior commitments in the United States.