FILE–Kai Sotto. Photo from B.League
MANILA, Philippines — Kai Sotto is transferring to the Yokohama B-Corsairs for the remainder of the 2023-24 B.League season.
The 7-foot-3 Filipino center, who has yet to play a single game this season due to his back injury, has completed his transfer from the Hiroshima Dragonflies to the B-Corsairs.
Yokohama on Thursday announced that Sotto has decided to join their team starting December 26.
The Gilas Pilipinas star expressed his gratitude to his new Japan team, seeking to help the B-Corsairs win more games with a 10-14 record.
“I wanna thank the team Yokohama B-CORSAIRS and the organization for trusting and signing me to play for the team, despite coming off an injury. I’m very blessed to be given this opportunity and I will make the most out of it. I’m very excited to play for the city of Yokohama. I can’t wait to win more games and get better as a player,” said Sotto in a statement.
Yokohama manager Ken Takeda believes Sotto will help the team improve and reach their goal with his height and “soft shooting touch.”
“Kai Sotto is a very promising young player with a size of 220 cm and a soft shooting touch. We have high expectations for him as a new option on offense as well as inside defense and rebounding. I believe that the team will gain more energy with the addition of Sotto and accelerate into the mid-game and second-half games,” said the manager in a statement.
Following Sotto’s addition, Edward Morris was removed from the team.
Sotto, who played two seasons with the Adelaide 36ers in Australia’s National Basketball League, went straight to Japan to join Hiroshima and averaged 9.5 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks in 21 games played last season before seeing action in the playoffs.
The 21-year-old Filipino saw action in the Fiba World Cup 2023, averaging 6.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks in five games amid his back injury.