Kai Sotto disappoints in the 2020 NBA All-Star Camp

Kai Sotto's name is slowly building some buzz behind him as he was included in the 2020 Basketball Without Borders Global Camp in Chicago.

This 2020, Kai was one of the top 64 males and top 34 females that answered the invitation of the camp that has produced DeAndre Ayton, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and etc.

NBA players and coaches guided the campers through a variety of activities on and off the court, including movement efficiency, skill development stations, shooting and skills competitions and 5-on-5 games. The final day featured a single-elimination tournament culminating with the boys' and girls' championship games.

After the camp, one of the leading NBA draft analysis, Jonathan Givony gave his assessment of our biggest NBA hope today.

His performance at the BWB camp was somewhat inconsistent, as he looked like one of the most talented prospects in attendance in the morning drills each day but struggled to make his presence felt in the games. Sotto has gotten into better shape since arriving to the U.S. and possesses a versatile skill set for a player his size: scoring in the post with either hand, handling the ball impressively, good court vision and range on a jump shot that extends beyond the 3-point line.

The main point of the first part of his analysis is, in terms of drills, Kai was very good but he failed to translate it into the games.  That is expected though because Kai is a bigman with a lot of skills as written there. So, during the practice sessions, you will be amazed to watch a 7'2 guy showcase those wares. But he did have a hard time applying it during the games because Kai doesn't have the physical attributes yet to go toe to toe with the other NBA draft prospects.

Sotto didn't look ready for the level of physicality and intensity he encountered in the camp scrimmages, as he was scored on at will by stronger players, looked lethargic getting back on defense and settled for too many low-percentage shots. Sotto did show nice timing rotating for blocks thanks in part to his massive 9-foot-3 standing reach. 

 As expected his defense was his biggest problem. He is a slow-footed bigman. Just like a lot of the 7-footer plus bigs that have failed in the NBA. Just like Zhou Qi of China who is currently the best player of their nation and got two seasons in the NBA. He was more athletic than Kai but still failed in the NBA, primarily because he is not capable of defending wings and guards and even quick bigmen.

Unfortunately, the quickness of the feet is a physical attribute that is very hard to improve. That doesn't mean though that Kai cannot overcome that. Brook Lopez is slow-footed but is currently anchoring the best defense in the NBA, together with Giannis Antetokounmpo, because of his fundamentals and strength.

Unfortunately, his strength is also an issue, as dictated in the first sentence. I think that should be one of the urgent things that he needs to improve. He settled for a lot of low-percentage shots because he was not strong and athletic enough to carve space.

Being slow in going back to their defensive end is another bad sign for a bigman who wants to play in the NBA. I hope his trainers and guardians inculcate to him that on the defensive end, effort and energy make a huge difference. That is also a big plus for a lot of scouts in the NBA.

Overall, I hope Kai and his trainers listened to all the unbias analysis of what he showed in the camp and change his training path if necessary.