 |
| Rising international basketball sensation Kai Sotto (Image Source: Smart Communications) |
Smart Communications' newest brand ambassador Kai Sotto opens up to reveal details on his next plans as he is forging towards a new path in his young international basketball. Bringing with him a dominating inside presence of 7'3", sweet shooting numbers and world-class training, Sotto is also focused on contributing for the Gilas Pilipinas national men's basketball team in the upcoming Olympic Qualifying Tournament and FIBA Asia Cup. The pure-blooded Filipino wunderkind is also set to join his new team, the Adelaide 36ers, in Australia's National Basketball League. His return to Smart's Gilas program was indeed destiny waiting to happen considering that he has been part of the Batang Gilas lineup from his early teen years.
“I’m thankful that my goal and Smart’s goal are the same—to inspire the next generation of young Filipinos,” said Sotto during a recent online press conference hosted by Smart. “That has been one of my top dreams, and we’re on the same page. I’m looking forward to everything we can achieve together.” He added, “Playing for their national team is the top goal for any athlete. I’m thankful to everyone for this opportunity, and I’m just excited for what’s ahead. Let’s all help each other succeed!! I know that the chance to wear the Gilas uniform again, my plans for Kaiju, and even this collaboration with Smart to inspire more youth are all part of the journey. The ultimate goal is to make my kababayans proud and hopefully open more doors for more young Filipinos because that’s a priority for me as well." For Smart president and CEO and Samahang Basketball Ng Pilipinas (SBP) president Alfredo S. Panlilio, “We’ve been following Kai for a long time, since his Batang Gilas days. He can really be the future of Philippine basketball. He’s only 18 years old, but he’s achieved so much, and we’re rooting for him as he achieves his goals."
Aside from playing for the Philippine flag, Sotto has begun setting up the Kaiju Global Academy in Hamilton, Ohio, USA aimed at developing young prospects for the game millions of Filipinos love the most. The athlete is doing all these things while inching closer to his NBA dream. Sotto's return to the Philippines to play for the national team is a great example of pursuing his passion for basketball with a noble and admirable purpose of bringing glory to his home country. It is enough to make Sotto the perfect choice as ambassador for Smart's Double GIGA Stories. “We truly believe that Kai embodies our message as he pursues his dreams—he’s doing it not just for himself or his family, but also for the country. Our commitment at Smart is that we will be there behind Kai as he pursues his dreams, and that we hope we can inspire younger Filipinos to believe that they can make this world a better place as they pursue their passions and purpose,” said Smart Communications Senior Vice-President and Consumer Wireless Business Head Jane Basas.
Smart subscribers can follow their own passions with a purpose and share them to other worlds just like Kai who uses Twitter to document his basketball milestones, tell his story of resilience and success, and act on his purpose of inspiring his followers to pursue their passions with Kaiju Global Academy. They just need to avail of Double GIGA Stories 99 with 2 GB per day of Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and Kumu plus 2 GB open access data valid for seven days for only Php99 via either dialing *123# on their smartphones or the GigaLife app.
