(Photo courtesy of Kai Sotto FB page) MANILA - Kai Sotto, seen as the future face of Philippine basketball, has entered the NBA Draft. In a statement through Instagram on Thursday, the 7-foot-3 wunderkind announced that he will join the event scheduled on June 24 (Philippine Time) in New York City. "I have declared for the 2022 NBA Draft. Please pray for and support me during my quest to fulfill my ultimate dream," Sotto said. Sotto played limited minutes off the bench for the Adelaide 36ers for most of the National Basketball League regular season, but he got more minutes in his past few games when the team already knew about his fate of making the playoffs. He averaged 7.5 points on 50 percent field goals including 38 percent from long range, 4.5 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.8 blocks, and 0.3 steals in a little over 15 minutes a game this season. However, Sotto averaged 14 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks a night in what could be his last two games as a 36er, both ending up
Chris Newsome (Courtesy of PBA Image) MANILA - Chris Newsome stood tallest in Meralco's balanced attack to hold off No. 1 seed Magnolia in a do-or-die Game 5 to arrange another duel with rival Barangay Ginebra in the PBA Governors' Cup finals. The seasoned guard did it all for the Bolts, canning 14.0 points, 6.5 rebounds, 8.5 assists, and 2.5 steals in the last two games of the best-of-five semifinals which they won, 3-2. The Fil-Am guard thus emerged as the Cignal Play-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week, the last for the season-ending conference. Newsome beat out Meralco teammate Allein Maliksi in close voting for the weekly honor being handed out by the men and women regularly covering the PBA beat. The 6-foot-2 combo guard settled for 11 points, three rebounds, five assists, and two steals in Meralco's 112-93 loss in Game 4 before saving his best for last in the rubber match, 94-81. With the Bolts' season on the line, Newsome sizzled for 18 points including 11 in a t
ISTANBUL- The Golden State Warriors said Friday that Stephen Curry will miss at least two weeks with a sprained ligament in his left foot. "Stephen Curry, who exited Wednesday's game vs. Boston with 4:09 remaining in the second quarter due to a left foot injury, underwent an MRI on Wednesday night," the team tweeted. "The MRI indicated that Curry suffered a sprained left foot ligament. He will be re-evaluated in two weeks." Curry, 34, who started his career in 2009 with the Warriors, is averaging 24.3 points, 6.5 assists, and 4.6 rebounds in 826 regular-season games. The eight-time NBA All-Star guard has won two Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards and three NBA titles in 2015, 2017, and 2018). (Anadolu) }
MANILA - Hopes of a streaking NorthPort side of catching the last playoffs bus in the PBA Governors Cup gained a timely lift following another pair of victories behind the giant efforts of the returning Robert Bolick. Fresh from his stint with Gilas Pilipinas in the Manila qualifiers of the 2023 FIBA World Cup, the slick-shooting guard came back with a bang as the Batang Pier downed Blackwater and Terrafirma one after the other, to stretch the team's winning streak to five games and shore up its post-season drive. The gunner out of San Beda did it all behind an impressive near triple-double average of 25.5 points, 11.5 assists, and 9.0 rebounds in guiding NorthPort inside the Top Eight with an even 5-5 card entering the homestretch of the eliminations. The performance earned Bolick the Cignal Play-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week citation for the period March 2 to 6. Bolick bested the likes of June Mar Fajardo of San Miguel, and the NLEX pair of Kris Rosales and Kevin Alas for th
ISTANBUL - LeBron James on Monday apologized to Los Angeles Lakers fans for the team's disappointing play and promised that "We'll be better." "#LakerNation I apologize and I promise we'll be better!" James said on Twitter. Half of the 2021/2022 season already over and the Lakers have a 21-22 win-loss record in the Western Conference, including three straight defeats. The fans have been critical of their superstar guard Russell Westbrook lately for his poor shooting performance. James, on the other hand, averaged 28.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.2 blocks on 51.9 percent shooting and 36.2 percent from the 3-point line this season. James is a four-time NBA champion (2012, 2013, 2016, 2020), winning titles with the Miami Heat (2), Cleveland Cavaliers, and Los Angeles Lakers. He has been playing for the Lakers since 2018. Utah ends losing streak Meanwhile, the Utah Jazz beat the Denver Nuggets with a 125-102 score on Sunday, ending th