Phoenix Suns coach Monty Williams praised the footwork and consistent shooting stroke of Kai Sotto after reviewing his game footage from the Basketball Without Borders camp during the 2020 NBA All-Star Weekend.
Throughout a nine-minute video posted on NBA Philippines’ Facebook page, Williams – the 2020 NBA Coach of the Bubble – shared his insights on the 7-foot-3 Sotto’s unique signature moves as well as the Filipino wunderkind’s much-improved shooting from beyond the arc.
In the first of six plays that Williams analyzed, he talked about Sotto’s post up, spin away from a double team, and flip shot move.
Williams mentioned how Sotto has the special ability to feel the defender’s body and awareness to see if a double team is coming, before taking the flip shot, which he considers very hard to teach.
“I like the fact that he not only spins away from the defense, but he can feel the defender’s body,” said Williams.
“He also can see the double team coming, and that’s something that a lot of players don’t have,” he added.
Next, Williams pointed out Sotto’s post up to step through move.
According to Williams, Sotto uses a bit of hesitation and pump fake all in one, which ultimately freezes the defense. He also said that Sotto does a really good job of feeling where the defense is and he uses this move to create more space so he can get to the basket.
“He can feel the defender’s presence and positioning, and from there, he just uses his skills and footwork, and that hesitation pump fake allows for him to get to the basket.”
Third, Williams explained Sotto’s crossover to floater move, which superstar forwards in the NBA also use.
“That particular crossover is a bit different. You know, more guys like Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, and Paul George, these bigger forwards are using that crossover,” he said.
Williams believes that Sotto has the knack to execute the crossover near his hip, which allows him to effectively get to the basket for the floater. He also feels Sotto has the ability to make the tough floaters off the post, or floaters off a crossover.
“Those are the kinds of shots that you work on by yourself in the driveway or at the park when nobody’s around, and it looks like it’s paying off for him,” added Williams.
Fourth, Williams discussed Sotto’s face up, fake pass, and pull up move, which he feels is “very savvy” for a young player like Sotto.
“The ball fake, the footwork, the patience, and the ability to take a picture of the defense to see where the double team may come from, to see if it’s crowded in the paint, that’s savvy. That’s a lot of savvy for a young player,” he said.
Fifth, Wiliams talked about Sotto’s impressive ability to slip in the pick-and-roll, which is very useful in the NBA nowadays.
“This is what I would call a slip out of the screen, it’s a pick-and-roll with a pretty dynamic slip.”
“The footwork out of it, he opens up to the ball, his ability to open up quickly… and then the ability to catch it in traffic is something that I don’t take for granted,” he added.
Lastly, Williams had nothing but praise for Sotto’s free-flowing and one motion three-point shot.
“One of the things is that, Kai looks like he has really good hand-eye coordination, and there’s good rhythm in his shots,” said Williams.
“He looks like he has a pretty good stroke… and all of his shots look the same. He’s got good follow through with his left hand, he just seems to be a good rhythm shooter.” – Rappler.com
There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.