Still no minutes for Kai Sotto as Magic suffer heartbreaker to Knicks

MANILA, Philippines – The Summer League benching continued for Filipino NBA hopeful Kai Sotto as the Orlando Magic suffered a heartbreaking 82-80 overtime loss to the New York Knicks at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on Wednesday, July 12 (Thursday, July 13, Manila time).

Knicks guard Jaylen Martin delivered the game-winning basket in the extra period to hand the Sotto-less Magic their third straight loss in as many games. 

Orlando’s Summer League head coach Dylan Murphy once again deployed a thin 10-man rotation, leaving the 7-foot-3 Sotto, who has yet to play a single second in the Summer League, glued to the bench the whole contest. 

With Orlando on top by as many as 13 points, 64-51, late in the third quarter, Sotto looked prime to finally get playing time in the final frame, but New York managed to weather the storm and overtake the Magic, 72-71, with 2:35 to play in regulation.

Tied at 75-all off a buzzer-beating tip-in by Orlando’s Anthony Black at the end of regulation, the game then went into the unique and untimed version of an extra period in the Summer League, where the first team to reach the target score of +7 points wins the contest.

Unfortunately for Orlando, Martin sealed the deal for New York in overtime with his tough floater to settle the final count at 82-80.

Charlie Brown Jr. led the Knicks with 19 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 4 blocks, while QJ Peterson and Martin had 16 and 12 points, respectively.

On the other side, Jett Howard, the 11th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, paced the Magic with a game-high 22 points. 

Orlando’s DJ Wilson and Robert Baker took turns anew at the center position, but the two big men combined for just 9 points on 4-of-11 shooting in 23 and 15 minutes of play, respectively. 

Sotto hopes to finally see the floor and help the Magic capture their first win when they go up against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday, July 14 at 9 am, Manila time. – Rappler.com