After four years, AJ Edu and Kai Sotto are set to team up anew when Gilas Pilipinas marches to the FIBA Basketball World Cup that the country will host from 25 August to 10 September.
The 6-foot-10 Edu said he is thrilled to reunite with Sotto after playing with him in the FIBA Men’s U19 World Championship in 2019.
Edu, however, failed to finish his mission as he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament and torn meniscus as well as a hairline fracture on his right femur with just two minutes gone into their first game.
Now, Edu can finally settle his unfinished business when he joins Sotto in the World Cup the country will host from 25 August to 10 September.
“I’m really looking forward to it,” Edu told Daily Tribune in an interview.
“That’s something people were talking about since we were young.”
Edu, who was sidelined with an ankle injury in the opening stretch of their World Cup training, will get his baptism of fire when he reinforces Gilas in a series of friendly matches against Lebanon, Iran and Senegal in China from 2 to 6 August.
“I’m excited to play at a high-level competition,” Edu said.
“I think we’re going to play four games and it would be good for my development.”
For Edu, what’s important in the China series goes beyond winning and losing as they are more eager to learn in the international level ahead of the World Cup.
“It’s all about learning for all of us,” Edu added.
“The World Cup is what really matters, so we’re gonna go there and learn as much as we can as a team and make sure we’re ready for the World Cup.”
