Player The Uncertainty Realm of the Improved Jumpshot of Jeremy Sochan

[RC_Drunkford]

He's a vibes player. And needs minutes to instigate and get inspired, it seems. The fact that the Polish team couldn't use him this Summer is sadly telling. I believe Gortat mentioned the details in an interview.

His rookie season I thought he was the lone bright spot.

I accept he's playing like crap. But that doesn't mean drafting him was idiotic. We desperately needed a power forward. Or that he never showed promise. He just never improved and somehow regressed horribly.

Gortat:

I don't know if Czarek (Czarek Trybański another polish NBA player) had a shirt or a suit, but one thing is certain - we were not covered in gold and diamonds like Jeremy was now. I'll emphasize I'm not saying that he did something wrong or that he will be bad and lose that money, that's not the point. It's evident he's steeped in American college culture. His dad was African American and we understand that culture a little bit. Me and Czarek, we're Poles, we are very, very white and we're from Poland. We don't have that culture, to walk around draped in gold or diamonds. You can see that he likes it and he probably gets a kick out of it.

He needs to stand out in many categories, not just one. We all know that one niche isn’t going to make you a very valuable player in the NBA right now. He simply needs to be a better basketball player overall.
First and foremost he still has to develop his shot - which is not good enough. He needs to work on his shooting both around the rim and from outside.
His role for the Spurs has dimished lately. He plays some minutes at the 5, he comes of the bench. Sometimes he’s more of a forward, on the other night plays a lot in the pick and roll (he’s really good at it). There are no set plays for him, because he’s not a "go to guy" for the Spurs. Because of that his role is still not set.
I understand how hard it is to be starting for few games, then come off the bench, then you miss few games because of injuries and he lacks rhythm because of that.
Year 3 was a hard time for him, but on a positive note he has a fourth year coming to work on that and prove himself.

also if anybody saw the Fox/Wemby Jenga video, when they were asked who would be late to his own wedding, both said Sochan and giggled. I guess that indicates he's late to a lot of team activities too.

 

[spurraider21]

Three picks behind Sochan, the Thunder picked Jalen Williams. What a whiff.

the picks after sochan

Johnny Davis - bust
Ousmiane Dieng - bust
Jalen Williams - star
Jalen Duren - stud (everyone on ST saw this coming tbh)
Ochai Agbaji - bust
Mark Williams - health issues, finally coming around
AJ Griffin - bust
Tari Eason - solid outcome

then later you get some good names like LaRavia, Braun, Kessler, with Blake n Bran sandwiched in between

 

[CrustyCoastBendFan]

Honestly, I should be starting.

And then I'll just grow a foot, learn to shoot, dribble and pass, and develop a time machine.

Who's going to argue against this?

Austin Rivers?
Gain 15 pounds?
He needs to be Rodman, and Draymond?

First, he is saying being Rodman and Draymond is so easy to do. As easy as "gaining 15 pounds" or adjusting an attitude.

Dennis Rodman, who earned 5 championship rings, won back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year awards in 1990 and 1991, and was a 7-time NBA rebounding champion from 1992 to 1998, all while likely weighing no more than 210 pounds. Easy—just add an extra Egg McMuffin or two, and voila, your now Dennis Rodman. Sochan go have some dirty sex with some pop singers or two. That should do it.

Draymond Green is a four-time champion, Defensive Player of the Year, and a cornerstone of the Warriors dynasty. His supreme basketball IQ has allowed him to lead the team in total assists throughout the entire run. Just tweak the attitude a bit—maybe even throw a punch at a teammate in a practice and have the footage leaked—and boom, Sochan becomes Draymond.

Remember when Doc Rivers traded CP3 and effectively ended Lob City because his son was the target of the Point God’s ire, and he never even used his name, just called him “the coach’s son”?

All these ex-players and their “tea-spilling,” “dropping knowledge of the game” podcasts need to stop. Especially from COACHES SONS.

 

[Shmurs]

Gortat:




also if anybody saw the Fox/Wemby Jenga video, when they were asked who would be late to his own wedding, both said Sochan and giggled. I guess that indicates he's late to a lot of team activities too.

‘23 spurs one of the least serious teams of all time. incredibly jarring for people not tracking them.

 

[scott]

Gortat:




also if anybody saw the Fox/Wemby Jenga video, when they were asked who would be late to his own wedding, both said Sochan and giggled. I guess that indicates he's late to a lot of team activities too.

Gorgat delivering the honest scouting report that Sochan stans have been covering their eyes to from fellow Spurs fans

 

[spursfanfromafar]

Sochan showed some promise on the shooting front, that we thought will work, because he took Pop's advice and shot free throws one handed. The idea was to angle and make his shooting hand provide the right spins towards the basket while practising the other hand to pivot properly outside of game time. That was 3 years ago and Sochan took to that task willingly.

But the promise fizzled because while his FT% went up to about average ..there was little transition to accuracy otherwise as all these shooting changes only added a hitch (first a bad one and later a milder one) that has prevented him of being of any use on the shooting front during game time.

The coaching staff in the second season tried to set a role for him where he could play point forward and rely on his passing and playmaking without having to shoot. That didn't work out but the expectation was that he would add some secondary playmaking to his skills. After relieving him from point duties, his performance picked up but his weaknesses were still glaring.

Later the Spurs used him as a primary perimeter defender who limited his scoring to just cuts and transition with some passing chops as a post player who could establish position and distribute the ball. Again his complete lack of a post game prevented him from being of any consistent help and so this plan was kinda abandoned. But the promise of being a decent / good perimeter defender remained and Sochan did improve on this front. Almost to the extent of being the Spurs' best defender apart from Wemby before Castle's maturation.

And finally the Spurs were forced to use him as a back up center to utilise his skills on court after exhausting other options and he has been a disaster so far. Not to mention losing his rudimentary perimeter defensive skills that he showcased last year plus being a liability for a guard like Harper who made the right passes to Sochan only for them to go to a black hole. His shooting now? Even worse plus a reversion to two handed FT shooting has brought back bad habits.

Contrast this with other poor / non shooters like Donkeymond Green. Green might be a hated player with too many antics and an egoistic crank. But he also channels them well in Golden State's games and is always a net positive when paired with the greatest shooter of all time. Plus he has maximised his strengths into becoming a formidable defender who can switch seamlessly from perimeter to low post to even the rim. He has over the years become an expert reader of player tendencies and scouting reports and is a master of positioning, timing and passing. Sochan is nowhere close in any of these abilities.

Castle, also a negative shooter stands in stark contrast. Look at the leaps he has made in maximising what he could do and grabbing the PG spot over players like CP3 and Fox.

All said Sochan is now proving to be a major liability for the Spurs and a bust relative to his drafted position. He might possibly be useful in a rebuilding squad as someone who plays in a fast, transition driven system but that's about it.

Gortat's larger point about Sochan's play is therefore so right. I don't know if his cultural point about White vs Black makes sense though. But still.

As an aside, I hope that the Hawks' pick conveys into another lucky pick for the Spurs. For if there has been one flaw in Brian Wright so far..it's been about drafting a non- top 4 player in late lottery or mid lottery or even further..

Apart from Wemby, Castle and Harper and to some extent, Bryant ..almost every player drafted by Wright has been underwhelming relative to position - Primo, Samanic, Sochan, Branham, Wesley, and to some extent, Vassell. Not to mention the misses in the second round.

 

[TimmyBuckets]

When you take the position that Sochan is a deal breaker to try and get Lauri... you've gotta ride it all the way to the end, tbh

That had to do more with Ainge playing hardball than Sochan. Also, I think Carter Bryant falling to them, getting the number 2 pick, and having multiple pieces you'll have to pay at certain timeliness all went into Spurs and Sochan not agreeing on a number. With bad shooting and below average offense, and acquisition of those pieces, he's becoming irrelevant sad to say. It's this second apron too. If they could pay him, they would. They invested in him, but they have first world problems right now with an embarrassment of riches so he's expendable.

 

[RC_Drunkford]

New comments from Gortat:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1999894140092289227

 

[scott]

Sounds like Gortat is blaming Jeremy bagging an IG baddie... but I'm going to go out on a limb and say his dating life is not the problem...

 

[Shmurs]

Sounds like Gortat is blaming Jeremy bagging an IG baddie... but I'm going to go out on a limb and say his dating life is not the problem...

it’s very plausible that his professionalism was always flimsy and has sunken to new lows because of recent lifestyle choices. I mean I know he’s always been bad but when you become super disengaged during a contract year, where is there’s smoke there’s likely fire.

 

[PanameSpur]

His dating life is like the ketchup on the pizza or the lateness in team activities, it's not a problem by itself, but it paints a big picture that isn't reassuring.

 

[Shmurs]

He’s not an unimportant person in Poland basketball. Gortat criticizing him out of nowhere this summer and then getting relegated to sitting in the corner while the grown ups do offense - on a team without NBA players…real bad. this was even before the injury. Just completely unserious stuff.

 

[CGD]

New comments from Gortat:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1999894140092289227

WTF, did this dude just call him a “raisin”?

 

[The Truth #6]

he seems to be combining a cultural critique with a basketball critique, with just sort of muddies the analysis.

 

[ambchang]

Sochan has clearly taken a step back this year. All that confidence is gone. He is hesitant not just shooting basketball but every single thing.

Gortat is pretty much spot on in that he can’t ride one thing. Sochans defense is good, his pick and roll game as a roller is good. He rebounds well. This year? He is doing nothing well.

I don’t see him as an incredible talent or anything but last years sochan with a passable outside shot is exactly what the spurs need as a role player.

 

[poopbox]

The real mvp. He is so good he played 0 seconds against OKC and we still won.

 

[dastexan]

5 star performance from Sochan tonight!

And Gortat didnt exactly hold back in his assessment...

 

[PanameSpur]

I like that he's keeping an uplifting attitude and isn't sulking bc he has no playing time.

But it also shows he doesn't want "it" THAT much.

At some point he was trying to make CB laugh during a TO and Carter just looked at him and went back looking at the huddle without reaction... Doesn't he care at all??

 

[LeBowen]

I like that he's keeping an uplifting attitude and isn't sulking bc he has no playing time.

But it also shows he doesn't want "it" THAT much.

At some point he was trying to make CB laugh during a TO and Carter just looked at him and went back looking at the huddle without reaction... Doesn't he care at all??

He probably accepted his fate.
It's been 3.5 years since he got drafted and despite Spurs' best effort, he still hasn't figured out basic basketball fundamentals, let alone how to shoot the ball.
I wouldn't be surprises if Spurs give him something like 25/4 deal next summer to be the cheerleader and occasional enforcer and he accepts it.

 

[SpurSpike]

the picks after sochan

Johnny Davis - bust
Ousmiane Dieng - bust
Jalen Williams - star
Jalen Duren - stud (everyone on ST saw this coming tbh)
Ochai Agbaji - bust
Mark Williams - health issues, finally coming around
AJ Griffin - bust
Tari Eason - solid outcome

then later you get some good names like LaRavia, Braun, Kessler, with Blake n Bran sandwiched in between

It's starting to look like if there is a player in the draft named Jalen, you take him lol. Jalen Johnson also looking like a stud Brunson is another good Jalen.

 

[PanameSpur]

He probably accepted his fate.
It's been 3.5 years since he got drafted and despite Spurs' best effort, he still hasn't figured out basic basketball fundamentals, let alone how to shoot the ball.
I wouldn't be surprises if Spurs give him something like 25/4 deal next summer to be the cheerleader and occasional enforcer and he accepts it.

I don't think it's a matter of money but spots available on a roster. Keeping him wouldn't make any sense, just because there are plenty of prospects with a higher floor that would deserve a spot or development time more than him.

Starting with CB and potentially whatever project we get mid draft next summer, 99% chance it'll be a wing imo

 

[KobesAchilles]

He probably accepted his fate.
It's been 3.5 years since he got drafted and despite Spurs' best effort, he still hasn't figured out basic basketball fundamentals, let alone how to shoot the ball.
I wouldn't be surprises if Spurs give him something like 25/4 deal next summer to be the cheerleader and occasional enforcer and he accepts it.

Ewww a 4 year contract?

 

[Shmurs]

He probably accepted his fate.
It's been 3.5 years since he got drafted and despite Spurs' best effort, he still hasn't figured out basic basketball fundamentals, let alone how to shoot the ball.
I wouldn't be surprises if Spurs give him something like 25/4 deal next summer to be the cheerleader and occasional enforcer and he accepts it

That sort of thing doesn’t happen. Jeremy will first be upset that he’s not getting a payday. Then he’ll take a short term deal somewhere else to go earn his next payday. But we know how that will go. China by 2030.

 

[NASpurs]

 

[Shmurs]

that’s a fever dream of a tweet lol. State run media is better to listen to when the team is winning but they’re gonna cling onto this dude as long as they have a pulse.