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San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan was hoping to have a big contract season, but unfortunately for both him and the Spurs, he is having anything but.
Surprisingly, he has fallen out of the rotation completely, a shocking development that has proven to be the right call by coach Mitch Johnson. His season never really got going after missing EuroBasket, the preseason, and the team’s first eight games.
During that time Luke Kornet was able to establish himself, and Julian Champagnie solidified himself as a key rotation player, both at the expense of Sochan, who now appears likely to be traded. At least the Spurs have a few potential trade partners that could be interested in Jeremy Sochan.
The Spurs have a painfully obvious Jeremy Sochan trade partner
Of the 29 other NBA teams, three stand out as possible Sochan landing spots: the Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, and Phoenix Suns. The most likely landing spot could be the Suns, with them having a ready-made rotation player in Royce O’Neale currently shooting the leather off the ball.
The 32-year-old is drilling 42% of his 6.8 3-point attempts per game, making him one of the best shooters in the NBA. Still, the Suns may have to choose between him and Grayson Allen given their cap situation.
O’Neale is older but may attract more of a trade market given that he is only set to make around $11 million over the next two seasons. If the Spurs were to offer up Sochan and two second-rounders via the New Orleans Pelicans–which project to be pretty good picks—then that might be something the Suns consider.
It would also turn a negative into a positive by turning a non-rotation player into a sharpshooting vet. O’Neale would technically be the best shooter on the Spurs and would give them an affordable weapon off the bench.
Who else could Jeremy Sochan be traded for?
Other options include the Bucks’ Gary Trent Jr. or Knicks center Guerschon Yabusele. Trent is also among the best shooters in the NBA and is on a surprisingly cheap one-year deal. If the Bucks are forced to have an in-season fire sale, then teams would definitely be interested; the Spurs should be one of those teams.
Lastly, the Knicks have Yabusele, who seemed Spurs-bound heading into last summer, but he signed with New York instead. Things haven’t worked out there, to say the least, but he is a French national teammate of Victor Wembanyama, and the Spurs have a history of French reclamation projects, i.e., Boris Diaw.
If the Knicks throw in a 2032 second, then that might be a fairly realistic option, though not the most appealing. Between those options, O’Neale would be the best one, followed by Trent Jr. and then Yabusele.
Each team would be a decent landing spot for Sochan too, something that the Spurs may take into account if they are working with him and his agent on a trade. No matter what, however, it appears that Sochan may soon be playing on another team.