On Nov. 17, I wrote about Jeremy Sochan, roughly a month into his rookie season.
In the piece, I detailed his connector mentality, and defensive upside. That I stand by, and his play since that post has only reaffirmed the value he has as someone who'll find his own way.
However, something has happened since then. Whether it was triggered by his change in free throw shooting, or due to injuries leaving the San Antonio Spurs short offensively, Sochan has seemingly decided to dig into his offensive upside, even registering a 30-point game against the Phoenix Suns a few days ago.
Since, and including, Nov. 17 Sochan has netted 11.2 points per game in just over 27 minutes per game. He's taken 9.9 shots per game, and gotten to the line more due to his newfound efficiency, converting on over 68% from the foul stripe.
These numbers are, in the grand scheme of things, modest. But for Sochan specifically, they're enormously encouraging. He was never particularly polished as a scorer, nor was he ever expected to carry much of a scoring burden.
Instead, his upside as a playmaker and passing hub was supposed to be his calling card. That's mostly still true, but the fact that he's beginning to call his own number to the extent that he is could see him level up to a point that was otherwise viewed as unattainable.
Sochan, seemingly, seems to have caught on to the fact that NBA spacing is quite significant. He's more inclined to make an aggressive drive now than before, knowing how much space defenders will have to cover to come over to help. He's reacting instead of overthinking, but with a filter of intelligence and court awareness that allows him to not be out of control.
(While his driving habits have increased, and he's mostly taken quality looks, it does need to be said he's struggled a bit finishing at the basket, hitting just 61.9% of his attempts at the rim in January. This is a small sample size and nothing to be too concerned about, but it's a stat worth tracking as the season wears on.)
His 3-point shot has been far above expectations since the calendar flipped to 2023. He's canning 38.7% of his attempts from long range this year, having made 12 shots on the month. That, for him, was supposed to be a few years away.
The Spurs could always use another weapon offensively, especially one who's more than willing to also let his co-stars shine, which seems a foregone conclusion with Sochan.
Ultimately, even if Sochan scales back offensively later in the season, just seeing his willingness to be featured more as a scorer is extremely encouraging for his long-term outlook.
He wasn't satisfied with being only a connector and defender, and that's the right mentality to have at 19 years of age. The more Sochan embraces the fact that potential can be lifted, the better for him, and the better for San Antonio.
Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
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