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Jeremy Sochan

Southwest Notes: Morant, Spurs, Sochan, Pelicans, J. Green

October 20th, 2023 at 7:39am CST by Luke Adams

Baxter Holmes and Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com published a lengthy investigative story this week detailing the transformation of Grizzlies guard Ja Morant from a Murray State prospect with “zero” red flags into a player whose worrisome off-court behavior led to multiple sit-downs with the team’s brass and – eventually – to suspensions of eight and 25 games.

While ESPN’s report includes several new details and quotes and is worth checking out in full, Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins rejected the idea that it created an “elephant in the room” for his club, writes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. According to Cole, shortly after ESPN’s article was published, Jenkins met with the team — and separately with Morant.

“I read the article, and I’m not going to comment on anonymous sources,” Jenkins said. “I’m not really going to comment on the past. I’m really just focused on the present right now — the strides he is making, positive strides, and the strides that the team is making. … I want him to know he’s got 100% support from us and his teammates.”

Morant’s teammates were equally dismissive of the ESPN report and expressed their support for the point guard, who will serve his 25-game suspension to begin the 2023/24 season. Big man Xavier Tillman called it “annoying” to have to relitigate Morant’s past behavior, while Desmond Bane said the rest of the team has “got his back.”

“People are bringing up anything they can just for people to have anything to read,” Bane said. “We ain’t worried about that. We with 12.”

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

  • The Spurs‘ starting five for the regular season will consist of Jeremy Sochan, Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, Victor Wembanyama, and Zach Collins, head coach Gregg Popovich revealed this week (story via Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News). The 6’9″ Sochan will serve as the de facto point guard in the super-sized lineup, though he expects to share the ball-handling duties. “It doesn’t mean I have to control (the offense) or be the main ball-handler,” Sochan said. “Whoever gets the ball can push it and play with a flow instead of playing slow.”
  • Pelicans big men Larry Nance Jr. (ankle) and Cody Zeller (back) took part in contact drills in practice on Thursday, while guard Jose Alvarado (ankle) was a limited participant, tweets Christian Clark of NOLA.com. New Orleans will be without Naji Marshall and Trey Murphy when the season gets underway, so having Nance, Zeller, and Alvarado available would help bolster the club’s depth.
  • Rockets guard and former No. 2 overall pick Jalen Green sat down with Shams Charania of Stadium (Twitter video link) to discuss what he worked on during the offseason, his thoughts on the addition of free agent point guard Fred VanVleet, and his impressions of several of his new teammates, among other topics.
  • Mavericks wing Josh Green, who injured his back earlier this week, was a full participant in practice on Thursday and doesn’t sound concerned about his availability when the regular season begins next week, as Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News relays (via Twitter).
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Southwest Notes: Sochan, Kyrie, Lively, Chandler, Rockets

October 13th, 2023 at 2:04pm CST by Luke Adams

No Spurs frontcourt player has appeared in all 82 games in a season since DeJuan Blair did it in 2009/10, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (subscription required). Second-year forward Jeremy Sochan, who welcomed the NBA’s declaration that its data doesn’t support load management, is hoping to end that streak.

“I think it should be a culture of playing every game that you can, and if your body is not 100%, then I understand,” Sochan said, per Orsborn. “But if you are fit and healthy, I don’t see why not playing 82 games or as many games as you can play.”

Appearing in all 82 games in 2023/24 would represent a major step forward for Sochan, who was limited to 56 contests as rookie due in large part to quad and knee issues.

Here are a few more notes from around the Southwest:

  • While his Mavericks backcourt mate Luka Doncic placed fourth overall in ESPN’s annual rankings of the NBA’s top players, Kyrie Irving isn’t putting much stock in the decisions made by ESPN’s panel, which ranked him 34th. “Rankings don’t mean a damn thing in the league, especially not from ESPN or any of these other media platforms,” Irving wrote in an Instagram comment (hat tip to The Dallas Morning News). “Majority of the analysts are not credible sources in my eyes and I don’t respect them or their opinions.”
  • Former Mavericks big man Tyson Chandler is working with rookie Dereck Lively II, referring to the young center as a “little brother,” according to Brad Towsend of The Dallas Morning News. Lively is welcoming the mentorship of Chandler, who is back for a third year as a part-time assistant in Dallas. “At first I wasn’t really familiar with Tyson’s game, until I started to do my homework,” Lively said. “Then I realized, ‘Wow, we really do play the same.’ We have the same demeanor. He’s 40-something and he has the same energy as me. We kind of reflect off of one another, you know?”
  • While the Rockets are hoping that veteran additions like Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks help the team take a step forward this season, they’re also counting on reaping the benefits of “trading” the rookie versions of Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason for more seasoned second-year versions of those players, says Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required). “They had an opportunity last year to play through mistakes and I think they’re obviously going to take a natural step,” head coach Ime Udoka said of the duo. “They’ve shown that.”
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Spurs Notes: Vassell, Defense, Jones, Birch, Bassey

October 5th, 2023 at 2:30pm CST by Rory Maher

Spurs guard Devin Vassell recently signed a five-year, $135MM+ rookie scale extension. As Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News writes in a subscriber-only story, Vassell’s contract is the largest in team history.

While some may have been surprised by the price tag, his teammates say Vassell doesn’t get enough recognition.

“If you really watch the league, the players in this league, the coaches, they all respect Devin,” said second-year forward Jeremy Sochan. “I feel like he is underrated, but he is a special player, too.”

After being limited to 38 games in 2022/23 due to a knee injury, Vassell spent the offseason focused on weight training to improve his conditioning and withstand the rigors of an 82-game schedule. Vassell thinks the added muscle will help improve his finishing at the basket as well, according to McDonald.

Head coach Gregg Popovich believes Vassell is on the right track, both now and going forward.

“He wants to prove himself, both as a player and a leader,” Popovich said. “He has already taken some big steps.”

For his part, the 23-year-old wing says he’s focused on helping the Spurs reclaim their status as a perennial playoff team and bringing a sixth championship to San Antonio.

“This is where I want to be,” Vassell said, per McDonald. “Now all I am trying to do is win, get championships and put some more banners up there.”

Here’s more from San Antonio:

  • No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama has made an instant impact in training camp with his defense, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (subscriber link). “I came off a handoff and thought I had a wide-open three,” said forward Doug McDermott. “All of a sudden an arm comes out of nowhere and takes the ball. He’s pretty special. He’s going to dominate on that end of the floor.” Still, after finishing with the worst defense in NBA history last season, the Spurs know they can’t just rely on their prized rookie to lift them up. As Orsborn writes, Keldon Johnson struggled defensively in 2022/23, but he believes he has become an “elite defender” this offseason. “I feel like I’ve grown a lot this summer,” Johnson said. “I put a lot of hard work and time into my body and my craft in basketball. So, I’m ready. I’m excited to prove all the doubters wrong.”
  • Point guard Tre Jones, who signed a two-year, $19MM+ deal in free agency to return to the Spurs, started 65 of his 68 games last season. However, Popovich was noncommittal when asked if Jones will start in 2023/24, tweets Orsborn. “We haven’t made any decisions on who is where,” Popovich said.
  • Even after waiving Cameron Payne and Reggie Bullock, the Spurs are still facing a roster crunch, with 16 players on guaranteed contracts. Two players who might be battling for the final roster spot are centers Khem Birch and Charles Bassey, who both dealt with knee injuries last season. According to Orsborn, Popovich said the two big men have been full participants in practices thus far (Twitter link).
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Spurs Notes: Wembanyama, Collins, Sochan, Vassell, Johnson

October 3rd, 2023 at 10:48pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Victor Wembanyama will receive an overwhelming amount of attention during his rookie season with the Spurs. He doesn’t believe it will be a major distraction for his teammates, ESPN’s Andrew Lopez writes.

“They know I don’t care about it (the attention),” Wembanyama said. “I’m here to make sacrifices for them and I think when it’s needed, they’re also going to make sacrifices for me. And they know it’s different. They know it’s going to happen. Of course, there’s going to be a lot of attention, but it’s at the end of the day when everything is done and we’re at practice and I’m like, ‘Yeah, OK, what do we do to get this thing better?’ So it’s really stuff we don’t care about. It’s basketball first.”

We have more from the Spurs:

  • Center Zach Collins marveled after Wembanyama’s first day of camp how the rookie can dunk from odd angles, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express News writes. “He does a lot of stuff you don’t really see too often,” Collins said. “The way he can dunk the ball, he is so close to the rim and it looks so easy for him. And he is doing it from weird angles and his body is contorted in certain ways, but his arm still gets to the rim. … It’s a weapon we haven’t had before.”
  • Jeremy Sochan spent most of his rookie year playing power forward but he can play any position, Gregg Popovich told Kelly Iko of The Athletic and other media members. “He can play one through four,” Popovich said. “And depending on circumstances — who we’re playing, injuries — I could see him going to the five and us playing small. He’s like a utility infielder in baseball; maybe they don’t have that anymore. The sky’s the limit for him. He’s so competitive. He handles the ball. He’s one of our best passers. He’s really important in creating pace for us, that up-tempo style that we did so much better with last year. Very, very fun to watch.”
  • Devin Vassell‘s five-year rookie scale extension has an unusual structure, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. Vassell will make $29,347,826 in 2024/25 and $27MM in each of the next two seasons. He’ll get $24,692,174 in 2027/28, when a potential Wembanyama extension could kick in, and $27MM in the final year of the contract. The deal also includes $11MM in unlikely bonuses.
  • Collins, Wembanyama and Vassell seem like locks for the starting five. Tre Jones is the logical choice at point guard, so if Sochan gets the other lineup spot, that would leave last year’s leading scorer — Keldon Johnson — on the bench, McDonald notes.
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NBA Announces All-Rookie Teams

May 8th, 2023 at 1:12pm CST by Rory Maher

Rookie of the Year winner Paolo Banchero was a unanimous choice for the 2022/23 All-Rookie First Team, the NBA announced today (via Twitter).

Players receive two points for a First Team vote and one point for a Second Team vote, and Banchero received the maximum possible 200 points.

Here’s the full five-man squad, listed in order of their total points received via voters:

The All-Rookie Second Team was announced as well, with a couple of teammates headlining the group (Twitter link).

In my opinion, the most surprising omission from the All-Rookie Second Team was Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard, who received 46 points. Nembhard was actually listed on one more ballot than Eason, but Eason received two First Team votes versus Nembhard’s zero, giving him a narrow edge.

That’s not to say Eason (or anyone else) was undeserving — he had a strong season as a tenacious offensive rebounder and defender. I just thought Nembhard should have been honored because he started the majority of the season for a competitive Indiana team and was frequently tasked with guarding the opposing teams’ best player, as Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files notes (via Twitter).

According to the NBA (Twitter link), others receiving votes included Trail Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe (36), Hawks wing AJ Griffin (26), Nuggets forward Christian Braun, Thunder center Jaylin Williams (seven), Mavericks guard Jaden Hardy (four), Spurs guard Malaki Branham (three), Pelicans guard Dyson Daniels (two), Hornets center Mark Williams (two) and Bucks wing MarJon Beauchamp (one).

In case you missed it, more NBA awards will be coming later this week. The All-Defensive teams will be announced on Tuesday, followed by All-NBA on Wednesday and the Teammate of the Year award on Thursday.

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Western Notes: Doncic, Brunson, Bamba, Vassell, Sochan, Popovich

April 4th, 2023 at 6:37pm CST by Dana Gauruder

With the Mavericks seemingly headed for postseason elimination, Luka Doncic acknowledged that he misses former backcourt partner Jalen Brunson “a lot,” Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News reports.

“I mean, amazing guy, amazing player. For sure,” the Mavericks’ franchise player added.

Doncic describes the Mavericks’ season as “very disappointing” due to chemistry issues, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN. “I think you don’t see that chemistry we had before — I mean, especially last year,” Doncic said. “I think that chemistry was at the top, everybody. But chemistry builds not just not right away. It’s a long process.”

We have more from the Western Conference:

  • The Lakers could have another frontcourt option as soon as Tuesday. They have upgraded Mohamed Bamba to doubtful for their game with Utah, Jovan Buha of The Athletic tweets. Bamba has been sidelined since March 5 with a left ankle sprain. In a Late Night Lake Show podcast, Buha said he “would not be surprised if (Bamba is) back by the end of the week.” (video link).
  • Spurs swingman Devin Vassell has been out since March 26 with a knee ailment. Jeremy Sochan has been sidelined since March 22, also due to a knee issue. It’s likely both are done for the season. Sochan has far exceeded the number of games he played last season at Baylor, while Vassell is coming off surgery performed in January, so the Spurs are playing it cautious, Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News tweets.
  • Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said that hearing he’d been elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame was an “out of body experience,” Orsborn writes. Popovich got the news Saturday in a phone call from Hall of Fame chairman Jerry Colangelo. “Sort of a phone call you never think about or expect,” Popovich said “It’s like somebody telling you the earth is flat, some weird feeling that you have, an out-of-body experience, because it’s not what you grow up thinking.”
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Southwest Notes: McCollum, Kyrie, Sochan, Porter

March 26th, 2023 at 10:03am CST by Luke Adams

In his latest diary entry for Andscape, Pelicans guard CJ McCollum discussed a handful of topics, including injured teammates Zion Williamson and Jose Alvarado and his expectations for the home stretch of the season. Perhaps most notably, he confirmed that his own right thumb injury will require surgery during the offseason.

“I knew the final outcome would probably be surgery, and I was notified that that’s what it’s going to have to be,” McCollum wrote. “It’s my shooting hand, so you’re always a little nervous. So, I’ve just been checking in with a hand specialist out of New York and just making sure things are progressing and continue to get images every couple weeks to track the progress as to what type of surgery I may need, what’s the process going to look like and I’m comfortable with what I’ve been hearing so far, so I’ll be all right.”

McCollum acknowledged that it hasn’t been ideal playing through the thumb injury, which has “affected how I dribble, shoot, pass, (and) absorb passes.” However, he said that shutting it down for the season has never been an option he seriously considered, since he believes he can still be effective.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

  • Dallas is just 7-12 since Kyrie Irving made his Mavericks debut and has slipped out of the top 10 in the West, but Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link) has heard only positive things about the guard’s professionalism and locker room presence since last month’s trade. Blaming Irving for Luka Doncic‘s recent frustration wouldn’t be “fair or accurate,” MacMahon adds.
  • A nagging right knee injury will sideline Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan on Sunday for the seventh time in his last 11 games. However, the rookie has downplayed the issue as “nothing serious” and head coach Gregg Popovich said the team “probably” won’t shut down Sochan for the season, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (subscription required). It sounds like there’s no concern that the knee problem will turn into a major injury, and the Spurs want to give Sochan all the reps they can before his first NBA season ends.
  • Despite the way in which his time in Cleveland ended, Rockets guard Kevin Porter Jr. still values the time he spent with the Cavaliers and said he’s looking forward to playing in Cleveland on Sunday, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required). “I would say that’s the first time I learned about the business of the NBA,” Porter said of the trade that sent him to Houston following a locker-room incident with the Cavs. “But we’re all still close, still. Those relationships are still there and very valuable to me, and (to) the other side, too. Definitely, a lot of people would say it was bad, a bad (ending). It was (for) the best for both of us.”
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Texas Notes: Mavericks, Hardaway, Irving, Rockets, Spurs

March 23rd, 2023 at 11:00pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Despite falling below .500, the 36-37 Mavericks remain intent on competing for a title this season, writes Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com.

“The standings are going to change to the last game of the season,” head coach Jason Kidd said. “If we can get healthy and have everyone on the court, that gives us the best chance to win… We feel we have the pieces to be a championship team. We’re playing for a championship. But we just right now have to focus on the game that’s in front of us and that’s Charlotte.”

Over the past two weeks, Dallas has gone just 2-5, while slipping from the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference to No. 9. They have been without one or both of their two All-Star guards, Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic, in each of their past six games.

There’s more out of the Lone Star State:

  • Irving and Tim Hardaway Jr. are both questionable to suit up for the Mavericks in their next game, Friday against the Hornets, the team has announced (Twitter link). Irving is dealing with a sore right foot, while Hardaway continues to struggle through a non-COVID illness.
  • Two Rockets players may not be available for Houston on Friday against the Grizzlies, per Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Small forward Jae’Sean Tate will miss another game due to his sore left knee, while center Frank Kaminsky is considered questionable to play due to migraines.
  • Several key Spurs players will be sidelined Friday night against the Wizards, as the team continues to tank. Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News reports (Twitter link) that rookie Jeremy Sochan will be shelved with a sore knee and guard Romeo Langford will miss the action with an adductor injury. The team’s second-leading scorer, Devin Vassell, is questionable with a knee injury, as is center Zach Collins, who is dealing with a biceps bruise.
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Southwest Notes: Morant’s Return, Zion, Sochan

March 23rd, 2023 at 9:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Ja Morant received an enthusiastic reception from Grizzlies fans as he returned from his suspension Wednesday night, writes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Fans showed their support when he took the floor for warmups, when he entered the game in the first quarter and when he touched the ball for the first time.

Morant wore headphones during his pregame routine to block out the outside noise, Cole adds. He also meditated before the game, which was among the recommendations he received during his two weeks of counseling in Florida.

“I’m thankful and grateful for everybody who has been supporting me during this time,” he said. “It definitely helped me a lot. It definitely made me feel a little better, eased everything that’s going on.”

Morant admitted feeling rusty after being away from the game, but he hit 6-of-13 shots and scored 17 points in nearly 24 minutes of action. The idea to come off the bench in his first game back was his, as Morant didn’t want to upset the Grizzlies’ recent hot streak.

“I didn’t want to come right back and mess any of that chemistry up,” Morant said. “I was watching film once my time was getting closer to being back, watching how they was playing. Obviously, it’s different from watching it to being out there.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

  • Ja’s father, Tee Morant, told Kelly Iko of The Athletic that the past few weeks have been “rough” for his family, but he believes his son will benefit from the experience. Ja Morant has been criticized for a series of incidents that culminated with an Instagram Live video from a Denver-area strip club in which he appeared to be waving a gun. “I saw growth,” Tee Morant said in talking about Ja’s time away from the Grizzlies. “I saw growth, and I saw grace. And I know that he knows that God is in control of everything. Forget what the world got to say about you; you can only be judged by one.”
  • Pelicans coach Willie Green couldn’t offer any insight into whether Zion Williamson will play again this season, according to Christian Clark of NOLA. The team announced Wednesday that Williamson is able to resume on-court activities after being sidelined since January 2 with a hamstring injury, but he won’t be reevaluated for two more weeks, which will delay a potential return until at least the final week of the season. “Because of the re-injury, we are taking a slower approach with his rehabilitation,” Green said. “He’ll get on the floor. He’s starting to do some running, doing some shooting. But we’re taking it kind of slow.”
  • Jeremy Sochan returned Wednesday after missing two games with right knee soreness, but the Spurs rookie was still in obvious pain, observes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. “He has grown a lot this year, playing through injuries and all that,” said teammate Keita Bates-Diop. “I think most of us are as well, but you can visibly see he is going through some stuff. But he wants to be out there, wants to play, wants to help us compete. I love that about him.”
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Southwest Notes: Luka, Kyrie, Kidd, Smith, Sochan

March 17th, 2023 at 5:37pm CST by Rory Maher

Luka Doncic has been ruled out of Friday’s game at the Lakers as he continues to deal with a left thigh strain, the Mavericks confirmed (Twitter link via Marc Stein). Fellow guard Kyrie Irving is questionable with a right foot injury — he previously said he was feeling discomfort near his big toe.

While Doncic miss his fourth straight game tonight, he’s hopeful that he could return for the Mavs’ next game on Monday at Memphis, tweets Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News.

“Hopefully next game. Monday, hopefully then, but we’ll see day by day,” Doncic said.

The Mavs have gone 1-2 over the past three games without their two best players and are currently 35-35, the No. 8 seed in the West.

Here’s more from the Southwest:

  • Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd has been heavily scrutinized in recent weeks for his laid-back demeanor amid a poor stretch of play (the Mavs are just 4-9 since the trade deadline), but his players like his “even-keeled” style, as Caplan writes for The Dallas Morning News. “He’s a Hall of Fame point guard, one of the best point guards of all time, and you can tell by the way he coaches that he has that demeanor,” third-year wing Josh Green said. “A lot of coaches, they’re tight, they’re panicking, but he’s very relaxed. He sees plays. He sees what’s open. He knows what’s working. It’s good to have a coach like that, and it’s very motivating for the rest of the team.” Kidd wasn’t always known for being easygoing — far from it. He credited his time as an assistant with the Lakers for his improved “patience and perspective,” according to Caplan.
  • Jabari Smith Jr. has had his ups and downs this season, as most rookies do. However, the 2022 third overall pick has played his best basketball of late, a promising sign for the Rockets going forward, per Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscriber link). “You want to see your rooks learn and grow and improve throughout the season,” guard Kevin Porter Jr. said. “Jabari’s season has definitely been that. He started figuring it out. Had a great run, a great stretch and then had a rookie wall and then had his All-Star break. Now you see him settling into his own game. You see him shooting the 3 with a lot more confidence, his turnaround, his mid game, everything. The defensive end, he’s shown he’s improved that. I’m proud of him. He’s going to keep getting better.” Smith, a 19-year-old forward, recently became the first teenager in league history to record three straight games with 20-plus points and 10-plus rebounds, Feigen writes.
  • Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich thinks very highly of for rookie forward Jeremy Sochan, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (Twitter links). “He’s a stud,” Popovich said. “He’s going to be a hell of a player. He’s got the same heart, the same competitiveness as Manu Ginobili. … I have never seen someone come in at such a young age and act like they have been here forever. He’s just totally unintimidated.” The ninth overall pick of last June’s draft, Sochan is averaging 11.1 PPG, 5.3 RPG and 2.6 APG on .453/.250/.702 shooting in 54 games (26.4 MPG).
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