The Spurs‘ efforts to turn forward Jeremy Sochan into a point guard have been a bit bumpy so far, but the team has shown a willingness to stick with it and Sochan has been open to learning, writes Andrew Lopez of ESPN.com. The 20-year-old admits it’s “going to be a process” to adapt to the new position, but he’s been getting advice from last season’s starter Tre Jones and said the transition has been “fun.”
“There have been moments where it’s like, ‘Yo, I don’t want to.’ It’s like, ‘f–k this s–t.’ I’m going to be honest,” Sochan said earlier this month. “There have been moments where there isn’t confidence. But there are moments of being confident and just working. Knowing the trust I have from the coaches and players, it helps.”
As Lopez details, the Spurs didn’t have Sochan watch film of any specific point guards when he moved into the role, since they still want him to play like himself rather than trying to emulate someone else.
“He can’t play like Chris Paul or he can’t play like John Stockton,” Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich said. “He’s got to be Jeremy.”
Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins, who said his team “studied” Sochan ahead of the 2022 draft, referred to him as a “Swiss Army Knife-type player” with strong play-making skills, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (subscription required). Jenkins isn’t surprised that Popovich is thinking outside of the box by experimenting with Sochan at the point.
“When you have been around Pop, competed against Pop, he is very open-minded to trying a lot of different things,” Jenkins said. “In the eras he has been here, playing big, playing small, emphasizing the three-ball, emphasizing the paint, emphasizing faster pace, slower pace, not a surprise.”
Here are a few more notes from around the Southwest:
- Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado said today during a media session that he’ll make his season debut on Monday night vs. Sacramento, per Christian Clark of NOLA.com. “I’m back,” Alvarado said. “I feel good. I will go through pregame. But I’m back. That’s the plan.” Alvarado has yet to play this fall due to a right ankle sprain.
- Mark Medina of Sportsnaut spoke to Rockets head coach Ime Udoka about the strides his team has made so far this season, the impact that newcomers like Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks have had, and the improvement he’s seen from youngsters like Alperen Sengun. “We knew what he was offensively in a lot of ways and how he impacts the game for us,” Udoka said of Sengun, who is averaging a career-best 20.1 PPG, 8.4 RPG, and 5.7 APG. “He can control things there. But defensively, he has taken a huge step. He’s bought in and has improved on that side of the ball.”
- While the Mavericks are off to a strong start this season, losses like Sunday’s to Sacramento show that they’re still very much a work in progress on the defensive side of the ball, writes Kevin Sherrington of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required). Rookie center Dereck Lively II has exceeded expectations but has struggled to slow down star bigs such as Domantas Sabonis, who had 32 points on Sunday. “If we’re not scoring 130, it’s hard to win,” head coach Jason Kidd acknowledged.
I’ll never be the biggest fan of FVV or Brooks, but the Rockets have been fun to watch this year. Watching most of the young guys grow into their roles has been great. Eason, Jabari, and Sengun all look better, some more obviously than others. Amen hasn’t gotten consistent time or a consistent role yet, but the promise is there.
Shoutout to Ohio kid Jae’Sean Tate! Keep playing well.
Didn’t think FVV was a leader in any way. His game has gotten selfless. Really didn’t see it coming. His game had seemingly become self centered and this year his passing is really improved. Good for him. Not a clutch player. But a good player.
It’s not been completely like that; FVV has taken plenty of questionable shots this season. And he still *sucks* at scoring in the paint and at the rim. That weakness has exposed his game a lot. But he’s been solid for Houston, I’ll admit. I don’t expect even play-in success this season, but they look like they’re moving in the right direction, contrary to the expectations of a lot of people.
Which of these pairs of former teammates would u rather have on your team if you could have them for their whole careers, Kyrie/Mase Plumlee, Keldon Johnson/Herro, Jaren Jr/Miles Bridges, Jalen Green/Kuminga or JoVal/Domas? Rank a top3 if possible…
I like this one. I’ll play:
1) Kyrie/plumlee- however you spin it KI is one of the best ball handlers & 1on1 playersthe game has seen and things could’ve been different if he was at a different ball club in his younger days, head and shoulders above any other player here, Plumlee has been a good role player too so easy option, off court issues exempt. (Which is usually keeping him on the same team!!)
2) JJJ/Bridges- this is tough but trip is a DPOTY level player with great shooting ability, and the jury is out on Bridges, RN he don’t deserve to be in NBA, but his talent was/is undeniable.
3) Green/Kuminga- just based on upside, people around the league still think Green “will lead the league in scoring”, so with that up side and Kuminga raw athleticism I just see both hitting the level of AS and higher in the future.
“ Spurs didn’t have Sochan watch film of any specific point guards when he moved into the role”
This isn’t true. I know somebody who works with the spurs. And he told me pop had sochan watch film of Magic Johnson this summer.
I like what Pop is doing with the Spurs… This is the year to experiment and see what he has on the roster more than any other…
When you get a number 1 pick you have to find diamonds in the rough who fit the game of the number 1 pick… And Sochan could be a great lead ball handler if VW is a LeBron type who does a lot of those duties as well… Jones is obviously the better PG now and would aid the win collum…
But Sochan could learn the role that is needed for a tall defensive 5 man squad… A new type of death squad with each player able to switch and defend whilst hitting 3s and keeping the ball moving… And taking Ls while learning will lead to another highly talented prospect being added to the mix for year 2 of VW..
The Mavs are pretty much as I expected… When the other team defends well the Mavs are easily shut down because of their defence…
And Houston is just starting to plateau as teams scout them… FVV has left his mark, but their collective youth is starting to show… Sengun will be a special player and they have some scoring talent in their other young players… In ways they are a lot like the Spurs with a vet who who has won a ring… Could be a great team a few years from now…