As the Knicks continue their prolonged search for a third string center, Jeremy Sochan, who came over to New York midway through last season, remained an option to fill that spot. The big man played very sparingly, appearing in only 16 regular season games. But out of all of the remaining options, his youth and defense, along with the fact that he already knew the team, made his return possible. Evident by his lack of playing time, Sochan has some very glaring holes in his game.
He is both an unwilling and poor three-point shooter, rendering him somewhat useless offensively. He is the kind of player that you kind of have to build a lineup around given his lack of spacing. Unfortunately, he’s not good enough to warrant doing that. Playing him despite those weaknesses usually meant hindering the offensive abilities of everybody else sharing the floor with him.
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His defense though, still gave people hope. During some of the more turbulent portions of the season, fans had wondered if Sochan could provide a bit of a defensive spark for a team that on some nights, looked like they badly needed it. During his four-year career, the 23 year-old has done one thing well-defend. He isn’t a defensive playmaker. He doesn’t block a lot of shots or force a lot of turnovers. But he is an athletic and versatile defenders that has the motor, size, and athleticism to defend multiple possessions.
Like so many of the other options the Knicks had though, Sochan is now also off the board. Late Saturday night, Sochan signed a one-year non-guaranteed deal with the Portland Trail Blazers. Sochan will have a fair opportunity to win a roster spot and break camp with the team. If he does, having a full training camp, and doing so with a team that isn’t nearly as loaded talent wise as the Knicks, could give him a much better chance at actually being in the rotation.
On a team that finished the regular season with the 12th best defensive rating in the league, Sochan could provide even more defensive versatility, while having a bit more of a leash to continue developing offensively. The Trail Blazers will want to make the playoffs once again, but they aren’t tasked with having the same kind of win-now mentality the Knicks are currently in.
The non-guaranteed aspect of the contract does leave open for a reunion though. If the Knicks really liked Sochan, they would’ve re-signed him. And if Sochan wanted to really stay, he may have waited. So the chances Sochan returns is unlikely. But is isn’t fully out of the window. If the Knicks end up not finding the right options, or signs someone to a non-guaranteed contract of their own, and it doesn’t work out, maybe they view Sochan as a last resort option if he gets cut at some point. Again, very unlikely, but it’s possible.
For now though, the Knicks, who probably never had any intentions of bringing Sochan back, have to continue their search.
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