Carter Bryant's lightning-quick emergence was the nail in the coffin for Sochan

Carter Bryant keeps showing why the Spurs weren't too keen on being aggressive at the trade deadline. They're still uncovering the abundance of talents buried on their roster via the recently tapped rookie from the University of Arizona. He keeps earning more playing time in the rotation, and if he's going to keep giving Mitch Johnson this kind of production, he'll be a mainstay quickly.

It's the perfect contribution from a guy who isn't meant to be the focus of the offense. It's also what the team needed from Jeremy Sochan, and CB has begun providing it in year one. Unfortunately for the Polish forward out of Baylor, he wasn't able to improve his offensive game enough, and it's been four years.

Bryant seemed to lack some confidence to start the season, but that's normal for a rookie. As the year has gone on, he's looked more comfortable, and now we're seeing the full scope of potential that Brian Wright saw before drafting him.

Bryant is the Sochan upgrade the Spurs needed

As recent as the 2025 summer, I defended the fourth-year defensive switchblade. He shared the videos of what looked to be an improved jump shot, and he spoke with much more confidence. He claimed to be excited to show everyone what he'd been working on, but when the games started, it looked like much of the same.

I still think that missing the 2025 EuroBasket Tournament was a big deal in the trajectory we saw from Sochan. His injury prevented him from playing, but he would have likely had more rope to showcase what he'd been working on. Instead, he suffered a calf injury that forced him into rehab mode, halting any potential for momentum heading into the NBA season.

Now it's too late because the lineups are full. With Carter getting more consistent minutes now, they're playing with 10 guys. The rook has played at least 13 minutes in each of the last five games, and he's shooting 46% from three over that stretch. He's making strides to earn his time, and his natural shooting ability is a vicious threat.

CB is already a tremendous defender, so you lost nothing but a couple of inches of height, but you regained and surpassed it in athleticism because this kid can jump out of the gym. His combination of talents is exactly what the Spurs have been missing, and he's delivering so quickly.

Such a fantastic development can bring bad news for others. Unfortunately, it's just the nature of the business. Jeremy's journey with the Spurs ended partially because Bryant was ready to begin his.