Jeremy Sochan sends parting shot to Spurs coach in wake of Knicks signing

We haven't heard much from former Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan since he signed with the New York Knicks, but we have a new quote from the 2022 9th overall pick, and it says plenty. "Maybe I didn't see eye-to-eye with the coach. I'm just blessed to be somewhere to grow," he told the Athletic's Senior Writer, James L. Edwards III.

Now, this is not fair and unnecessary. Mitch Johnson has conducted himself with class throughout this entire ordeal, so taking a shot at him after leaving the organization is wrong. The first part of his answer is where he should have stopped. There isn't much opportunity on this roster. San Antonio had 10-11 playable guys, so tough decisions had to be made.

Honestly, it's not surprising that he harbors resentment for how things went for him after Mitch Johnson took over. I just would have expected him to keep it out of the media. In his farewell post, he gave out his fair share of thanks to the organization and shared a picture with Coach Pop but didn't spare a single character or photo on the current leader of the team. That wasn't a coincidence.

Sochan must take ownership of his role in leaving the Spurs

Even worse is the lack of accountability in that statement. I find it hard to believe that Coach Johnson just had it out for Jeremy. Everything we know about Mitch says he's a stand-up guy, and I don't believe Gregg Popovich and the rest of the organization would have picked this man to lead the team if he made petty decisions.

The Spurs are known for many things, and one of them is their ability to develop players. There were certainly some misses in a few drafts, but that's what those were: misses. The failure of some of the guys the franchise added was never about development, and we know that because none of them have gone elsewhere to have success.

Can you name the last first-round pick the Spurs gave up on, who then turned into a strong NBA contributor in another city? Because I can't even think of one. The closest you can come to it is Dejounte Murray and Derrick White, but I wouldn't say the franchise gave up on them.

They saw an opportunity to improve in the long term, and they took advantage. Jeremy didn't develop fast enough, and that's the truth of the matter.

The construct of the team passed him by, and while I think he can be the first one to have a great career on another squad, I don't blame the staff or Mitch Johnson for moving on from him when they did.

The best thing Sochan brings to the table is defense, and they've managed to build a top-five, sometimes top-three, and sometimes outright best unit in the league on that side of the ball without his services. It was only sensible to put other players on the floor who could do more than he could on both sides of the ball.

His role should have been as a three-and-D wing player, but he never developed the confidence in his shot, and that's a significant portion of the agreement. Victor Wembanyama's size and the relentless attack style of the Three Guards of Death demanded that the other players give them more space. Sochan couldn't do that. It's truly as simple as that.