Spurs News Roundup: Dysfunction in Atlanta and Sochan's development

San Antonio Spurs, Jeremy Sochan
San Antonio Spurs, Jeremy Sochan / Manuel Velasquez/GettyImages
facebooktwitterreddit

The San Antonio Spurs have slipped all the way down to 10-20, sitting comfortably at 14th in the NBA Western Conference. This places the Spurs on track to finish the season with a 14% chance of winning the Draft Lottery and selecting Victor Wembanyama. 

In other words, the Spurs are right where we expected them to be. 

Stanley Johnson has seen very limited minutes in three games, but he has played well. With the continued improvement of Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell, the Spurs are not looking to add a part-time wing to the rotation. 

San Antonio Spurs News

Spurs Twitter has been ablaze with takes surrounding Jeremy Sochan’s new one-handed free-throw method. In this writer's opinion, his missing free throws now mean nothing compared to the eventual success he will find. Sure, it looks silly, but if fans ever want him to have a reliable shot from anywhere outside the paint, there will be some growing pains. Still, some fans see this as intentional losing rather than developing a teenage rookie

The Spurs are asking for a first-round pick for each of Doug McDermott and Josh Richardson, and Jakob Poeltl is commanding two first-round selections. In my mind, the shooters are worth a protected pick each, but the high asking price for Poeltl suggests that the Spurs are interested in keeping him. 

The nominees for the 2023 Naismith Hall of Fame have been announced, and Tony Parker and Gregg Popovich headline a class including Becky Hammon, Dirk Nowitzki, Paul Gasol, and Dwayne Wade.

News Around the NBA

The Atlanta Hawks are in shambles. Trae Young is on the precipice of demanding a trade, and the Spurs own their 2025 and 2027 picks with zero protections. The Spurs can also make a swap in 2026. If the Hawks do blow it all up, the Spurs will most likely land three lottery picks for Dejounte Murray, who is still a fringe All-Star. 

The Lakers and Warriors are continuing to slide, sitting at 13th and 11th in the conference after Anthony Davis and Steph Curry suffered injuries. If they are looking to stay relevant, the Spurs could strike a deal with either team. 

Next. 3 reasons Spurs fans should be excited by Chicago's failure. dark

Somehow, the Utah Jazz are still in the playoff hunt, sitting at the eighth seed in the West. With no one on their team, they still have a better record than the Timberwolves, so it looks like San Antonio isn’t the only team fleecing their trade partners.