Spurs' next Jeremy Sochan decision should be painfully obvious

It's been a wild ride in San Antonio for Jeremy Sochan, but his time is coming to an end. The Spurs should just let him walk when the season is over. He'll be a restricted free agent, giving the Silver and Black the right to match any offer he receives on the open market, but unless the team opts for a sign-and-trade, there's no reason to do that.

When he was given the option to find a trade partner, nothing really materialized. I can't imagine that would change in the summer.

Clear his $7 million off the books and move on because I think he deserves the opportunity to hit the free market to find the ideal landing spot. Sochan may not have developed his offensive game fast enough to keep up with the evolution of the team, but he sacrificed as much as anyone.

Sochan was the ideal role player in many ways

Most role players are told what they're going to do from the beginning, and they pretty much stick to that. What they're asked to do may or may not slightly increase based on team needs, but generally, coaches will try to avoid asking guys to play positions they're not used to and aren't comfortable with.

As everyone knows, that didn't happen for the ex-Baylor Bear. Jeremy was asked to play point guard and small-ball center way more than he should have been. Sochan is a forward. He should have always been allowed to do what his skillset told us it was when it was drafted.

That's slashing to the basket, playing hard on defense, crashing the offensive glass, and being a hustling menace who gets under the skin of his opponents. He wasn't afforded that luxury, and there's an argument to be made that decision had a negative impact on the outcome of his time in San Antonio. And he went through it all with a smile.

Now, I'm not completely absolving the 2022 ninth overall pick here. His development is hugely his responsibility as well. Sochan has worked on his shot every summer, but he still seems shy about putting them up. In the NBA, either you're confident in your game or you're not, and teams are going to need him to play like he knows he belongs.

Unfortunately for the Polish Prince, the Spurs' makeup has passed him by. The best thing he does is play defense, and they've managed to build a top-five unit on that end mostly without him. But that doesn't mean he can't thrive elsewhere. Hopefully, they let him pick that spot for himself at the end of the season.