© Gary A. Vasquez, USA TODAY
Spurs Season-In-Review: Jeremy Sochan 'Played Hard and Worked Hard' in Rookie Year
Entering the season sporting No. 10 and colored hair, rookie forward Jeremy Sochan may have given San Antonio Spurs fans a reason to remember one of their team's former Hall-of-Fame players in Dennis Rodman.
Sochan was a lottery pick that brought an expressive personality, and while expectations for the young star were not quite to the level of Rodman prior to opening night — at least not in the rebounding department — he met them and more. But that was exactly what he said he would do.
"I'm just going to bring it," Sochan said after being drafted by San Antonio. "My energy is going to be there off the court and on the court. I'm going to have fun with it, but I'm going to play hard and work hard [as well]."
In his first season, Sochan averaged 11 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 56 games — the latter stat a byproduct of a knee injury the forward sustained in the back half of the season. But when he was on the court, his energy was unquestioned.
Sochan's skill proved itself throughout the year, and was enough to earn him a spot on the NBA's Rising Star Challenge — a pre-All-Star event reserved for the league's best rookies and sophomores — where he once again made himself known.
"[Jeremy] has been a great player to watch," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "He does so many different things. You don't know what he's going to do exactly, but he throws it out there, he competes. ... He's a rebounder. He's a defender. And he's not afraid to make mistakes."
Despite not playing the entire season, Sochan also ranked eighth in the league amogst rookies in point totals, which gives Spurs fans a reason to be excited for the 19-year-old's future.
Next season, the rookie is set to come back and continue to work in San Antonio ahead of his sophomore season. Though the Spurs will likely be adding another top talent via the NBA draft, Sochan has already carved his place on the roster and will look to build upon his already positive first year.
"Overall it's been really good," Sochan said. "This season has left a lot of hope, [and] not just for me, but for everyone else. ... I think I stayed level-headed and just went through it. I just did my thing."
Sochan hopes to continue playing hard, working hard and doing his thing in his second season next year.
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