The Knicks Lack of Interest in a Jeremy Sochan Reunion is Telling

The Jeremy Sochan experiment in the Big Apple was short-lived, but he’ll forever be an answer to a New York Knicks trivia question. He was one of the five Knicks on the court when the clock struck zero as the team clinched the franchise’s first title in 53 years.

That final play was especially notable for Sochan because some will always remember him for needlessly closing out too hard on Victor Wembanyama’s last-second 3-point attempt with the Knicks holding a four-point cushion.

After being waived by San Antonio in February, Sochan acted as a double-agent of sorts and was freerolling his way to a ring in the Finals. The bouncy forward still might not have put on a shirt since being on the winning side of things, but he will be taking his talents to Portland, as per ESPN’s Shams Charania.

Sochan partied har — New York Knicks forward Jeremy Sochan waves towards the crowd during the New York Knicks Championship Parade through the Canyon of Heroes. Mandatory Credit: Brenden Willsch-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Despite collecting DNPs and mostly being a human victory cigar for the Knicks, Sochan handled his role well. He was always engaged and ready to hit the ground running whenever coach Mike Brown called his number. The 6'8" forward’s defensive versatility never came into focus, though, and he was mostly an insurance policy.

In 16 regular season games, Sochan averaged 2.8 points and 2.1 rebounds in 6.9 minutes. The 23-year-old never quite got a real chance in the rotation or look as a small-ball center option. He played more than 10 minutes just three times, which included the final regular season game that none of the starters played in.

According to Trail Blazers beat reporter Sean Highkin, Sochan's agreement is non-guaranteed. He will be with Portland in training camp and compete for a roster spot. It's telling that the Knicks weren't interested, especially considering no money was committed and that the last order of offseason business is finding a big man to round out the roster.

The Knicks passed on the opportunity to bring Sochan back into the fold

Following the departures of big men Mitchell Robinson and Ariel Hukporti, the Knicks have struggled to find a third center to fill in alongside Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond, who was signed to a veteran minimum deal. The free agent market is mostly barren aside from Nick Richards and Sochan was actually one of the better bigs still looking for work.

At best, Sochan is an undersized five, and it doesn't help that he's mostly a non-factor on offense. He owns an unorthodox style of play and is a career 28.6% shooter from long distance in 228 games. It seems that the Knicks would be best served adding a third 7-footer to the equation, whenever and however that may come to be.

Towns will miss some games and Drummond is entering year 15. Even if it's a stiff like Tony Bradley or Mason Plumlee, who is washed up, the Knicks need a warm 7-foot body that can bang around in spot minutes. Barring a trade, it wouldn't be shocking if the Knicks invite a few bigs like that to training camp to see who can help hold the fort until the trade deadline or buyout market comes around.

The Knicks still have a need for a third center

The Knicks have 13 players under contract, and they're allowed to carry up to 21 going into training camp. Every other team in the league has at least 16 players under contract and the Knicks also haven't filled a single two-way spot—every other team has at least one player signed.

Things have been eerily quiet and it remains to be seen what Leon Rose has up his sleeve.

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