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No, it's not a good fit for him, which is why Johnson would likely start. The first unit needs his shooting and spacing. Sochan would come off the bench.
There are only two starting forward spots next year. Wembanyama will be one of them. Who’s the other one, KJ or Sochan? If Sochan, is it really realistic to bring KJ off the bench as a sixth man backup 4? I mean, I guess if he’s fine with that role, it IS his ideal role. I just don’t know if he’s quite the glue guy he has been if he has to go from leading scorer and multi-year starter to a bench role.
No, it's not a good fit for him, which is why Johnson would likely start. The first unit needs his shooting and spacing. Sochan would come off the bench.
With the Spurs picking? Better than 50/50 odds. Advanced stats are not friendly to KJ. Last year was his “breakout” year and he put up a 0.1 VORP.
Benching Sochan is not a great idea either. Which is why the mind glides back over to trading KJ because he has a lower ceiling.
I guess it’s not a terrible problem for such a bad team to have — a logjam at forward — but it is a problem. If other teams value him the way some in this forum do, then it seems like a no-brainer to shop him in order to move up from 33 in the draft. If he’s worth an alleged lottery pick (which I doubt) it’s even more of a no-brainer.
I consider year 3 as his breakout. Last year, his USG was way too high, and his game suffered. He was asked to do way too much, and it showed.
year 3: WS 4.9 VORP 0.9 3G% .398
year 4: WS 1.3 VORP 0.1 3G% .329
Why not actually see if Sochan has continued his growth as a shooter before assuming he can't do so? Even now Johnson is streaky more than he is good. Benching Sochan isn't the worst thing in the world, but it shouldn't be the default idea. For all the talk about how the Spurs need to solely worry about developing Wemby, that's premature. They are trying to win a le, not MVP trophies. They aren't going to bypass their current top rookie just so they can play four out with a twig teenager. This is going to be a slow build, and everyone from the PG to Collins is going to have to improve their shooting to make it work. It's not uniquely Sochan's problem, and it's not not Wemby's problem.
I'd much rather have a taller, defensive-minded SF playing alongside Vassell, Sochan, and Wemby long-term.
If the Spurs can acquire a better fitting prospect or current NBA player then I would have no issue with moving Keldon.
I think his motor and energy would be better utilized like how Bruce Brown is/was used in Brooklyn (first year with KD, Irving, and Harden) and now with Denver. Although, Brown is a better defender and more crafty finishing in the paint.
Last edited by J_Paco; 05-22-2023 at 11:59 PM.
Do you mean a center? Lol. Wemby plays whatever position he wants and it Won't be center.
I see people are being whacky about leaving wemby as a driving SF. I agree with the thoughts on keldon otherwise
My promotion of sochan is in part the intuition that a new euro star might bond with our charismatic euro glue guy. Maybe wemby bonds with johnson's county boy hobbies, but i doubt it.
If keldon wants to stay he better learn french quickly
So what, hypothetically, could Keldon Johnson, the #33 pick, and the Hornets’ 2024 pick get?
Throw in Doug M. or potentially the Atlanta pick swap and you maybe looking at #3 from the Blazers?
I don't see it as a problem weather Sochan or Keldon come off the bench. Your 6th man usually gets starter level minutes and the thing these guys want the most is win basketball games
sochan/wemby/collins could just be in a 3 man rotation at the big positions with bassey sprinkling in
dont really see keldon/sochan meaningfully competing for minutes anymore, unless the spurs want to try Sochan at the 3 with a very big lineup including sochan/wemby/another big
#5 or #6 ....a little tweaking and it gets you in the conversation at #3
I like the idea of Sochan/Keldon/Wemby being your 3-man rotation at the 3/4 with Doug and Mamu and maybe even Champagnie sprinkled in. Collins/Bassey/Mamu getting the C minutes.
Are we still thinking the Spurs would send Keldon to the Detroit Pistons gulag?
And why would Orlando want Keldon? They're thick with forwards as it is.
I'm not thinking we're gonna do anything in particular. I was just answering the question re: what kind of pick would that particular package bring.
As for what we actually do, there's no way to really have a confident feel about that. We've got more options or paths that we can take than I can ever remember. We can all postulate on what we think the FO will do, but the options are so plentiful that nobody here should have to strong of a conviction about that.
^ agree. Money is on this coming year bring a consolidation year, meaning they assess what they have and start seeing next year as the one to add bigger pieces. This consolidation, however, could mean they move the chaff by the trade deadline, and Keldon could end up being in the mix if he doesn’t like the sixth man role he is destined for.
If he’s winning, he won’t care what role he has.
Keldon and Sochan are the closest the Spurs have to having Jimmy Butler type “dogs” on the team. They will need that edge coming into this next chapter. Also don’t forget Pop specifically vouched for Keldon being on the last Olympic team. He loves the kid. Realistically his production will go down as he becomes more efficient but I love his future as a 6th man on a contender.
Barring major roster changes, which is quite possible tbh, Keldon has to start because of his shooting, however streaky. A Tre-Vassell-Sochan-Wemby-Collins starting line-up won't work in 2020s NBA. The spacing would be terrible with only a single good 3 point shooter, which would drag everyone's game and efficiency down. Nowadays you need at least 3 good shooters on the floor at all times.
If they get a vet center who can shoot, say Lopez, and a good shooting PG, then sure, Keldon might go to the bench.
How would trading the Atl pick swap work in a trade? We'd trade picks with Atl and then give that pick to the other team? The other team would not be getting rights to swap with Atl. Hmmm.
When you examine the holes in the lineup and the necessary trade-offs… this will still be a bad team next season.
I like Keldon but I don’t see him as a great leader. Solid but not yet someone who will challenge other players as far as I can tell. Outside of Sochan, Zollins, and Blake, the team may be too nice. It’s a balance for sure. Don’t need fake leaders like Murray, but some more intensity to match this new Wemby phase is needed. That’s why I think veteran leadership is probably more important than a point guard, and easier to find. The losing and bad defense of last year will have to change and it will be a work in progress. I imagine Pop will need to revert to old ways in some degree.
But I don’t see Keldon yet as a two way player or obvious leader but let’s see. He may rise to the occasion.
Yeah but fortunately they seem to have an exhaustive plan for building around Wemby, so I'm sure they have a clear idea about what moves they need, what players they want, how they envision the roster next season, then in 3 years, etc.
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