The Phoenix Suns had been connected to former San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan for quite some time during trade season, though the organization wasn’t able to secure his sudden availability in free agency, either.
Sochan, just released by the Spurs yesterday, is reportedly planning to sign with the New York Knicks per various reports. The Knicks were alongside Phoenix in interest during the trade deadline.
From Shams Charania:
“Free agent forward Jeremy Sochan plans to sign with the New York Knicks after he clears waivers, his agent Deirunas Visockas of Gersh Sports tells ESPN. Sochan had 10 interested suitors after being released from the Spurs on Wednesday and landed on the Knicks as his new team.
From Michael Scotto:
“As I mentioned yesterday, the New York Knicks were among the teams who had trade discussions surrounding former Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan prior to the trade deadline and were a team to keep in mind for him. Today, Sochan has chosen to sign with the Knicks once he clears waivers.”
Phoenix had been rumored to show interest in upgrading the power forward position, where Sochan would have given the Suns a better overall scoring presence compared to Royce O’Neale. Also, depth at the four-spot would have been improved.
However, the Suns likely didn’t want to push themselves over the luxury tax this year — which would have happened with Sochan’s contract on top of him being a restricted free agent this coming summer.