After being waived by the Spurs, forward Jeremy Sochan was one of the most intriguing names in the buyout market. Despite losing favor in San Antonio's rotation, the 6-foot-8 wing has the defensive chops, toughness, and team-first playstyle that any number of teams could use. The Milwaukee Bucks were one of them.
So, unfortunately, were the New York Knicks, who scooped Sochan off the buyout market on Thursday before the Bucks or anyone else made up their mind to pounce.
For the Milwaukee, a simple pathway was there: swap in Sochan, a potential impact player, for the little-used Andre Jackson Jr. They missed out on this one.
Waiving Jackson for Sochan would have been no-brainer for Bucks
After starting 43 games last season, Jackson has spent this year planted on the bench. When he has played, it hasn't been pretty. His third season has been his most ineffective. At this point, the writing is on the wall for Jackson's future with the Bucks. Really, it has been for some time. Now or later, this partnership is doomed to end.
Cutting the cord now for someone like Sochan would have made only too much sense. No, Sochan's 2025-26 numbers are not impressive: 4.1 points and 2.6 rebounds in 12 minutes per game. That doesn't reflect the incredibly useful player he has been in past seasons. Still just 22, the former ninth overall pick is a gritty defender and on-court enforcer the Bucks haven't had since Pat Beverley. If Sochan can rediscover his spark, the Knicks just added a sneaky bench weapon.
Like Kyle Kuzma, Sochan is on the larger size for a wing defender, but he is even more equipped to guard every position on the floor. In prior seasons, the Spurs assigned him to the toughest matchups locking down the likes of Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Jalen Brunson. At 6-foot-8 and 230 pounds, he has both the bulk to match up with scoring centers and the quickness to take on elite guards.
Although his defensive efforts don't show up in the box score via steals and blocks, his impact is undeniable.
While Sochan has a mediocre 3-point shot and is not much of a shot creator, he has proven he contribute offensively, unlike Jackson. Across his first three seasons, Sochan averaged 11.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.8 assists, solid numbers when paired with his underrated defense. In 2024-25, he improved his scoring efficiency by taking fewer threes and converting 2-point looks at a 59 percent clip.
Sochan's offensive game is predicated on smarts and savvy. With the Spurs, he made his living on backcuts to the rim, rolling off screens, and doing the dirty work around the basket on offensive rebounds and putbacks. Bucks fans know just how badly this roster needs a physical interior presence.
For his size, Sochan is also a surprising lob threat as well as someone who can push the pace in transition, either as a ball-hander or on outlet passes. Reading the play to get behind the defense, he often received such endzone heaves himself for easy opportunities at the other end.
Touchdown, Knicks.
Although Sochan had a rough year in San Antonio, there is reason to believe he can get back to being the player he was in an environment where he is wanted. That's the upside the Knicks are banking on, and what they beat out a reported nine other suitors to get.
It's not like losing out on Sochan is the end of Bucks' world. Alongside the Ousmane Dieng and Cam Thomas additions, though, he profiled as one more low-risk swing to invigorate the roster. Jackson has had his chances and, sadly, failed to capitalize on them. It doesn't matter now, but that the Bucks whiffed on a perfect chance to pivot by substituting Sochan in his place.