The truth about being an NBA player – with Jeremy Sochan – Ep. 121

The truth about being an NBA player – with Jeremy Sochan – Ep. 121

Welcome to another episode of the Hoop Fix podcast with me, your host Sam Neita, fulltime British basketball advocate. We’ve got another very special episode today, none other than San Antonio Spur Jeremy Sohan, former Solent Kestrel, former MK Trojan. Uh he’s back in the UK for a week and we managed to get this set up. Uh once again, I booked a studio, went back to West London, um and booked a studio to do it in person. We went for an hour discussing how life has been. You know, last time we spoke uh on the podcast, it was uh just before he was about to get drafted, just as he’s about to start his career, and now 3 years in, he is a certified NBA pro. Um and this was a really good conversation. You know, I think I have to applaud him on his transparency, uh vulnerability, and openness. Um and so I think there’s going to be a lot for people to learn and enjoy in it. So yeah, I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I did recording it. As always, before we get into the show, uh please take two seconds to check out our Patreon account. If you like what we’re doing, if you enjoy what we’re doing, please uh consider make giving us a monthly or annual contribution of as much or as little as you’d like. That goes a long way in us help in helping us do the work that we do. Uh so please go and check it out. patreon.com/hoopsfix. As always, would love to hear what you think. If you’re watching on YouTube, leave a comment below. Uh, if you’re listening on your favorite podcast player, uh, reach out to me on every single social media platform at Hoopsfix. Or if you want some private one-on-one interaction, feel free to drop me an email, [email protected]. I would love to hear from you. Anyway, that is enough from me. Uh, here is this week’s show with Jeremy Sohan. Jeremy, how’s it going? I’m good. I’m good. Back in London, England. Uh, it’s been a a crazy year. Uh, but no, I’m doing well. So, you just got back from the Philippines, right? Yeah. How was that as a trip? Crazy. Crazy. I never I knew a little bit about Philippines. Um, especially about their basketball, but it’s a it’s a whole different level there. How much they love it, the culture. It was truly amazing. It was crazy. What What was that for? Was that like a an NBA thing, a Spurs thing, a brand thing? Yeah, the NBA reached out. Um, they were doing like a high school tournament, Rising Stars Invitational. Um and I think it was high schools around Philippines and the winner actually goes to um Singapore to play like this regional one. Okay. Um so it was pretty big. Uh it was it was a lot of fun for me. It was you know I’ve never been to Asia. Uh one of my like closest boys Carl was from Philippines. So um I think it was just a good opportunity to you know experience that and it was it was great. It was great. Obviously, when I uh was doing a quick bit of research for before we did this, like you know, you were doing the media rounds, lot lot of interview, you know, the first time that well, the last time that we did a podcast, you were just about to get drafted and it was all new and exciting and and and now you’re sort of you’re in year three, right? It’s uh it’s not new anymore. It might not be as exciting anymore. Um and now we’re doing another interview. Are you getting tired of the media stuff or or do you still enjoy it? feel like I’m assuming that you get a lot of the same questions. No, that’s the problem. If it’s the same questions constantly, that’s when it gets a little annoying, but I feel like it’s it’s part of the job. It’s part of, you know, what I need to do to to be where I’m at. So, um I don’t look at it sometimes, you know, it depends on the mood as well, but I don’t hate it. I don’t hate it, but when there’s when it’s the same typical questions, it can get a little boring. Yeah. Do you get a lot of guidance like in the states from the PR side of being like you know look what you can talk about this is don’t talk about this like how much should they try and sort of shape what you’re able to talk about a little bit a little bit but I feel like the type of player I am person I feel like they give me you know freedom to you know say stuff like say whatever is on my mind I think again of course you know it has to be you know PG and you know you can’t be swearing all the time and all the you know stuff but I think overall you know they they kind of they give you some talking points. Um but at the end of the day, you know, I I like to be myself, be myself. So, um you know, I try try to be me in these interviews and stuff. When I uh think back to that that last interview and then I look at now like I obviously you’re a different person. You’re the same person, but a lot’s changed. I should watch that too. I should watch it. It’s it’s super interesting to kind of hear how you’re viewing things at that time, you know? Yeah. Um, if you think back to just before you got drafted and who you were as a person, what do you think has changed from then until now? It’s a good question. I think a lot. I think maturity wise, you know, I feel like I’ve seen a lot now. Um, just the whole whole side of, you know, business, basketball, um, you know, even, you know, money, you know, the people I’m around. Um it’s it’s it’s definitely changed a lot. But I think it’s the the the cool thing I think for me is um I keep the same people around me when you know before all of this. Uh my parents are still in America with me. Um my friends from UK from Southampton and Milton Kees um Jack and Matt you know my coaches. Um, so I think you know that that part doesn’t change and you know it’s not like I’m uh doing crazy stuff and you know changing who I am. I think it’s you know just perspective and all that stuff. Has your relationship with basketball changed as it’s gone from you know this passion this love to it’s your job now right? That’s a good question. I think at times I think it has but I think you know you try you try to keep you know it as basketball just the way I played um as a kid you know it was just love it was it was something that I’d love to do to you know compete and win um but I’m not going to lie there’s times you know it gets tough you know it’s a business um whether it’s you know your boys getting traded um to you know not playing or injuries like there’s there’s a lot of different factors that um you know can can make it tough you know some of the days but I think at the end of the day you know I see it as basketball something that I grew up with and and you know loved and was passionate about. Is being an NBA player everything you imagined it to be? Um I think so. I think um you know as a as a kid I always I always said it like everyone asks about this but I always said I was going to be in the NBA. So like when I once I actually got to the NBA it wasn’t like a oh oh snap like I’m here like it just felt natural. It felt like I was I I belong here. I was meant to be here. Um and I do think there’s nothing that’s happened or I seen that’s like oh snap this is like next level like crazy. Um, so yeah, I don’t know. I’m not sure. What do you think is the the part about it that people don’t see? You know, like when all all these kids across the UK are dreaming of being in the position you’re in, right? You now are in a position where you actually fake the reality of what it looks like. And there must be things that you probably didn’t think about before you made the NBA, like kind of what are the sort of the unseen parts of it that maybe people don’t recognize. I think just the business side, like how cutthroat it is. Um like uh I remember the first couple meetings I had at you know because we um as rookies we have like these rookie transition programs uh that you have to do. Uh I was I think they changed it and ours was in summer league. Um I didn’t play summer league but I was there and um you know it’s all different presentations about you know financial stuff, agents, uh family, friends, girls, um all all sorts of different things. But um one thing was like the the length of a player’s career and I I don’t you can’t like fact check me on this but I think it’s around 3 years you know so it’s super cutthroat like people don’t realize 60 new players come in every year um so there’s no space for players you know what I mean so um that’s one thing that I really like seen and realized and yeah I thought that part was pretty crazy. Did did you find that uh that rookie transition program helpful? Do you think it provided guidance that you wouldn’t that you wouldn’t have received from elsewhere? Um I so for me I I think I was good without it because of the people around me. My agent is good. Um you know my family um but I know I feel like in that sense I’m pretty lucky but not everyone has the same you know c uh system around you know themselves. So um I feel like it’s it could be good for you know some some certain players. Do you think that, you know, you you’ve mentioned now twice that that that um the business, right? Do you feel like you find yourself looking at it like a business now as opposed to just asking what are you trying to see yourself as a businessman or or an employee, a worker that work like this is your job like Yeah. Yeah. How are you viewing it? That’s a good question. I see I see it like I see it as a as a business, but I I always, you know, want to be true to myself. Yeah. Um, and at the end of the day, I know, you know, the reasons why I’m here. Like, how did I get here? Uh, it was literally just playing basketball, working hard. Um, just doing the right things. And I think, uh, when you when you remind yourself that that’s what’s most important. Um, you just see it as basketball. And of course, there’s the business side. You’re not you can’t hide away from that. You know, there’s going to be, uh, different opportunities. there’s going to be different things that happen in a on a team. You never know. Um but I always try, you know, kind of have a growth mindset towards it and just just play the game. Yeah, of course. Um one of the I watched your um end of season interview. Yeah. did your press conference with the Spurs and uh one of the things I picked up on was you just talking about your role and and sort of I think you said like the last two years have been difficult for you personally in trying to understand your role and where they where they want you what they want you to do like um what what what have you found particularly difficult about that like where where do you see it now? Yeah. No, like you said that you know I said that um these last two years have been tough. you know, I’ve played from point guard, which I never did until the NBA at the highest level. Um, I’ve played backup center, I’ve played all positions. Uh, for me, the toughest part was to like find consistency in it. Um, you know, sometimes I didn’t know what was going to happen and um, you know, for me, I just I always want to compete and, you know, give the best to to the team and I feel like at times I couldn’t achieve that. Um, so I think that was, you know, the toughest part. And I think the way I see it, I was in those moments and maybe in the moment it didn’t feel good, but I feel like, you know, you still grow from it. You kind of reflect on it and, you know, later on you see it and you look at the past and you’re like, “Okay, this really helped or I can do this now or I can, you know, change this.” So, um, I I always see the beauty in it and I I think, you know, I’m happy I went through all of it. The famous point guard experiments. Yeah. Yeah. How do you how do you reflect on that now? Yeah, it was tough. Um, you know, it’s my second year. Um, we didn’t do too much like work or um, how was it first presented to you? Like, how did you first learn? I say we’re going to start point guard. So, my first year um, towards the end I was playing point guard. Um, it was random. I’m not really sure why. Um, you know, Pop, that’s the one thing that’s cool about Pop. He likes to try new things. Uh, he’s bold. Um, and I was I started playing more point guard. Maybe we had a couple injuries. Um, you know, he just saw my, you know, play playmaking ability and vision. Um and towards the end of the season, you know, the meetings we had, you know, exit meetings, um he just, you know, threw out this idea that he’s going to think about and, you know, want to try and it just happened. It just happened. And were you a willing participant at that point? Were you like, “Yeah, yeah, I’m I’m always willing.” And and maybe sometimes that bites you. Um but I’m always going to be willing. I’m always about, you know, trying stuff, you know, experiencing new things. So um it was it was definitely interesting uh you know how it happened but it was definitely a long long process you know being in in involved as a as as the number one point guard on a team especially in the in the environment you know Victor just came so uh he had a lot of media um presence uh like we never seen that before my first year we didn’t we didn’t have as much media around um so it was definitely a tough you know period for sure. Did you how did you find sort of the media scrutiny around it? Yeah, I kind of I don’t know. I actually was talking recently to my boys about it. Um, you know, they kind of they kind of tried to make me out as this villain who uh is selfish and doesn’t want to pass to some, you know, players. Um, but it was truly like when I see stuff like that, I just kind of just push on the side because it’s not true. Yeah. So I think I didn’t really, you know, Yeah. give it a big deal, you know what I mean? So like one of the one of the things we spoke about on the on the the previous podcast we did was about this the sort of the online stuff, you know, it was that was actually after the tournament and the UFA game. Yeah. That was a crazy period, too. That was probably the first one that it happened. It was so bad. Like I said, he’s so bad. And uh and I would think that in the NBA that is 10xed, whatever that was in college. Yeah. It just keeps getting worse. And and obviously we’re talking about it now and and you you you act like it’s you off a duck’s back. You’re just like, you know, I just block it out. I just focus on the present. It’s not it’s not a big deal. But it surely when you no it definitely weighs down on you especially um you know there’s moments where okay maybe you’re having a bad stretch you’re not playing well um and it happens and maybe I don’t know maybe sudden off the court you have some issues too then of course like the one thing is you know people always say oh just block you know don’t go on Instagram don’t go on this it’s going to find you it’s going to find you some way um whether it’s someone sending it to you your boy by accident not knowing it’s going to, you know, you know, hurt your feelings or something. It’s always going to you you’re always going to see it somewhere. So, um, it definitely does weigh you weigh on you. But I think for me especially, I feel like I’m I communicate and I’m I’m got people around me that help and kind of like ease it off. And I think at that point it helps, you know, with all of that stuff. Have you has it ever really got to you to the point where you’ve had to get support? I wouldn’t say so. No, no, no. I’ve been lucky. Been lucky. But I’ve seen, you know, I be getting DMs and stuff, mentions, but I’ve seen some of the stuff that, you know, play my my teammates get and it’s it’s sad. It’s it’s sad that like people can like talk to you like that. You know what I mean? But it’s it’s interesting where it comes from. Like is it insecurity or is it, you know, you just lost their parlay? Like it’s it’s sad. Do you think the the the gambling stuff has exacerbated it and made it a lot worse? Oh, yeah. Yeah, it’s it’s made it huge. I’ll be getting It’s crazy. Before the game, the the night before, I’ll be getting someone texting me, um, you know, please don’t don’t mess up my parlay. Get 30 points or whatever is 20 points for me. Um, I could probably find one right now. Let me try to find something. That’s mad. It’s mad. I’m telling you, it’s crazy. Does it make does it not make you want to just shut down your social accounts, just not be on social media? Not really. I like Not really. I’m not going to lie. Not really. Um, but sometimes I like I will I will reply like if someone’s like super negative and like rude, I’ll reply in like a positive way like, “Oh man, hope you’re doing well.” Like, yeah, keep being you. And you’ll see they will flip. They’ll be like, “Ah, no, like you’re my guy. like appreciate you. Like it’s crazy. It’s crazy. It’s crazy. I probably can’t find anything. Cuz does the NBA provide you training or stuff like that? Uh, a little bit. A little bit. The cool thing about the NBA, there’s so many different programs that you can like join or even mandatory to to protect you from things like this. Um, abuse. Yeah. Um, you know, agents, uh, all all sorts of different things. So I think that’s the cool thing that they don’t just let you kind of just go be like just just do you. You know what I mean? you know, all of this stuff like it makes well, you know, it’s mental health awareness week this week and obviously mental health is a growing growing conversation, right? Um, huge, you know, it must be hard mentally, not just for you, but for the rest of the players. Like, how much do you have to prioritize that? Or do you think because you’re in this environment, you’ve got friends, family around you that are keeping you grounded, keeping you sane, that sort of that is your your support network? No, it’s definitely my support network. Um, for me, I’ve I’ve in the past I’ve actually had like mental health trainers and and people that I’ve worked with. Um, the team has one too. Um, so it’s for me it’s super important. I think, you know, one thing and I look at myself too at times, you know, during a season maybe I’m going through a bad stretch and I’ll be silent. I won’t say nothing. And that’s the worst thing to do. You know what I mean? Like you start thinking, you have thoughts. um negative thoughts about your game, about your like future, whatever it is. Um and that’s the worst thing to do in my opinion. Um so like you said, I have this network around me, my friends that live with me, even my dogs, my my parents, you know, I still have people around here in England, um Poland as well. And the easiest thing is just to talk and it helps me so much. you just it it feel you feel like something’s weighing down on you and just you just lift up. So um it’s super important. I I always say um for me like of course basketball’s about talent and working hard but at some point I think it’s all mental. It’s all mental. You can do more than your body you know can. And I think um my mom says it all the time too, but a lot of the game is is the mental part and how much you really want to you know improve that part. Do you like you talk about stretches having stretches of bad games and like if if you are on a bad stretch do you ever get feelings of imposter syndrome or I’m not good enough or Yeah. Yeah. There’s times there’s times that happens. Um, I feel like you click I I click out of it pretty quickly, but there’s times like even, you know, now I’m I’m on my rookie contract. Um, hopefully this summer or or next, you know, summer I’ll be able to extend. Um, but one thing is about you always, especially if you know that, you know, a a basketball career in the NBA is pretty short, you’re always looking to get that second contract cuz that second contract is what’s going to, you know, set you up. Um, so there’s moments like, let’s say there’s a bad, you know, stretch. You’re gonna have those thoughts. Oh, you know, I want to I need this. I need to pay well um to get this second contract. Um, for me, I click out pretty quickly. Um, but it’s tough and I know people go through it for sure. Do do you feel the pressure? at times but at times but I think for me like I work I work hard and I think that eases off all the pressure. Um I don’t think it’s bad to to feel pressure. I think that’s a good thing. Um like even before games I be feeling nervous every game but it’s like a good nervous. It’s like it’s that nervous like it’s the nerves that want you to like it means that you want to be here and you like you care. Um, so I think those are good nerves to have. So, you know, there’s there’s moments where, you know, you it’ll get to you. I remember I did a when I was in university, I did sport and exercise science. We had a we had a module on sport psychology and I used to when I used to play games um I used to get so nervous like you know really sort of like jittery like yeah before a game and and he used to always just wanted to stop why am I so nervous like I just want to be okay or whatever. And I remember my lecturer was just doing a lecture. She wasn’t even speaking to me directly, but she was just saying that you can reframe these things, right? And and instead of it being your body not prepared, it’s actually your body being prepared for what’s about to happen. And that simple reframing of like, oh, my body’s getting prepared. It’s warming up. It’s about to go out and play. Just made everything so much easier. And you realize there are these, I guess, mental training techniques that can help swim and manage. even like breathing techniques uh techniques. Um the one cool thing about the Spurs, we um like during the summers when we have our like workshops. Um it’s not only about basketball. We try all different sorts of things. Yoga. Uh we had a guy come in that was just literally focused on breathing and it was it was super cool to do. At the moment you’re like what the is this? Like I know how to breathe. But like you start actually like taking these stuff, these techniques and like trying it and it’s like okay, I’m actually calming down or my heart rate is going down and uh it’s just cool. There’s so many different things that you can do to improve on yourself as a person but also you know on the on the basketball court. So what sort of things do you have in your regime outside of the actual basketball part? Like what do you try and make part of your routine? Yeah, I think for me like it’s good. Like for me I like consistency. So, um, you know, off the court, you know, being clean, having the house clean, um, just small things like that that you you sometimes you don’t realize, but like even if your wardrobe is like messy, you’re like, “Oh, this is it’s not it’s not a good feeling.” But if it’s all clean, you kind of feel, you know, calm and kind of collected in my opinion for me. Um, you know, I try I try to read, um, do the breathing works, too. um all all sorts of different little things. But um yeah, that’s really it. I um I spent a long period a few years ago getting into breath work called the Wimhof meth method and uh it shocked me how much it’s crazy. Yeah. Just by getting it, you just start changing your rhythm with your breath and all of a sudden you can increase your heart rate, decrease your heart rate. Yeah. You can control it. Yeah. And and that’s one thing for me that I’ve realized um coming into this summer is for me to, you know, kind of be more in control of my body and like understanding it. Um the way I play too is really aggressive and physical. Um so I think it’s important for me even like I like being coordinated. Um, you know, I’ve started, uh, this summer I’ve been working with, uh, a different strength condition coach cuz mine left. And, um, a lot of the stuff we do is just literally like juggling the ball, like juggling free balls, tennis balls, uh, like these soft balls, like just all sorts of different things. And, you know, I wouldn’t expect to do that. I thought, you know, I need to just be lifting, going crazy. Yeah. All the stuff. As you head into this summer, obviously it’s it’s a big summer from a Euro varsity perspective. Yeah. Huge. Um kind of what what are your plans now? Like we’re in we 15th of May today. Yeah. Uh kind of what’s your schedule looking like over the over the coming weeks? And I guess looking ahead to Euro Basket, what are your hopes for for Yeah. No. um schedule, you know, it’s pretty it’s crazy. We have such a big long off season. You know, we finished in April. Unfortunately, we didn’t make the playoffs, but you know, the season don’t start until what, October. So, uh that’s a lot of time to just be free. Um I stayed in in San Antonio for uh the first few weeks uh just working out. Um, then I, you know, was lucky to get the Philippine, uh, the Philippines, uh, you know, opportunity. Um, that was really cool. And now I’m here in London, uh, England. I’m here until Wednesday and then I go on vacation, uh, to Spain for a little bit. Um, but after that, I think June, that’s when, you know, the work really starts. And of course, now I’m working, I’m maintaining. Um, it’s important to, you know, be consistent with that. Um, but I’m going to go back to America in June. Um, and you know, it’s going to be straight work. It’s going to I feel like for me, um, you know, I have a lot to prove to myself and to to everyone else, too. I feel like, um, when I look at myself, last season was, you know, there was a lot lots of ups and downs, injuries. Um, for me, I have a lot more to give. Um, so it’s it’s it’s going to be a lot about, you know, working out, you know, kind of building that self-confidence. Um, and then like you said, you know, Euro Basket, that’s late August, but, you know, we start preparations in July. Um, so it’s going to be a busy year, uh, you know, summer. Uh, but I’m super excited and, you know, Euro Basket, hopefully we can do something, too. How are you feeling about the squad that you’ve you’ve got going through Eurob? Obviously, the I looked up the group that you you’re in. You’ve got pretty good group. It is a pretty good I remember you got France and Sevidia is there and Belgium Iceland rail he’s won’t be playing for France he announced he’s playing for France excuse me uh I’m not sure I you know he had the he had the um the blood clot situation you know thank thank god he’s all good um he’s you know rehabbing and and working out um I’m not sure if he’s going to be cleared for that I know talking to him he’s he wants to Yeah but that would be sick if you got to each other, bro. That’d be crazy. That’d be crazy. I know. I know. We’re playing uh Georgia Mamu, the Masandro. Uh he’s my teammate. We’re playing them in like preparation games. Okay. Um actually in Poland, so that’ll be pretty cool. But yeah, no, it’s going to be, you know, the the group is tough. I think there’s an NBA player on every team but Iceland. Um so I think I’m excited for that. There’s going to be good competition. Yeah. And you know, I think our team’s good. I think for us, you know, even looking back at last summer when we was doing the Olympic qualifiers, I think we just need, you know, we need more time together to build chemistry, to understand each other. Um, but no, I’m super excited and I think, you know, we can do something. You just said that you’re trying to you want to prove a lot to yourself. What do you want to prove to yourself? What do you think you need to prove to yourself? um just playing like myself you know whether you know for me again like we was talking earlier about you know roles um you know it wasn’t consistent I think for for me um it’s going to be to you know just work on my overall game and you know wherever I get put being able to you know be successful and and lead by example and that you know whatever role that is um and for me to pro prove them to myself is not only the basketball part, but like we were saying, you know, working on my mental health, working on uh my body, working on everything. And I think I’m excited to, you know, show showcase that in, you know, Euro Basket and then, you know, lead that um kind of keep that flow going to the season. So, um yeah. Do do you see Euro Basket as a big opportunity for you? 100%. I think it’s a big opportunity for me to to lead um and then also just show you know everyone you know who Jeremy is. When you uh look back at this season, what are the moments that stand out for you? Good or bad? Both. Both. Like if I just say this season, what comes to mind? Yeah. Um what comes to mind? We had a better season than the last two years. You know, we won what 46 games. um the the previous two years, what was it like 22 or what year? What hard is that mentally? Oh my goodness. People forget. Yeah. Most players come from winning programs. Your whole life you’re winning. You know, high school, beating teams by 40, 50, you know, before I got to Premier. Um in Premier, still, you know, we’re doing well. EABL going to high school in America, you’re winning, you’re ranked. Um, Baylor, we was, you know, undefeated for most of the season, number one in the in the league and then, you know, you get drafted and boom, you’re playing 82 games and, you know, we were going through moments where we, you know, we lost 16 in a row and you’re like, whoa. Like, you kind of just have to go to the next game and try to win the next game. It’s it’s crazy. Um, yeah, it was if the What happens to the the the locker room morale when you’re on those sort of deep losing [ __ ] Yeah. No, sometimes you know it’s tough. I think it depend depends you know for us we knew we was in this you know kind of process situation um like learning we’re young so it was a it was a little easier cuz we’re all around the same age. Um but like I I wouldn’t be able to imagine for a team like maybe you know Phoenix last year you know what I mean the stars stars you know older team I couldn’t imagine I’ve never see the thing is I’ve never until this this year I never really had like a proper veteran like you know now we had Chris Paul Harrison Barnes so that that was a little more you know kind of natural that’s what happens in the NBA but before that it was we were just all young and trying to learn and you know grow and just you know yeah what do you think that veteran presence brings to the team what does it change uh maturity I think consistency um understanding the little things um you know learning from Chris and Harrison Buns has been great and you know I had veterans in the past that I learned a lot about but you know Chris Paul’s a Hall of Famer um the things he saw on the court like oh [ __ ] that makes sense like even even the way he was talking to refs I’ve never seen something like that. It’s mad, you know. What does he How do you talk to the rest? It depends. Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it was bad. Um, you know, it’s like he’s just he’s got a presence. He’s, you know, they know who he is and they know who we are, too, as young players. But, uh, he’s been he’s been going, you know, through battles with them, you know, for for years. And, um, you know, sometimes it’s I’m like, “Oh, he just said that to a ref.” And nothing happens. They know like all the all the referee will like literally say it back to him and I’m like, “Okay, this is this is pretty cool.” Like this is sick. Yeah. Um but you think veterans get a lot more leeway with calls? Uh calls. Yeah. At times I think not even veterans but like you know stars on on in the NBA. I think you can kind of see it. Um you know I think I I don’t think the refs do it on purpose. I think, you know, they try to be as as equal as possible, but I think it’s tough and, you know, stars get the ball in their hands way more often than, you know, other other certain players. So, I think this it’s easier to see, you know, fouls and different stuff like that. But, um, yeah, I mean, of course, the other thing is if you’ve been in the league 20 years, then you got all in your hands for 20 years, you’re going to have way more interactions with the rest. So, you build relationships. Even subconsciously, they they know you they know you don’t really mean it if you say something like No, it’s crazy. I think one thing, you know, that I realized going into the NBA, everyone’s got an ego in the NBA. Everyone, players, coaches, um, you know, referees, um, people in the organization, everyone’s got an ego. So, I think that’s one thing, you know, the NBA is is about, you know, um, working on your ego and like, you know, just just working on it. Yeah. when you think about like um you know again the the last podcast we did we were talking about kind of at that point the goal was making the NBA you know like uh and obviously you made the NBA you’re you’re established in the NBA doesn’t look like you’re going anywhere anytime soon um but the goals change right and and when you look at what you’re trying to do and what you see your ceiling as like what do you think uh what are you aspiring to be where do you think you can get to yeah um you know I’ I’ve been lucky to be in the you know, 3 years now, which is crazy. I feel like I just got drafted. Yeah. Um, but for me, I think, you know, what makes me hungry and, you know, really like competitive and hungry is, you know, just being able to be on a team and compete and winning and, you know, going for championships. You know, as a kid, that’s what you always wanted to do. you know, whether it’s the NBA or, you know, the Euros or even even when I was in uh MK Trojans playing against uh I don’t know who, you know, random uh places. Um it was all about winning and trying to, you know, win the whole thing. Um so, you know, I think for me it’s, you know, being able to impact that, being, you know, an important role, um starting um and just being able to win. Do you uh do you have individual goals? It’s it’s interesting. I don’t think so. Like do I believe I can be a star? Yeah. Hell yeah. Am I that is that what, you know, makes me hungry and is that what, you know, makes me motivated? Not really. I think, you know, time will tell and and the work will show. Um there’s definitely things I need to improve on if I want to become a player like that. Um, but I do believe, you know, I I can. Um, but to me, that’s not what motivates me. It’s purely about winning. For me, it’s about winning. Yeah. And I think it always has. Why Why do you think that is? I’m not sure. I think I’m competitive. I think it’s something that, you know, makes me hungry and and it’s one of the reasons why I started playing like it’s just fun being able to compete and, you know, try win. And I think that’s what I try, you know, look at. Do you think you enjoy winning more than you hate losing? I hate I probably hate losing more. Yeah, it’s interesting that little flip. There’s a lot of people that it’s it’s like they want to win, but actually it’s they hate losing. Yeah. Yeah, I hate losing. Um yeah, super interesting. Uh so the other thing that we spoke about before was the lifestyle change, the pending lifestyle change. And at that point, it hadn’t happened, but it was like, you know, you’re about to receive a lot of money. And at that point, you were saying that, you know, we’ve got um potential sponsorship deals that just the numbers being thrown around are crazy. and you’re saying, “Look, I just need to make sure that I’m smart with my money, the right around me. I’m going to invest all my money, use it in the right way.” Um, again, you’re three years in now. You’re a 21-y old, soon to be 22-year-old, multi-billionaire. Um, you know, how have you found dealing with the money, the money side of things, the financial side of things, having all of these riches of a sudden? Yeah. No, it’s it’s crazy. Uh, you know, we get paychecks every two weeks. Um, I remember the first few I’m like, “Yo, what the like this is crazy.” Um, but you kind of get used to it and I think I’m blessed to have people around me that, you know, keep me, you know, you know, they’re smart. You know, they don’t let me just go spend crazy amounts of money here and there. And, you know, it’s about having the right balance. You know, there’s no there’s no nothing wrong with, you know, doing it. Um, but I think it’s also about being sensible and, you know, having a plan. I think that’s one thing that I have is which is really important is having a plan. Um you know I could I could go tomorrow and buy it your or wherever it is and be broke but that’s not a good plan is it? So I think for me and my people um you know my financial advisers my my parents um you know we built a plan um that you know just sets me up for life that you know that’s the most important thing you want to you know build wealth to to be good and not always worry. Um so you know it’s it’s an ongoing plan too. It’s not like it’s just set. Um but yeah super important. Obviously, you’re you’re obviously doing very well, but you’re also around teammates that are doing even better. Yeah. Yeah. Does your scale of what a large amount of money is. Has it changed? I think so a little bit. I think I think I think in a good way though, like, you know, it’s the environment I’m in. Um, you start seeing some players that, you know, you kind of maybe a year older than you or two in in the league and they, you know, start getting these contracts. um or even you know being around Chris Paul that you know you could probably search it up but he’s you know his net worth’s probably crazy and um just it’s it’s crazy you know the kind of you know networking you can do and the kind of relationships you can build with you know those kind of you know you know players teammates um and people around the game so it’s it’s a cool thing that you can I think can take advantage of in a good way what’s The craziest display of wealth you’ve seen in the NBA. Craziest display of wealth. Don’t have to name him if you don’t want to name him. Have you seen anything that just like that is insane? I’m trying to think. What do you think? I’m trying to think. Um I mean, you must see some stuff, right? Yeah. No, I definitely do. I’m just blanking though. Yeah, you go. Why not? last Tommy person got a few friends that that playing. Uh I won’t name the guy’s name, but um one of the guys he’s like a he’s like a league vet uh for his like 36th birthday. They like hired out a whole club in like Vegas. Hide back like famous like Oh yeah. like performing which is obviously not cheap. You kind of just baited it out though and then did it again the next day in a different city. really in the US. Yeah, I think for me, yeah, the night life can can be a little crazy. Um, what else do I’m I’m going to go I’m going to stay away from night life. Um, probably like just, you know, there’s there’s players that can just, you know, buy anything on demand. You know what I mean? Um, it’s like just you take it, take my card, boom, they have no limit on their credit card and it’s mad. It’s mad. What did you do with your first paycheck? What did I do? Um definitely uh you know I was smart with it. I didn’t go crazy. Um you know so we kind of get like an ad advance um advancement like in your first like year. So I got money um during summer league. Um I forgot the sum. I forgot how much it was but it was it was pretty hefty. And I remember when it came in I was like oh this is sick. So I think like one of the first things I did it was in Vegas as well was just go shopping. You know what I mean? Like I remember like so at Baylor my my year was the first NIL year. Okay. So I made what what they get now is stupid. We could talk about that too, but it’s stupid. But my year I might have earned like maybe like 20k or something like that. Um that’s a lot less than what people are earning now. Yeah. But when I once I earned it I was like yo I’m rich. I really I could do whatever I want like just buying clothes and stuff but no it was definitely probably buying some I think it was like I got some Gucci slides from Gucci or something. Do you speak to any of the British guys that are in college now that are doing well I find NIL cuz there’s some crazy Yeah, a little bit. A little bit. Um I talk a little bit to them. Um but yeah, it’s it’s crazy even like some of my ex teammates from Baylor just talking to them. It’s it’s unbelievable. It’s unbelievable what’s going on in college. Do do you think it’s a good thing for college basketball? I think it is, but I think, you know, they they have mad. Yeah, I think they have to like, excuse me, they have to start um making some like caps and rules cuz at this point, you know, you can start abusing it and and it can get to become a dangerous game. So, yeah. Yeah. What do you think if you were in college now? What do you think you’re going up? I’m not sure. I think like I’d be hearing like, you know, players that like played played a little bit, you know, average like two points of getting like 500k. I’m not I’m not sure, but it’ be a good amount. It was widely reported that um great oore Yeah. He got the bag 2 mil. Yeah. Going to Washington. Yeah. No, that’s crazy. It’s a different different world. I’m happy. I’m happy though cuz you know not everyone I’m not saying in his case but in general you know there’s some players that they kind of skip the NIL and they’re like I’m going to go to the NBA and then you know you kind of realize it’s not like that. Not everyone gets money. Um and sometimes it’s better it’s smart to just stay and do what four five years or whatever you have and just earn as much money as you can in the in there. definitely an argument that I mean especially for players that aren’t going to make the NBA that go to Europe sometimes you can earn more in college than you and the crazy thing is cuz you know I’m still in contact with people from from Europe you know the basketball game I’m hearing like now European players are getting invited to you know cross the seas and and and um you know come to college and get bread and they’re doing it and I think you know it’s a it’s a shock to you know European clubs too now and I know I’ve heard they’ve started doing like different, you know, caps and um different clauses in in the contracts now cuz it’s crazy. Yeah. No, it’s uh Yeah. It’s like it’s changing so quickly and so much money is being inject injected into it. It’s almost like we don’t really know how to handle it. Never really happened before. Exactly. Trying to wait and see what the effects are and now you know guys are only staying at a college for a year and then they jump into someone else or someone else and so there’s no continuity which I think yeah college perspective hes all that kind of stuff. Um yeah, super interesting. Um one of the other things I wanted to talk about was just what you want to do in the UK, right? Like it was announced yesterday, I think Sadique Khan went on Twitter and said that on the basketball task force, Maryland London’s basketball task force um you know, you’ve said multiple times over the years that you want to really use your your presence, your power, your reach um to try and impact the game here. like have you got any ideas of how that would look and sort of you starting to formulate what you actually want to do? No, I think first of all I’m super blessed and honored to be you know part of that task force. Um I think it’s super exciting and you know I had a meeting when we played in Paris about it and there super cool ideas um things that can you know start building or you know there is culture here there is passion for basketball but you know just you know having that platform it helps um but I think the most important thing for me is like I look at myself when I was growing up here um you know it was it was tough competing against you know badminton uh getting sports schools. Even now, you know, it’s it’s tough for me still to um you know, rent stuff out and and try to find the best, you know, solution. Um so, for me, I think that’s important to, you know, make basketball become more accessible. Um you know, there’s so many people who play the game, uh in school. It’s one of the most popular sports. Um so, it’s there. I think it just needs it needs a little push. And I think some of the ideas we have um is you know you know Deng used to have his camp um you know making that you know realive that in my in in some sort of way I think would be super cool. Um different types of camps um you know activations um so no I’m super excited. It’s going to be a process. It’s not going to be easy but I think you know like I said you know I’m kind of now in my third year. I’m going into my fourth. Um, I kind of have more time now to to, you know, reassess stuff like this and and look into it and and try to help it grow. How mad is it to go from the MBA from San Antonio where you’ve got access to facilities, I’m assuming, 24/7 whenever you want, coming to London and you’re scraping around trying to find a gym. Like, you know what that that contrast? I mean, you’re probably in it right now of just this transition from what you have to then coming back here. like how crazy is it to you that it’s so difficult to get gym time? Yeah, to me it’s kind of sad like you know it’s tough. Um I don’t know. It’s tough. It’s tough. You know um you know when I look at America like you can go to uh what they called them like sports centers. Uh rec centers. Yeah. Rec. And you pay sometimes you don’t have to pay or you can pay like a a dollar or whatever it is $5 and you’re you’re playing runs. everyone’s playing like someone’s playing there 24/7 like it’s crazy and you come in um even even like now like you know it’s tough like sometimes I have only a half court cuz it was already booked out for badminton and I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with badminton like hell yeah there should be there should be people playing badminton but being able to have like sort it out where you know basketball could just be basketball and um have it go to to a sense where even it’s expensive like uh you we talked about the prices now but even when I look at myself when I was growing up uh it was like 60 £60 to um rent out a court and if you want to rent it out just you and and two of your boys you couldn’t do that you know you had to we we had to you know get a group of us 10 15 to to to you know pay that and you’re doing that every every what weekend or whenever it was is you know Yeah, it adds up. So, I think just yeah, making it more. There was a mad thing is that that was exactly what it was like for me growing up as well. It was like we’d want to hire a court and we would have to get at least five of us to all put in a few quid as a to afford it. Um, and then I look, you know, however many, you know, three decades later and it’s exactly the same situation and it doesn’t seem to be changing. So I’m hoping that um I think the task force has an opportunity to do something that hasn’t been done before because of the political sway of Sik Khan and I think having him at the table to be able to use his influence to say you know what we need to prioritize spaces for basketball we need to try and get them built. Um and you know now NBA Europe is happening and I think this is a a London England I’ve heard Manchester too. I’m I’m not 100% sure, but um I think there’s a lot of interest here and England’s, you know, a beautiful country. Um and I think there is passion and you know, you can create a crazy culture here. Um you know, and I have a lot of ideas. I don’t want to, you know, say all of them. Uh but no, it’s uh you know, it’s exciting. Yeah. Um have you had has the NBA had any conversations with you about the NBA Europe League and what they’re trying to do? Uh not really. Not really. I know. Um, I don’t know if it’s if it’s official or not, but I know there’s NB uh NBA’s coming back here. Yeah. At sometime. Is it official? No. Yeah. Oops. It’s not It’s not been announced. Oops. It might be happening. Yeah, it might be happening. I’m not I’m not 100% sure. Uh, but no, that’s super cool. Again, I remember I remember I went to the Manny one. It was the friendly one OKC against uh Philadelphia. Yeah. And you know, you know, those games are are sold out. Um, even last summer, USA against uh, who was it? Um, that was South Sudan here. South Sudan. Yeah. And Germany. Yeah. Like games like that were packed too. And, um, I think I think that, you know, people want to be in, you know, those kind of environments. And the, you know, basketball, the game and and like when you look at the whole game is super different to, you know, most sports here in England, like, you know, football. um rugby like all these sports it’s more just about you know the game whereas basketball with the NBA you see there’s so much entertainment it’s a cool thing to do like for I’m talking about fans and um you know there’s there’s all these shows and uh you can bring your family and and your kids and you know there’s different things to do u during an NBA game so um I think it’d be it would be fun for you know for England and and different countries in Europe to have Yeah, I know this is looking way ahead and you’re obviously much more focused on playing now, but out of interest, does being an owner of a club or or sort of getting involved in the front office side of the sport sort of interest you later down the line? Yeah, potentially. I remember I was having uh dinner with uh uh someone in the front office and um like this was during the season and uh they kind of they kind of see they said that oh I could see you being like a you know some some high you know role in the front office or coaching side or even owning something. So, I think I think it’d be cool. Um, it’d be cool to be able to, you know, have a little bit of control of, you know, dictating stuff and and uh kind of, you know, growing something and trying to make something cool and, you know, a cool environment cuz I think it’s important to have in uh these kind of, you know, situations and and businesses. Um, so I don’t know. We’ll see. Maybe. Are you are you um dabbling in any sort of entrepreneurship or business stuff on the side of of playing at the moment? Yeah, not really. You know, this you know kind of your rookie contract is is is what it is and and of course I’m not saying it’s it’s not it’s a lot of money. Um but uh it’s more focus of you know setting your feet in the NBA and um doing the the stuff on the court um to help you. Yeah. And I think, you know, these next couple years, few years, that’s when you start um kind of exploring that. Um so, yeah, it’s going to be exciting. Have you been uh speaking to or following Tostown this season? Yeah, that’s my guy. Uh we we’ve been talking a lot. Um FaceTiming. Um man, we we’ve talked a lot. We’ve talked. He’s the same generation as you. Uh he’s older than me. Yeah. Is it 2001? I think he’s 2001. Okay. But I mean, we we was in EABL at the same time. Yeah. Um, but super happy for him, man. And he he should be on an NBA contract right now, you know, performing and he he showed he can. Do you have you been giving him advice and stuff? Like what kind of what have you been discussing? Like what have you been trying to help him with? Yeah, we we’ve talked about a bunch of different things. Um, life in general, uh, the NBA life, uh, basketball, uh, just the situations. Uh, it’s not easy, you know. Um, but you know, for him, you know, I think he’s done everything, you know, he can do. Um, you know, I always tell him, I tell myself this all the time, too. Control what you can control on the court and off the court. Um, so I think, you know, watching his games, he’s doing everything he needs to do to to show what kind of, you know, for what kind of player he can be. Um, so I’m super excited for him. And I think again like talking to him, it’s kind of the same kind of situation where he’s like, “Yo, this summer is is super important for me. I feel like I I got to prove something to to myself, but also the people around me.” So, I think, you know, he’s going to he’s going to do well. Do you ever think it’s mad that you got two kids from the UK that in the NBA? Yeah, it is. And I think again like there’s so many more players out here, even players that don’t even know they’re going to start playing basketball that have the opp they’re going to have the opportunity or need the opportunity to to make it. And I think there this this place has so many NBA players. So who do you think is the next one? The next one? Oh, um I’m not sure. Yeah, I’m not sure. Um I think I’m I’m talking in like in general. I think just, you know, the kind of diversity we have here in England. Um there’s just so much, you know, diversity and and and opportunities to u find someone who um is a good shoe or is super athletic. Like there’s everything here in England. So um yeah, the um actually haven’t wr written it up yet, but uh I was at Sports Pro conference a couple of weeks ago and uh the I can’t remember his role. was he managing director of NBA Europe or he’s a senior senior sort of level role of NBA Europe and Middle East and um and he just said that uh and they were talking about the NBA Europe league and then obviously that coming and you know you know London and Manchester both been spoken about repeatedly um and he just said that he thinks London is the biggest opportunity in basketball right now and it seems that more and more people that are saying that and um I mean it’ll be fascinating to see what happens with the NBA Europe League you know whatever it’s going to be a completely new franchise with new owners, whether or not it ends up being the Lions, whether it ends up being a football club. Um, you know, the money that they’re talking about the franchise fees being spread around. Really, it’s crazy. I’ve heard it’s crazy. I think I think one thing that, you know, I’m I’m interested I remember there was a Final Four here. I don’t know if you remember Eur wasn’t the best. So, you know, so that that was originally a two-year deal. Yeah. And uh yeah, it was a two-year deal and then obviously it just didn’t go as planned. Um I think they struggled a little bit on ticket sales. And the other thing I remember real clearly is they just really struggle to get the media to care and that’s you know that’s what drives the ticket sal drive the awareness is like you’ve got to get the media on board and just you know what it’s like in the British media to care about it. It’s like I think there’s a probably an understanding of the NBA. The NBA brand is so big you speak to any random person they know who the NBA is. Um, but the Euro League is still doesn’t have that. And I think it’s grown. It’s grown. It’s definitely grown, but it’s still, you know, like where are you going to watch the Euro League? Not on TV, not in the papers. Like you just Yeah. I think it’s going to be interesting like the relationship between Euro League and the NBA if the NBA comes, you know, if they actually do this. Um, and teams are going to leave the Euro League. So, like what’s going to happen? Cuz that’s the biggest competition out here. you know, it’s thriving right now. I think it’s going to be a lot of European civil war. Yeah. I mean, it’s interesting like because again, the funny thing at this conference they had um so the NBA spoke the first day and then the second day they had the Euro League CEO and um and he actually said and I think it was the first time that it was said publicly that he just said the only way for this to work is us to work together. Uh which before that is always been like oh it’s not going to work. The NBA going to stop they’re not going to get the fan bases blah blah blah. the historic clubs. Uh, and so it seems like there’s a well, there’s definitely a willingness on the Euro League side. Um, but yeah, there needs to be the to me the only way that the NBA will have success is if they categorically have all the best clubs. It’s like that’s the way the top they need you. And so the moment is fragmented and you’ve got people in the Euro League and the NBA Europe League and the Barcel areas league and the Euro Cup. It’s just like no one’s trying to follow four competitions. like we just want to see all the best clubs in one one place, but that relies on people having to get power. Yeah. You know, it’s a it’s a tough thing. Um so yeah, we shall see. Uh right before we wrap up, yeah, I put it on Instagram. Uh asked people whether they had any questions for you. We had hundreds of questions. Um guys, I went I went had a quick sort of skim through and picked out a few of them. Um any crazy ones? Outlandish. I I moved a I removed a lot of the the crazy ones. Um, but there’s some there’s some there’s some interesting ones. So, the first one is uh have you ever got in trouble with Coach Pop? What have you what did you do? I have got in trouble um not not crazy. Um last year I got kicked out of practice one time. Uh and it was it was more just you know he was you know kind of um Pop’s my guy. We like we always say to each other like we’re like a married couple. Like there’s days where we love each other and there’s days where it’s like no you like we don’t I don’t like you. And um that’s that’s our kind of relationship. And I think you know one practice he kind of saw saw me and and you know thought I could give more effort. And I think for him it’s it’s a way to show you know kind of just teach you a lesson really. And he just literally told me just get out. Were you like are you actually be serious? I was like you kind of and I didn’t you know with with pop you don’t really want to you know talk back to us you know at times and you know I felt I felt his mood and his presence and I was like okay this one’s the one where I I’ll say something. I’ll just I’ll just walk to the locker room and yeah. Uh what did your GCSE results look like? No comment. No comment. No comment. No comment. Um, if you walked into a room with every person you ever met, who would you look for first? [Music] Damn, that’s a I’ve never heard that question. That’s a good question, is it? Whoa, that’s a good question. Probably um my mom. Yeah, definitely my mom. What’s the hardest time you’ve been through in the league and how did you get through it? Hardest time? Hardest time was probably um the point guard experiment. That’s probably my hardest time. And for me it was, you know, being persistent and and just working. Um but also just working, you know, and communicating with the people around me. I think that really helped. Uh there was periods probably during that time where I wouldn’t say and I was like, “No, I’m good. I’m good. But then like you just talk to someone like, “Oh, you know, I’m actually struggling a little bit.” So, nah, definitely that time. If you could play for any team in the SLB here, who would it be and why? SLB. Um, probably London Lions because, you know, it was in Milan Kees. That’s who I grew up watching. So, yeah. Who’s your favorite dog, Otto or Pablo? I’m not. Again, no comment. They’re both my dogs in it. So, I love both of them. Um, and then the final one. What do you miss most about the UK when you’re in the NBA? Oh, um, it’s funny. I was just saying this, but bacon in America is I promise you like it’s crispy, like super crispy, got no flavor, and then I come back here and just eat a bacon roll. Yeah. It just feels good and tastes good with some ketchup. So definitely the bacon. I feel that. And of course my friends and you know my families and stuff after the bacon. Exactly. I feel that I I love a bacon sandwich. Exactly. That’s a perfect place to leave it. Thank you so much for taking the time. Really appreciate it. And uh good luck for the summer and next year. Thank you. Appreciate it.

For Episode 121 of the Hoopsfix podcast we got sit down with San Antonio Spurs’ Jeremy Sochan while he was back in London for a week.

Having just completed his third year in the NBA, and fresh off a trip to the Philippines, Jeremy shares his experiences and reflections on his journey from being drafted three years ago to becoming a certified NBA professional.

He discusses the challenges of adapting to various roles in the team, the mental health struggles that come with the NBA lifestyle, and the importance of maintaining a support network. Jeremy also opens up about the impact of social media and gambling on players, his aspirations for EuroBasket, and his plans to promote basketball in the UK, having recently been appointed to the Mayor of London’s Basketball Taskforce.

Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction and Welcome
01:47 Catching Up with Jeremy Sochan
02:54 Life in the NBA
05:36 Media and Public Perception
17:25 Mental Health and Support Systems
24:04 Off-Season Plans and EuroBasket
31:38 NBA Stars and Referees: The Ego Factor
32:47 Evolving Goals in the NBA
35:16 Financial Wisdom and Lifestyle Changes
43:02 Impacting UK Basketball
49:35 Future Aspirations and NBA Europe
56:32 Fan Questions and Personal Insights

📧 Receive our weekly newsletter: https://www.hoopsfix.com/newsletter
👕 Buy merchandise: https://www.hoopsfix.com/store
💰 Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/hoopsfix
➡️ Subscribe on YouTube: http://bit.ly/hoopsfixsub
📷 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoopsfix
👍 Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hoopsfix
🐦 Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/hoopsfix
💻 Visit our website: https://www.hoopsfix.com

📝 Hoopsfix is the biggest British basketball channel on Youtube – we travel up and down the country filming games and uploading highlights here, as well as doing interviews with people from around the British basketball community!