Ex-Spurs teammate may have given Knicks blueprint against Victor Wembanyama

Victor Wembanyama spent most of the NBA Finals dealing with defenders, double teams, and constant physical play. But one of the most interesting storylines came from someone who already knew him better than almost anyone else.

Former Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan, now with the Knicks, spent the series sharing details about his old team and his former teammate. Before the Finals, Sochan openly discussed helping New York prepare for Wembanyama and explained that wearing him down physically could be part of the plan.

“Whether I’m playing or not, it’s important to feed all the information I have,” Sochan told The Post’s Jared Schwartz.

That was the obvious story.

The more interesting one is what it revealed about how opponents now view Wembanyama.

Three years into his career, teams are no longer asking whether he can dominate. They are asking how long they can stop him from dominating.

Sochan described Wembanyama as one of the hardest workers he has ever seen while also noting that the 7-foot-4 star can get tired because of the physical demands that come with his size.

“Being that tall [Wembanyama] gets tired,” Sochan said. “Give him different looks and be very physical, and make him run. And he’s gonna get tired, he’s gonna have to take some plays off in my opinion.”

That is not criticism. It is scouting.

And when a former teammate believes the best strategy is to attack a player's stamina rather than his skill, it says a lot about the player.

The Knicks eventually won the championship in five games, but Wembanyama was still productive throughout the series. He finished Game 5 with 19 points, 14 rebounds, and five blocks despite another late Spurs collapse.

The bigger issue for San Antonio was not Wembanyama's talent. It was the reality that the Spurs are still learning how to win at the highest level. They led in all four losses during the Finals and blew large advantages in Games 4 and 5.

That context matters because Wembanyama already carried San Antonio to a 62-win season, a division title, and the franchise's first playoff appearance since 2019. He also won Defensive Player of the Year and established himself as one of the league's most influential players.

The Finals exposed a weakness, but not necessarily the one many fans will focus on.

If Sochan was right, improving Wembanyama's endurance and reducing the burden he carries every night may be one of the Spurs' biggest offseason priorities. That is a much easier problem to solve than finding a franchise superstar.

San Antonio already has that part figured out.

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