The NBA is deep into its offseason, and some notable names remain unsigned in restricted free agency. Jonathan Kuminga, Cam Thomas, Quentin Grimes, and Josh Giddey are in a stalemate with their current teams and facing a market that lacks spending power.
As unfortunate as it is for those players, restricted free agency is working as intended. Making matters worse, teams in general are more cautious of spending because of the restrictions of the new CBA and seemingly more willing than before to use the leverage they have.
The current environment should scare players who are eligible for restricted free agency in the future into signing extensions, if offered. Which is why Jeremy Sochan might have to accept an extremely team-friendly deal to secure a payday, or face an uncomfortable situation next summer.
Before exploring Sochan’s situation, a simple explanation about how restricted free agency works for players coming out of their rookie contracts. The teams that hold their rights have to extend a qualifying offer for one year to get the right of first refusal, which allows them to match any offer sheet the player signs. The player can accept that qualifying offer, play the year out, and enter unrestricted free agency the next summer. Very few have done it, as it involves a lot of risk. Most either sign with their incumbent team, sign an offer sheet with a different franchise that their incumbent team can then match, or try to work on a sign-and-trade that the incumbent team has to agree to. Essentially, if a team wants to retain a restricted free agent or get something back for them, they will. They’ve always had all the leverage, but in the past weren’t always willing to use it. This summer is setting a precedent that things might be changing.
Back to Sochan. He’s extension-eligible, as he’s about to enter his fourth year in the league. If he doesn’t sign an extension, he’ll become a restricted free agent in the summer of 2026. In the past, the Spurs have extended their guys on rookie deals, with both Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell getting their money without having to test free agency. It would make sense to do the same with Sochan, assuming the front office is still high on his potential, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see them decide to play hardball and use the threat of the recent stalemates in restricted free agency as their core argument for going low on an offer to Sochan’s representatives. After all, does Sochan really want to be left waiting for a payday next summer as money dries up and everyone puts his game under a microscope like Cam Thomas has this summer?
Sochan could decide to bet on himself and hope for more money after a good fourth season, but it’s unlikely there would be a strong market for him, barring massive, outlier-level improvement. There will be teams with cap space next summer, but some will be young rebuilding squads like the Wizards and Nets that might prefer to rent out their room for assets instead of making an offer to a non-star young guy that will get matched anyway unless it’s a gigantic overpay. The good teams that are expected to be under the cap, like the Lakers and Clippers, will be looking for either a star or a piece that pushes them over the top, and Sochan doesn’t fit either category. He’s young and a great on-ball defender, but his lack of shooting in particular makes him a rough fit for a lot of rosters. He brings enough to the table in other areas to be worth keeping long term, but he’s not a plug-and-play guy.
It’s hard to overstate how much leverage the Spurs have in any extension talks with Sochan. They even have time on their side, as they can wait until the day before the regular season starts to sign him to one. If they fail to reach an agreement, they should be able to retain him for a good price if he enters restricted free agency a year from now because of the rights of first refusal and the potentially limited market the young forward could have. The league is not spending like it did in he past, but if someone overpays in 2026 and the Silver and Black decide to move on, like they did with Boban Marjanovic and Jonathon Simmons, among others, in the past, it will be solely their decision. They have a tidy cap sheet that could accommodate a medium-sized contract with ease, especially with Johnson’s expiring soon.
It’s possible the Spurs simply decide to pay their guy to avoid any potential bad blood. They drafted and developed Sochan, and he’s, by all accounts, a good presence in the locker room and certainly on the hardwood, where his defense and toughness would not be easily replaceable. Maybe the shot is looking better after a busy summer working on it and spending time with the Polish national team. Maybe the front office wants to go into the season with as few distractions as possible.
But don’t be surprised if it takes a while to get an extension done, as San Antonio waits for Sochan to lower his expectations. There’s nothing wrong with taking advantage of a position of power created by the collective bargaining agreement. If they decide to flex their leverage, which seems like the smart thing to do, the Spurs should be able to lock down a promising young player to a team-friendly deal and continue a streak of good roster-building decisions.
See More: