Jeremy Sochan shines in Spurs loss to Heat

With just about their whole roster ready to play, the San Antonio Spurs headed to South Beach for its first road preseason game. It was the first chance to see how the rotation might play out during the regular season. San Antonio faced a strong defensive team in the Miami Heat that forced the Spurs to turn the ball over 21 times. Despite the sloppy performance, the Spurs stuck with the Heat until the end in a 120-117 loss.

Jeremy Sochan continued his strong play with 18 points and 11 rebounds. The third-year forward did all of his damage around the rim on cuts and drives. He's been effective all preseason as an off-ball forward.

Everyone wants to see how Sochan plays off Victor Wembanyama. They connected for a fun alley-oop in transition early in the game, and nearly had another one a few plays later, but Sochan missed the dunk.

Wembanyama played just 17 minutes, but finished with 8 points and 7 rebounds. He struggled to find much offensive rhythm. He played a lot on the perimeter and struggled to get to the basket against the stout Bam Adebayo. This pull-up three in transition is the type of shot that opens up his offensive game and lets him do more inside. Seeing shots like this fall are a good sign for the second-year big.

Of course it wouldn't be a highlights piece without a Wembanyama slam. Through two preseason games, his dunks have looked more violent than last season. Perhaps its the added strength.

Keldon Johnson had a strong stretch in the middle of the game. He finished with 15 points on 6-10 shooting. Johnson looked explosive, especially on this steal and slam.

Chris Paul had a solid showing against Miami. He had 13 points and 5 assists, albeit turning it over 6 times. He was good at spacing the floor from deep, particularly in the pick-and-roll. Having a player that can stretch a defense with his shooting ability will be a big boost to the Spurs offensive attack.

Stephon Castle wasn't used as much as previous preseason outings. He still managed to make a few highlight plays, including this forceful dunk in the second quarter.

On top of Castle's downhill driving ability, he's shined as a passer. Castle made this sweet cross court dime to Branham late in the fourth quarter as the Spurs were storming back. It was his 5th assist of the night.

The Spurs have no shortage of quality guards on the roster. Tre Jones has become somewhat of an afterthought behind exciting new players like Paul and Castle, but he's still as solid as ever. Jones is great at pushing the pace and finding his teammates in transition. His floater looked good on several occasions, including this buzzer beater at the half.

Charles Bassey played his first game since injuring his knee early last season. Bassey had 4 points and 4 rebounds in 10 minutes. The return was a great moment for the young big man. The knee must be feeling better as he looked spry on this finish.

Malaki Branham looks to be on the outside of the Spurs' rotation looking in. He's not done fighting for a spot. This block was one of the best plays of the game.

Check out the video below for the full game highlights.