Baylor Basketball fans rejoiced during today’s 2022 NBA Draft where two immensely talented former Baylor freshmen were selected to become professional players. Both playing at the forward position, Jeremy Sochan was the 9th overall pick by the San Antonio Spurs and Kendall Brown went at No. 48 overall to the Indiana Pacers after being chosen and traded by the Minnesota Timberwolves. According to Baylor Athletics’ Jerry Hill (papa), “Sochan’s selection marks the fourth top-10 draft pick in program history behind Mitchell (No. 9 in 2021), Udoh (No. 6 in 2010) and Vinnie Johnson (No. 7 in 1979), and he’s the eighth first-round pick in program history.”
Sochan joined fellow NBA Draft-eligible Kendall Brown as the Bears’ freshmen stars of the 2021-22 season. At the beginning of the season, Baylor looked just as good and if not better than they did last year as National Champions thanks to the talents of Sochan, Brown, Cryer, and Tchamwa Tchatchoua. However with the majority of the team suffering injuries of some sort, the Bears couldn’t manifest a consecutive national title (but they still notched back-to-back Big 12 titles!). Despite the lack of country-wide success, the Bears still saw excellent performances and results primarily from Sochan and Brown. Back in April, Sochan announced he’d be leaving the Baylor program to enter the 2022 NBA Draft. The announcement isn’t a surprise as Sochan’s talents have brought him notoriety in the professional league. During his one season in college, he averaged approximately 10 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal each game.
Brown was an immediate lead on the Baylor team with fans and media alike praising his natural abilities and skill. Coming out of high school as the 12th-ranked athlete in the country, Brown was also the first player in Baylor’s program history to earn the Preseason Big 12 Freshman of the Year honor. The 6-8 forward averaged 9.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists during his solitary season with the Bears.
