The player who will win a ring no matter the outcome of Spurs-Knicks Finals

New York Knicks forward Jeremy Sochan secured his first NBA championship ring before the finals even began. With the San Antonio Spurs defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals on Saturday, Sochah, who began the season on the Spurs, will receive a ring regardless of the finals outcome.

Sochan appeared in 33 games for the Spurs to start the season before being waived and signing with the Knicks. While they are under no obligation, NBA teams typically award regular-season players with a ring even if they were traded or cut before the playoffs. Sochan played his first three and a half seasons with the Spurs after they drafted him ninth overall in 2022.

He’s not the first player to be guaranteed a ring before the start of the finals.

Jeremy Sochan wins ring before start of Spurs-Knicks finals

Torrey Craig found himself in a similar situation when the Milwaukee Bucks met the Phoenix Suns in the 2021 NBA Finals. Craig appeared in 18 games with the Bucks during the regular season before being traded to the Suns ahead of the deadline. With the Bucks defeating the Atlanta Hawks to win the Eastern Conference title, Craig was set to win a ring regardless of the championship outcome.

However, Craig later revealed he did not accept a ring from Milwaukee after Phoenix lost the finals in six games.

“I was qualified to get a ring with the Bucks, being that I played with them enough games to win it, but I didn’t follow through with it because they beat us in the finals,” Craig said on PHNX Sports. “I would’ve been traded to a different team, and they won the finals; it probably would’ve been difficult, given the fact that they beat us in the finals. I didn’t even care enough [to take it], because we lost. They beat us fair and square.”

It remains to be seen whether Sochan would accept a ring if the Spurs win. San Antonio is a -200 favorite against New York, per FanDuel Sportsbook.

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