The Toronto Raptors’ trade of Dennis Schroder this week may have been more of a divorce than anything.
The Raptors sent the veteran guard Schroder packing ahead of Thursday’s NBA trade deadline. They shipped him to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for another notable guard.
After the trade, Michael Grange of Sportsnet reported that Schroder had some apparent problems with the Raptors leading up to the move. Grange writes that Schroder was not happy about being relegated to the bench by Toronto. Schroder signed with the Raptors in the offseason with hopes of starting on and leading a playoff team, Grange adds.
The former first-round pick Schroder made 33 starts for the Raptors to open up the season but was dropped to the bench when Immanuel Quickley came over in the OG Anunoby trade with the New York Knicks. Though Schroder is a talented player who was averaging roughly 15 points and seven assists per game as a starter (and just took home FIBA World Cup MVP honors with his native Germany in the summer), his inefficient, ball-dominant tendencies are probably best suited for a second unit.
It is unclear if Schroder will get much more of an opportunity with the Nets, another young team focused on the future. But he obviously values himself very highly and had expressed unhappiness with a reserve role at one of his previous NBA stops as well.
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