The Raptors found a gem in the NBA bargain bin

When Toronto lost starting point guard Fred VanVleet in free agency to the Houston Rockets in July, many wondered how the Raptors would replace him. To fill the former All-Star's role, Toronto signed Dennis Schröder, who was coming off a solid but unspectacular season for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Although Schröder played a key role in the Lakers' playoff run, VanVleet was a fan favorite since joining Toronto as an undrafted free agent in 2016. 

Two weeks into the season, however, Schröder is among the NBA's most pleasant surprises. He is tied for fourth with Dallas' Luka Doncic for assists (8.9 per game) and is averaging 16.9 points and 2.9 rebounds. Those are similar to numbers put up by VanVleet, who is averaging 16.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 8.2 assists.

So far, Schröder is the more efficient of the two, with a shooting split of 46.2/41.7/77.3 compared to VanVleet’s 37.6/38.5/90.9. VanVleet was an effective player, especially on defense for Toronto, but he tends to take bad shots and struggles to score efficiently. 

What makes Schröder one of the top signings of the summer is his contract.

Per Spotrac, VanVleet is making just under $41 million this season and around $128 million over the next three seasons, Schröder, meanwhile, will take up just over $12 million in salary space this season, followed by a little more than $13 million in 2024-25.

Maybe Toronto fans should have seen this coming from Schröder after his excellent play for Germany during the summer’s FIBA World Cup tournament. Schröder, who was named tournament MVP, averaged 19.1 points and 6.1 assists as he helped lead Germany to the championship.

Schröder’s best game of the young NBA season came Wednesday against a Milwaukee Bucks team expected to compete for an NBA title. In 29 minutes, Schröder put up 24 points and 11 assists on 9-for-13 shooting. Meanwhile, Milwaukee's prized acquisition, point guard Damian Lillard, only put up 15 points and six assists on 4-for-9 shooting. Toronto won 130-111 — its most impressive victory of the year.

With Pascal Siakam struggling, Schröder is arguably the second-best Raptors player after Scottie Barnes, who has greatly improved in his third professional season. 

While it remains unlikely Schröder can keep up this production for an entire season, he has already blown past expectations — a good sign for a team that must deal with the upcoming free agency of Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby (assuming Anunoby declines his 2024-25 player option.)