Dennis Schröder Hits Game-Winner in Germany-Spain: What it Means for Kings

While the European game isn’t the same as what you see in the NBA, Schrröder isn’t playing against low-level players by any means. Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Alperen Şengün, Kristaps Porziņģis, Lauri Markannen, and Schröder’s teammate, Franz Wagner, are only a few of the big-name NBA players participating. 

As I alluded to, being the best player on the court against the most talented players in the World is nothing new to Schröder. Last year, he had 26 points and 9 assists against Victor Wembenyama and France in a 14-point win. The question that is on all of our minds is, can he play like this next season?

Schröder's impact in Sacramento

I wouldn’t expect Schröder to be putting up a ton of massive stat lines like he does with Germany, but he could still be a lot better than many are expecting. The Kings probably deserve some criticism for the amount of money they’re spending on an older point guard when there are clear reasons to be focusing on youth, but don’t let that make you believe that Schröder is a bad player. His efficiency hasn’t been as great the last few seasons after bouncing around quite a bit, but he’s been productive and a steady presence for pretty much every team he’s played for. 

After De’Aaron Fox was traded last season, Sacramento used Malik Monk, DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and even Markelle Fultz at the point to try to find some sort of answer at that position. 

While the first three are extremely talented, Fultz often looked like the most adept at handling the position defensively, which is what Sacramento needs. He didn’t play many minutes, but teams were 6.2 points worse offensively when Fultz was on the court last season. Schröder doesn’t have the tools that Fultz has physically, but he’ll make life a lot harder for opposing guards than Monk, LaVine, or DeRozan did last season. 

The point of attack defense was often one of the biggest flaws for Sacramento, and led to a ton of pressure on Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis. Sabonis gets a lot of blame for his rim protection, but a ton of the issues come from letting opposing guards into the paint far too easily. 

Offensively, Schröder isn’t the player Monk is, but his style of play may benefit Sacramento. 

Overall, Schröder shot close to his average from deep last season, but his corner three numbers were much better. Schröder shot 61% from the right corner and 43% from the left, which is to be expected, but points to Schröder being capable of playing off-ball. 

Of course, he’ll likely spend a lot of time on-ball, and his 2-1 assist-to-turnover ratio should provide some peace of mind that things won’t get worse. This kind of flexibility gives the Kings options at the guard spot and should make it easier to get Nique Clifford and Devin Carter minutes at the lead guard spot, should they wish. 

Taking some playmaking duties away from Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan should also help them focus on scoring within the flow of the offense, which would be a more than welcome sight. 

Schröder may not play exactly like he does for Germany, and he probably isn’t the long-term answer at point guard, but at least he’ll compete. Some of this may be just looking for silver linings, but I’m willing to go out on a limb and say Sacramento will look better next season with Dennis at the point. 

Sure, the Kings shouldn’t have traded Tyrese Haliburton or De’Aaron Fox, and they probably shouldn’t have traded Davion Mitchell either, but they did. Schröder won’t make up for those mistakes, but at the very least, he’ll make the team more watchable this year.