There aren’t many places where Dennis Schroder hasn’t played NBA basketball. In 2021 he was a part of the Boston Celtics and then half a year later he joined the Houston Rockets. A few months later he joined LeBron James on the Los Angeles Lakers, but left after just one year to sign for the Toronto Raptors. Most recently, he was with the Brooklyn Nets before joining the Golden State Warriors. For Germany basketball star Dennis Schroder, life as an NBA professional has been full of trades and transfers that have taken him all over North America.
In swapping New York for San Francisco, Schröder has swapped American shores. The Warriors are already the eighth NBA team in twelve years to captain Germany’s world champion team. This is the fourth time he has had to move within a season.
Little influence and say in team changes
After Warriors point guard De’Anthony Melton tore his ACL, the team quickly needed to find a replacement, and found one in Schroder after a trade with Brooklyn.
Whether Schröder wanted to take this step or not is not in question – and he probably would not have gone ahead of his own free will.
“Life is good here, we live in a nice neighborhood in Brooklyn,” he said in an interview with “Süddeutsche Zeitung” (SZ) a few days ago. “There’s a playground right outside the door, my kids already have friends they see every day.”
When Schroder found out about his business, he was shocked. He joined the Nets at the beginning of the year and has felt right at home there after several moves over the past few seasons. “I was in a bad mood,” Schröder said – until his five-year-old son Dennis Jr. said: “We’re lucky, at least it’s a good team now.”
Schroder title contender with Warriors
The irony is that Schroder has a better chance of making the playoffs, as the Warriors are fighting for a top-six finish in the Western Conference, while the Nets are not even in contention.
Schroder is expected to replace the in-form Melton and, perhaps, along with superstar Stephen Curry, to help ensure the Warriors can fight again for the title they won in 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2022. I was theirs. Schroder is averaging 18.4 points and 6.6 assists. Assists per game for Brooklyn this season. Melton, who played a key role for the Warriors until suffering a serious injury, had 10.3 points and 2.8 assists.
Whether Schroder’s family will also follow him to San Francisco remains to be seen. After all, his wife Ellen and their three children have just moved to New York. The Schroders’ real home is not in the United States anyway, but in the northern German city of Braunschweig. Schröder was born there in 1993, and was discovered by a club coach on an outdoor basketball court at the age of eleven, the son of a Gambian mother and a German father.
Focused on basketball after father’s death
Schröder was a rebellious teenager with a large ego and immense self-confidence. He often argued with his coaches and teammates. After his father died of a heart attack in 2009, Schroder, then 16, focused his entire attention on the game as he promised his father that he would make it to the NBA.
Two years later, he was playing for Braunschweig in the BBL (Basketball Bundesliga). Shortly thereafter, his good performances also attracted the attention of scouts from America. In 2013, he moved to the Atlanta Hawks in the NBA. Schröder became an international player for Germany only after moving to America.
‘Real house’ in Braunschweig
Schröder has maintained close ties to basketball in Braunschweig. When his former club was in financial difficulties a few years earlier, Schröder invested the money he earned in the NBA and became a co-partner of the club. He has been the sole shareholder since May 2020. Schröder explained the move by saying, “Braunschweig is my hometown, I want to give something back to the area.”
His investment secured the team a Bundesliga license, and therefore Braunschweig’s future as a basketball city was secured.
Schröder said at the time, “I am confident that we can develop the place and turn it into a top club in the league.” However, this hope has not yet been fully fulfilled. Braunschweig have never reached the playoffs since Schröder took over, but the club has yet to face the threat of relegation from the Bundesliga.
Schroder may have to return to the team before Braunschweig returns to the top of the German game. A few years ago, Schröder once formulated a return to his home club as a sporting goal that he would possibly like to accomplish.
“It’s a dream, I’d love to do it,” he said a few years ago. “Of course, I don’t know exactly when, but it’s on my bucket list. I definitely want to play in Braunschweig again.”
In the NBA at 40?
But before that, Schroder wants to continue his life as an NBA pro for as long as possible. With his eight years of experience in the league, his strong average numbers, his fast playing style and a World Championship title, the 31-year-old German has earned a status that sets him apart from many other players.
“I’m taking care of my body, taking care of my fitness so that I can keep playing like this,” Schroder told SZ. “I’m also getting better at my diet, so I think I can do it all by the time I’m 40.”
However, only a few players can truly withstand the stress of 82 season games (except playoffs) and such a long journey. German basketball legend Dirk Nowitzki was one of them, with the former Dallas Mavericks player retiring after 21 seasons in the NBA.
“If it all works out, of course I want to finish my career here,” Schroder said at its unveiling in San Francisco. But his contract with the Warriors only runs until the end of the season, so perhaps another stopover is in order for the German NBA journeyman.
This article is taken from German language
