Dennis Schroder played an important part in helping the Detroit Pistons make the playoffs, but they were smart not to sign him last offseason.
The dumpster fire known as the Sacramento Kings did instead, giving Schroder a 3-year deal for some reason, only to trade him to Cleveland along with Keon Ellis for De’Andre Hunter in another baffling move.
Can I just ask: What are the Kings doing? I guess anytime you can take on additional money for a guy who is worse than the player you’re trading away, you have to do it, right Kangz? My god, I don’t know how that franchise has a single fan, as it has been an absolute train wreck since the days of The Beam, remember that?
Trajan Langdon hasn’t given long-term deals to any veteran role players, and he wasn’t about to start with Schroder, who has been his normal self this season, averaging over 12 points and five assists per game off the bench but doing it inefficiently.
Not bringing back Schroder didn’t seem like much at the time, but it netted the Pistons two important assets, which now make this look like a genius move.
The Pistons landed a big trade exception
When the Kangz signed Schroder to a 3-year deal (who signs DENNIS FREAKING SCHRODER WHO HAS BEEN ON EVERY TEAM IN THE NBA TO A 3-YEAR DEAL?!? MAKE IT MAKE SENSE!) the Pistons gained a trade exception worth just over $14 million.
They haven’t used it yet, and have until the summer to do so, but at some point, likely before this week’s trade deadline, that TPE could land the Pistons a player. I’ve had a few ideas of who that player could be, and all of the options are better than Schroder with no long-term obligations.
This was a win for the Pistons.
Who needs Schroder when you have Daniss Jenkins at home?
Declining to bring back Schroder also opened the door for two-way player Daniss Jenkins to get a chance, which he may not have gotten had Schroder stayed in Detroit.
Jenkins is only averaging 8 points and 3.4 assists per game, but he’s doing it in 10 fewer minutes per game than Schroder is getting. He’s also doing it more efficiently, shooting 43 percent from the floor and 38 percent from long range, both considerably better than Schroder.
And to add to all of that, Jenkins has been doing it on a two-way contract that is pennies compared to what Schroder is making.
In fact, even after Jenkins gets a full-time deal, which should happen soon, and even if it’s not a minimum (he turned it down) he’ll make less over three seasons than Schroder is making in one.
As soon as I saw the contract Schroder got, I knew it was an easy pass for the Pistons, who were never going to go that deep for a backup point guard, but it looks even better now with both Jenkins and that TPE turning into valuable assets.
Winning these moves on the margins may seem like a small thing, but it saved the Pistons a ton of cap space and netted them a younger, cheaper player, and they didn't have to do anything.