Dennis Schroder is a hot name on the NBA trade market and for good reason. Schroder is a legit 6th man of the year candidate. He’s been awesome for the Thunder. I’m not sure how anybody could think otherwise. Schroder is averaging 19.1 points and 4.1 assists off the bench. He’s also shooting 47.2 percent from the floor and 38.8 percent from deep. Schroder has been awesome for the Thunder.
Remember that time that the Hawks gave away Dennis Schroder for Carmelo Anthony? No, seriously, that happened. Atlanta sent Schroder to Oklahoma City for a washed up Carmelo who was making $25.5 million and immediately bought him out. It was a 3 team deal that eventually landed them a protected first round pick, but it’s far more likely that pick turns into two 2nd rounders. Regardless, Atlanta ate Melo’s deal and gave away Schroder in one swoop. Seriously, I can’t stress enough that this is a trade that actually happened.
Over the last 5 years, I can’t think of a trade that’s worse. The Jayson Tatum and Markelle Fultz swap was awful for Philadelphia, but that’s only in hindsight. The NBA Draft is a crapshoot. The Cavs giving Kyrie Irving away for a broken Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, and Collin Sexton comes close. Still, Kyrie requested a trade and wanted out of there. Cleveland had to move him. In this instance, Dennis Schroder was already a proven commodity and a productive player.
It should also be mentioned that Schroder is making $15.5 million per year. A more than a reasonable number for Schroder. If anything, $15.5 million per year is a good bargain for him. It should also be mentioned that the Thunder had ZERO leverage in trade talks for Melo. They had an enormous luxury tax bill coming. The Hawks happily took Carmelo, gave OKC a real asset, and reduced the Thunder tax bill from $141 million to about $84.5 million.
The Dennis Schroder trade was laughable at the time and it keeps getting worse as time passes. Travis Schlenk gotta go. That guy couldn’t make a smart trade if his life depended on it. If Schlenk’s goal was to tank the franchise, he’s doing a hell of a job. The rest of the NBA community makes fun of the Hawks every day for trading Luka Doncic. To make matters worse, Cam Reddish looks clueless on the court. Now they’re giving away first round picks for Clint Capela despite having the worst record in the Eastern Conference. You have a better chance at finding Waldo underneath your bed than you do trying to figure out the hampster wheels going on in Travis Schlenk’s brain.
