Dennis Schroder signed as a free agency in the summer of 2021 and played with the Boston Celtics for less than a season. The point guard was traded to the Rockets in a move that sent Daniel Theis back to his old NBA team, after spending several months in Boston as a sixth man. In the end, Schroder brought his career back to life with the Lakers the previous year, and this past summer, he signed a big contract with the Raptors. On Monday night, though, Schroder was not winning a game against his old team, the Raptors, as the Celtics defeated them 105-96 to take the season series.
Despite the defeat, Dennis Schroder shared moments with his former teammates after the game and presented his signed jersey to Jayson Tatum. The Celtics All-Star showcased the jersey on his Instagram, featuring a message from Schroder that reads, “Go win that chip this year.”
Tatum discussed his connection with the Raptors’ point guard during an interview with reporters in Toronto following Monday’s victory.
“He’s a great guy. We only got to play with each other for five months until the trade but great guy, great teammate,” Tatum said. “Just super competitive. You understand that when you get to be around him a lot more, if he sees something he don’t like, if he did something I didn’t like, he was going to say it. We kind of had that trust that we wanted to win. We had hard conversations but I got a lot of respect for him because at his core, he just wants to win. He’s a hell of a competitor.”
Throughout a difficult Toronto season thus far, where he has alternated between the starting lineup and the Raptors’ bench, Schroder has been outspoken.
“That’s just who he is,” Tatum said. “He don’t back down from nobody and he’s always going to compete. Just as a competitor, you can respect somebody like that.”
Schroder might be contemplating what could have transpired in Boston, considering the team’s success after his short tenure. Despite signing a one-year contract for the mid-level exception in 2021, he was traded to make way for new Celtics addition Derrick White and provide an opportunity for Payton Pritchard at the 2022 trade deadline. Subsequently, Boston progressed to the 2022 NBA Finals and now appears to be a perennial contender for the foreseeable future.
Meanwhile, Schroder finds himself playing a secondary role behind the new trade addition, Immanuel Quickley, in Toronto. The Raptors seem to be leaning more towards a full rebuild than contending, and their chances of making it to the postseason appear slim at this rate. However, it’s evident that Schroder will be supporting his former teammates, particularly the Celtics, if he happens to be watching from the sidelines.
