Five things to know about Celtics’ new goalkeeper Dennis Schröder

Celtics

By Ethan McDowell, The Boston Globe

August 11, 2021 | 5:35 p.m.

Dennis Schröder has a long and at times controversial history with the Celtics, but the next chapter in that story will feature him in green and white after announcing on Instagram on Tuesday that he will be joining the team.

The Celtics will be the veteran point guard’s fourth team in nine seasons after his one-year stint with the Los Angeles Lakers. After turning down an $ 84 million extension earlier this year, the 27-year-old will sign a one-year, $ 5.9 million contract for the opportunity to prove himself in Boston.

Of Schröder’s 557 career games, he has come off the bench for 319 of them. Most notably, Schröder, 27, finished second in the Sixth Man vote for the 2019-20 season, receiving 35 votes for first place.

A trade this offseason took him to Los Angeles, where he started 61 games, scored 15.4 points per game and distributed nearly 6 assists per game. Schröder’s three-point percentage fell 5% from 1.5 fewer attempts in 2021, as he shot 34% from deep from 39% the year before.

Here are five things you need to know about Boston’s newest addition to the backcourt.

He immediately becomes one of the Celtics’ top playmakers and defenders

Schröder’s 5.8 assists per game last season would place him No. 1 against the 2020-21 Celtics, narrowly beating Marcus Smart, who was averaging 5.7. In addition to showing an ability to finish at the rim and knock down free throws at an 85% rate, Schröder had a significant impact on the Lakers’ defense and tied for 20th in the NBA in defensive winning share with 2.7 last season. Jayson Tatum is the closest Celtic to the roster after registering 2.5 defensive actions.

Schröder’s most recent playoff win came against the Celtics

The then 22-year-old point guard left the bench for the fourth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in 2016, beating the fifth-seeded Celtics in six games. Schröder averaged over nine points per game over the series and saw his minutes and points increase in the next round, but the Hawks were swept aside by eventual champion Cavaliers.

After stepping into a starting role the following season, Schröder’s playoff production exploded. He averaged nearly 25 points per game and nearly 8 assists in a six-game series loss to the Wizards in 2017. The Hawks missed the playoffs in 2018, and Schröder was traded to the Thunder , where the team first fell back to back. -round series.

As a Laker, Schröder fell in his only playoff appearance against the Phoenix Suns. Despite the recent lack of success, Schröder brings 52 games of playoff experience with him to Boston, a significant difference from former Celtics guard Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier, who have combined 50 career playoff games.

He signed his first NBA contract at age 20 but was a professional long before that

Schröder was born in Braunschweig, Germany, and grew up as an avid skater, playing basketball for fun before it quickly became his career. He started playing professionally in Germany for the club now known as Basketball Löwen Braunschweig during the 2009-10 season, four years before being selected 17th in the 2013 NBA Draft.

In his last season away from home, Schröder scored almost 12 points per game and shot over 40% out of three. Prior to his NBA debut, the keeper also competed for the German national team at the 2012 U-20 Euros and 2011 U-18 Euros.

He has a history with the Celtics on and off the pitch

After eliminating the Celtics from the playoffs the previous season, the Hawks and Celtics met for a clash in mid-January 2017 between the playoff contenders. The Celtics, on their way to the best Eastern Conference record, beat the Hawks 103-101, but the main storyline came after the game after Schröder accused Isaiah Thomas of making derogatory comments about his mother, this that Thomas denied. This was not the first incident between the two, with Thomas being grossly fouled for punching Schröder in the face in their 2016 playoff game.

He is one of the most accomplished German basketball players in NBA history

German NBA basketball has been synonymous with Dirk Nowitzki for decades, with a long line of great men and strikers standing in the shadow of the future Hall of Famer.

When Schröder joined the league, he became one of the first German goalies to play over 100 NBA games; Isaac Bonga is the only one to have matched this mark since. Schröder is now fifth in career games among all German NBA players, third in goal average and first in career assists per game.