The Boston Celtics are bound to benefit from the epic slight Dennis Schröder recently endured.
That's what former NBA guard Antonio Daniels predicted about the Celtics guard Wednesday during his appearance on Sirius XM NBA Radio. Large swaths of the NBA community have been roasting Schröder since last month when he joined the Celtics on a reported one-year, $5.89 million contract. After all, he had rejected a four-year, $84 million extension with the Los Angeles Lakers last winter, betting he'd land an even bigger deal in free agency, but a robust market for his services never materialized, and he ultimately landed with Boston. Daniels believes the experience will motivate Schröder to perform at his peak.
"This is all it takes," Daniels said. "Exactly what he experienced this summer is all it takes to change a guy's mentality. ... Sometimes we need to be humbled, and he was humbled this summer. I guarantee, you will see the best version of Dennis Schröder since he was in OKC."
Schröder played for the Oklahoma City Thunder between 2018 and 2020, averaging 17 points, 3.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game over those two seasons. OKC traded him to the Lakers ahead of the 2020-21 campaign, during which he averaged 15.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game.
He reportedly doesn't expect to start for the Celtics but is all-but-certain to be a key component of Boston's rotation. Whenever he takes the court, he probably will play with an edge, as he has done throughout his career.
And if his competitive fire dims on any given night, the ridicule of the NBA community only will fuel his desire to silence them.
