Atlanta Hawks starting point guard Dennis Schröder, who had a career year in 2017-18 despite missing much of the final month of the season due to an ankle injury, has made it clear that he is unhappy with the direction of the organization.
He was always close with Coach Mike Budenholzer, and with Bud gone – replaced by former 76ers assistant Lloyd Pierce – Schröder seems disgruntled with the rebuilding/tanking direction the franchise is headed.
Though social media is a rather flimsy argument when it comes to the reality of a situation, this news (via @ATLHawks_Reddit on Twitter) is indeed quite eye-opening:
Schröd also claimed via a German basketball conference that he would be open to being traded to either Indiana or Milwaukee – two teams that could do with an influx of offensive acumen.
With that in mind, we’ve outlined a few possible trade scenarios that could send Schröder to his chosen teams, as well as some more “out-there” scenarios for the 24-year-old point guard.
The goal of the Hawks at this point should be to obtain as many draft picks as possible on top of their own first round pick this year, which was just announced to be 3rd overall at the draft lottery. As such, all of these trades will include upcoming 2018 Draft Picks – though the Hawks would gladly take a 2019 and beyond draft pick as well.
Schröder’s first choice for a potential trade package was Indiana, as he expressed an admiration for Victor Oladipo as one of his good friends.
The problem at this juncture is that the Pacers already have 2 serviceable point guard options in Cory Joseph and Darren Collison, who is coming off one of the best seasons of his career. Both players are under contract for next year. Moving Joseph and veteran Al Jefferson might make this move palatable for the Pacers by freeing a sliver of cap space for a splashy free agent.
This trade, especially if a pick is included (either 2018 or future), would allow the Hawks to obtain a defensive-minded point guard in Joseph and a veteran leader in Jefferson to help develop the glut of young players that will be on the team next year.
For the Pacers, obtaining Schröder would provide the team with a bucket-getting point guard – something they need when Victor Oladipo has an off night, which occurred a few times during the playoffs.
It is unlikely that the Pacers will want to give up the 23rd overall pick in the 2018 draft, but perhaps the salary dump of Al Jefferson will be enough to convince the team to part with it. The Pacers also have their own second round pick (50th overall), which might be a more palatable addition to this deal for Indiana.
If Schröder is traded, then the Bucks have far more fodder with which to match salaries with Atlanta. Also, since Coach Bud is the frontrunner for the Bucks’ head coaching job, this also makes Milwaukee an attractive destination for DS17.
One way this trade could work is Schröder for Eric Bledsoe straight up. Their salaries are close enough, though Bledsoe’s contract only lasts for one more year, whereas Schröd’s lasts until 2021.
Many Bucks fans were rather peeved with Bledsoe’s up-and-down (mostly down) performance in the playoffs this postseason, as well as his irrational disdain for Terry Rozier – who got the best of him in their matchup during the first round.
Bledsoe would be a theoretical defensive upgrade for the Hawks, and Schröder would similarly improve Milwaukee on the offensive end.
Of course, the Hawks would love to pry away the Bucks 2018 first round pick at #17 overall, though it is unlikely that the team will have anywhere near enough leverage with Schröd explicitly stating he wouldn’t mind being traded to the Bucks.
The Bulls have quite a few bad salaries on their cap sheets, so there might be a few trade options here for the Hawks to play with.
With both Omer Asik and Cristiano Felicio clogging up their books, the Bulls would likely be happy to erase either one of their immense salaries from the team’s cap space. Also, with Schröder incoming, Kris Dunn’s skill set becomes superfluous, allowing the Hawks to pick up a young, but flawed, point guard prospect.
Chicago also New Orleans’ first round pick in the 2018 draft (#22 overall), and if the Hawks take enough bad salary from the Bulls, maybe they would be willing to part with it in any deal involving Schröder.
The Bulls have played fast and loose with picks in the past. Last year, notably, the Bulls sold their second round pick to the Warriors of all teams, so they could pick up the high-upside talent of Jordan Bell.
If the Hawks can convince the Bulls to part with the #22 pick, perhaps a Schröder to the Bulls deal would be far more palatable.
The Suns have an absolute treasure trove of picks in the 2018 draft, including the number 1 overall pick after their success in the Draft Lottery last night.
Beyond that, they have the 16th overall pick via Miami, their own second round pick (31st overall) and Toronto’ second round pick (59th overall).
The team also has multiple salaries with which to match Schröd’s monster contract as they try to make room for the multiple draft picks as well as a potential running mate alongside prolific scorer Devin Booker.
Phoenix could trade a combination of Jared Dudley, Tyson Chandler, Brandon Knight and Alan Williams to the Hawks for Schröder. With Elfrid Payton leaving the team this offseason as a free agent, the Suns could have a strong scoring point guard alongside Booker and T.J. Warren if Schröder is shipped there.
In return, the Hawks would take on some close-to-dead salary in the form of Knight, Dudley, Chandler or Williams and hopefully nab one of those multiple draft picks listed above.
We’ve outlined a potential Schröder to the Knicks trade previously, but this one is a bit more bare-bones. Though likely extremely unpalatable to Hawks fans, taking on the extremely dead money of Joakim Noah might be the only way to extract a pick from the New York Knicks.
Though nabbing New York’s own first round pick is likely a pipe dream, as it could still jump into the top 3 (6.1% chance), the Knicks do own Chicago’s second round pick – which is quite high at 37th overall.
Taking on Noah’s contract to get the 37th overall pick seems like a fair price, and perhaps one of the more likely scenarios for the Hawks to nab another draft pick.
In terms of on-court importance, Schröd would be able to reconnect with his former teammate Tim Hardaway Jr. and Joakim Noah could bring an intense energy and strong work ethic to a young team looking for its identity.
Once again, this looks like a nice deal on both sides, though Hawks fans will carp tirelessly if the Hawk pull the trigger on such an ugly deal on the surface.
Similar to the Knicks trade scenario, this one has the Hawks taking on some dead money in Biyombo in order to obtain a solid second round pick.
The Magic’s own first round pick is certainly untouchable, but Orlando’s own second round pick (35th overall) or one obtained from the Hornets (41st overall) will likely be on offer if the Hawks are willing to take on Bismack Biyombo’s titanic contract, which still has 2 years left on it at $17 million per.
The Magic are seemingly always in need of help at the point guard spot, and Schröder would immediately slot in as the Magic’s best player if Aaron Gordon leaves via restricted free agency this offseason.
For the Hawks, Biyombo is still only 25, despite debuting in the 2011-12 season. Biyombo’s best season came in a contract year for the Toronto Raptors, as he showed out in the playoffs in the 2015-16 season.
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In game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals versus LeBron and the Cavs that year, Biyombo logged 7 points and a ludicrous 26 rebounds – a Raptors franchise record. Perhaps if he brings a bit of that tenacity on the glass to the Hawks, the team will improve on their 25th-ranked rebound per game numbers.