The Warriors officially acquired Dennis Schroder as part of a low-risk second-round, pay-raise package, making a splash as the season trade hit its first checkpoint Sunday morning.
The latest details of the exchange are as follows:
Warriors receive: Dennis Schroder, 2025 second-round pick (protected 31-37 via Miami)
Nets receive: De’Anthony Melton, Reece Beekman, 2026 and 2028 second-round picks via Atlanta, 2029 second-round picks
The deal, which was announced Saturday, was completed Sunday as soon as Melton — and most of the league — became trade eligible.
By acquiring Schroder, the Warriors address the need for a late-game decision maker and multi-level scorer from the backcourt. Schroder, who averages 18.4 points per game, instantly becomes the team’s third-best dribble penetrator, behind Steph Curry and Jonathan Kuminga.
This is the ninth time in Schroder’s 13 career seasons that the guard has changed teams. He played twice for the Lakers: Brooklyn, Boston, Atlanta, Oklahoma City, Houston, Toronto and now Golden State.
A losing streak in which the Warriors’ offense stalled in critical moments may have increased their urgency to add another point guard. Melton was before his season-ending ACL tear and Brandin Podziemski was had a difficult start to the second season.
Schroder, meanwhile, is averaging a career-high 6.6 assists per game while shooting 38.7 percent from 3. Although he is undersized at 6-foot-1, he has has a long wingspan and plays solid on-ball defense against point guards.
Although Schroder may struggle to finish at the rim, his intermediate game is solid. He’s shooting 46 percent on all mid-range shots this year, ranking in the 79th percentile among point guards, according to Cleaning The Glass.
A fiery competitor, Schroder has experience in big games with the German national team and in 13 playoff series over the years.
With the Warriors, Schroder will likely serve as Curry’s primary backup and also play alongside him for stretches, including possibly in closing lineups.
Both Schroder and Melton are expected to hit unrestricted free agency at the end of the year. Melton was fitting in nicely in his six games with the Warriors and planned to rehab his surgically repaired knee with the Bay Area team, but using his contract to provide reinforcements was now a no-brainer for the Warriors front office.
Although using Melton’s salary in a trade of this magnitude comes with an opportunity cost, the Warriors added a valuable piece while retaining their best trade assets. They still have Podziemski, Jonathan Kuminga, two future first-round picks and other mid-salaries to package in a hypothetical trade.
