BROOKLYN TO PARIS: Dennis Schroder reflects on Germany, Team USA and Brooklyn Nets
John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Dennis Schroder leads Germany vs. France in the Olympic semi-finals at 11:30 a.m. Thursday on Peacock. He spoke with Marc J. Spears of Andscape beforehand. This is probably the biggest weekend of Dennis Schroder’s basketball life. He’s captaining the German Olympic team as they try to medal, perhaps even upset Team USA, in men’s basketball, one year after he won gold for his homeland in the FIBA World Cup. We say “probably” because Schroder, a Black man, also carried Germany’s flag at the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympics two weekends ago. Everything about that was extraordinary considering both Schroder’s personal history and Germany’s, 80 years removed from its downfall as Hitler’s master race.
In an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape and ESPN, Schroder touched on all of that ... and reiterated his desire to stay in Brooklyn “for the long term,” in large part because of the way they treated him, a basketball vagabond, and his family on arrival from Toronto at the deadline last season.
Schroder, a 12-year NBA veteran who has played against all 12 members of Team USA’s roster, spoke first about his team’s chances for gold. Germany plays France Thursday morning in Paris, starting at 11:30 a.m. A win then and they will face the winner of Team USA vs. Serbia which will take place later Thursday afternoon.
“If we do our things right as our team, if we play on a high level and we do the things we can do, I take us over anybody,” said Schroder, noting that there could be as many as 12 Hall of Famers on the US roster. “That’s not being not arrogant, but just the high level of character we have in this locker room and the IQ. Our chemistry is the biggest thing.
“So, they have a lot of firepower. But we got our team chemistry and everybody knows how to play. It’s going to be a hard fight. If we have a perfect game against them, it’s still a possibility to lose. That’s what you have to understand. If we play a perfect game to whatever team, we probably win by 15, 20, 30 points. But if you have a perfect game against the States, you still might lose.”
Schroder spoke about how that chemistry manifests itself ... and how international basketball — FIBA — compares to the NBA, a comparison where he often finds the NBA lacking in the game’s fundamentals.
“For me or for us, the German national team, it don’t matter if I score two points or Franz [Wagner] scores four points and we win the game. We are happy about the win,” he told Spears. “And in my career, my 12 years [in the NBA], I probably seen one or two years where people was happy when they had eight points or nine points and won the game. So, I think that’s the biggest difference of FIBA and the NBA. People are willing to sacrifice and are willing to put winning first instead of their own points.”
Most of the interview, though, was about the honor of carrying the German flag as a citizen representing Germany, how he, the son of a German father and Gambian mother, went from being belittled as a youngster in Braunschweig, to a national champion.
“Germany is everything,” he said, explaining his relationship with his homeland and how basketball is his way of “giving back,” despite the tough times early in his life. Basketball, he added, was his redemption.
“Growing up in Germany was tough, man,” he recalled. “It’s wrong, but I just went with it. In kindergarten people asked, ‘Why is your skin Black? ‘Why are you dirty?’ and all those little tough moments. But then when I started playing basketball at 12, I went to a basketball school and people started respecting and accept me as a Black person because I did something for Germany and for my hometown …
“And remembering all those tough moments, it makes it even sweeter to carry the flag and show everybody it’s possible to do something. Because I remember when I was little people told me it’s not possible to do that. My dreams were the NBA and I said it and people was laughing.”
He noted that the honor was voted on by his 471 German Olympic teammates and an online poll, both of which he found humbling.
As for the Nets, Schroder spoke once again about his desire to stay in Brooklyn long term. At 30, he sees himself not just as a contributor on the court but as a mentor to the Nets young team members. He said he understands the Nets rebuild “is going take some time.” A free agent next summer, Schroder has not been mentioned in trade rumors, although some Orlando Magic fans would like to see him paired with the Wagner brothers, Fran and Mo, on the NBA stage as well as FIBA.
“I want to be in Brooklyn long-term. Hopefully that works out,” he said. “I want to be a veteran who shows the young people the way and how we should play and how we play as a team. I understand that the NBA is always more individual, but I want to make one team like we had in Atlanta where it was about just winning and really not [caring] who scores.
“And I want to bring that back to the NBA, to the Brooklyn Nets. And hopefully they see the same vision and of course still compete on the highest level, but that’s going to take some time.”
Schroder said he spoke with new head coach Jordi Fernandez before the two left for Paris. Fernandez’s Team Canada lost to France on Tuesday. Otherwise, the Nets’ two representatives would be facing off this morning on Peacock.
“Hopefully he sees what I am doing,” Schroder said of his new head coach. “My agent was talking to him as well. We are just going to see what we can do and if not, I understand. People always saying that the NBA is family, but at the end of the day, it’s a business.”
He also explained what about the Nets makes them so appealing to him.
“When I got traded, the first two months was really like family and [the Nets] made sure my family is good. They texted my mom in Germany and my wife and made sure that I was good,” he explained. “Hopefully, it’s going to be one of those [relationships], because if I feel comfortable, anything is possible. And that’s not just FIBA, Europe, it’s in the league, too. I want to compete on the highest level and I’m going to go at people and want to showcase myself. Hopefully we can build something in Brooklyn.’
Germany guard Dennis Schröder is proud to carry his nation’s flag - Marc J. Spears - Andscape
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