If the Chicago Bulls are going to improve this offseason, it is going to come on the margins. Bulls insider Sam Smith used his Ask Sam Mailbag to share some ideas for players who could help and Dennis Schroder’s name resurfaced.
Smith named several options for the Bulls including a couple of players that have been more polarizing than desired of late in Rajon Rondo of the Cleveland Cavaliers, John Wall of the Houston Rockets, and Russell Westbrook of the Los Angeles Lakers.
He identifies Cleveland’s Ricky Rubio as his “ideal” target if he is fully recovered from his ACL injury.
Then Smith makes an important point about Schroder that could lead the Bulls – and head coach Billy Donovan – back to him as an option.
Whatever happened to Dennis Schroder? Maybe he still needs to show after the anonymity of Houston.
Circling Back Around
The Bulls were linked to Schroder starting in July of 2021 by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. They quickly moved on to Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso but found themselves sniffing around the eight-year pro once again near the trade deadline while he was with the Boston Celtics.
Boston traded Schroder to Houston for Bruno Fernando, Enes Freedom, and Daniel Theis.
His numbers dipped once he got to Houston. But he averaged 13.5 points on 53.9% true shooting with 4.6 assists per game on the season.
Schroder’s assist percentage ranked in the 95th percentile while his assist-to-usage ratio ranked in the 85th percentile, per CleaningTheGlass.com. albeit in very limited time with the Rockets.
That time was still impactful, writes The Dream Shake’s Darren Yuvard.
With Kevin Porter Jr. and Jalen Green demanding playing time for their development, many thought that the last thing the Rockets needed was another guard…However, Schroder’s presence was more profound than anticipated, as his veteran’s acumen became a stabilizing force for a young group still learning the ropes.
Jalen Green on playing with Dennis Schroder:
“He’s a real leader. From the jump, he came in just talking.”
Caruso’s assist-to-usage ratio ranked in the 84th percentile. But his assist percentage ranked in the 53rd percentile. Rookie Ayo Dosunmu ranked in the 38th and 73rd percentiles, respectively.
To be fair to Caruso and Dosunmu, Schroder’s numbers ranked in the 74th and 38th percentile, respectively, in his final season under Donovan with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
No Baby PGs
The idea of targeting a veteran backup point guard came up earlier in the mailbag when Smith answered a question about June’s NBA Draft. He explained why the Bulls’ 18th overall selection might not be a direct solution to the Bulls’ issues.
“They have their No. 18 pick, which usually yields a competent talent, and they have some holes. But they also don’t need too many more young guys as they can be overwhelmed in the playoffs…The Bulls could use a backup point guard, but you don’t get them close to ready in the draft and out of [the] lottery.”
Interestingly, Schroder was drafted 17th overall by the Atlanta Hawks in 2013.
Dennis Schroder gets crafty 🪣
📺: ESPN
Tankathon.com projects the Bulls to take LSU forward Tari Eason, But Kentucky’s TyTy Washington and Tennesee’s Kennedy Chandler are projected to be available.
To Smith’s point, both Dosunmu and Coby White had some trouble to varying degrees adjusting to the pro game as rookie point guards. It would not be in the Bulls’ best interest to go down that road again for such a critical role.
Only 15 rookies have ever finished a postseason with 1.0 win shares in NBA history with none doing it since Boston’s Jayson Tatum in 2018, per Stathead.com.
Nice Bench Option
A lot depends on what the Bulls do with Coby White this summer. If he is traded as part of a larger package or on his own, Caruso, Dosunmu, and Schroder are a nice starting point for the bench next season.
Schroder is healthier and more than two years younger than Rubio with better offense. He is less of a detriment than Westbrook and more of a known commodity than Wall at this point.
Dennis Schroder drops a wild dime on League Pass!
Watch Here: t.co/oz9UCQxdQa
Most importantly, he could be cheaper than all of them after his infamous decision to pass on a four-year, $84 million extension with the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2020 offseason. Now, he fits right in line with getting better on the margins coming off of a one-year, $5.9 million pact this past season, per Spotrac.
The Bulls will have access to the mid-level exception and could use part of it to re-unite player and coach.
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Bulls Considered Landing Spot for Former $70M Playmaker