Getty Images Anthony Davis and Lakers teammate Dennis Schroder.
Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis and pending free agent guard Dennis Schroder shared some interesting banter in a clip published to the guard’s YouTube page.
Davis made a cameo in Schroder’s vlog at the Lakers facility, catching up and talking about their offseason plans. Davis initially talks with Schroder about his hair, which has been cut short with his patented blonde spot missing.
The conversation then transitioned to a more serious topic — Davis’ groin injury, which was a key reason the Lakers were bounced in the first round of the playoffs.
Dennis and AD chopping it up in his latest vlog #Lakeshow
Davis told Schroder he “just needed time” when it came to the injury and has been working out “every day” since he’s been able to. Davis didn’t appear to know he was being filmed until the end of the clip when he scurries off camera.
Lakers Primary Concern is Getting Anthony Davis Healthy
What Davis sold Schroder jibes with what he told Ros Gold-Onwude during a sideline interview during a WNBA game, noting that he was working hard in his rehab.
“What’s it been, about three weeks since the last game? Something like that since Game 6. I’ve been doing nothing, just rehabbing and getting the groin right, playing video games,” Davis said while being interviewed during halftime of the Sparks game. “I’ve really been doing nothing. I mean, like you said, we’re starting to open up now, so it’s not much that you really can do. But I’m still a homebody anyway so I stay in the house anyway just playing video games, relaxing with the family, spending some time with my daughter.”
Lakers superstar LeBron James noted at the end of the Lakers season that the top priority for the Lakers is to get Davis back to 100%.
“Obviously number one thing for us is getting AD healthy. That’s number one. It doesn’t matter what changes we make,” James said. “We got to get big fella healthy and needs back to where he was before the injury.”
Dennis Schroder Want to Play in Olympics
Getty ImagesLakers guard Dennis Schroder.
This will likely be the most important offseason of Schroder’s career, having to make a decision on his future. He’s said that he wants to return to the Lakers but also wants between $100-120 million on his next deal. It’s questionable if the Lakers would be willing to pay that.
Aside from his NBA future, Schroder is hoping to sort things out to play in the Olympics with his native Germany which qualified for Tokyo over the weekend. Here’s what he told German outlet Zeit Online:
“If there is a possibility, then that would of course be great,” said Schroder.
“I’m always available, but my situation is not that easy. But I hope we can sort that out by then. My agent has to do his job now. The German national team has done its job, let’s see,” said Schroder, who had supported the German team in all four games as a spectator in the hall, full of emotions.
Because Schroder is a pending free agent, the hang-up was the insurance costs being too high during the pandemic.
“Dennis Schroder has communicated this clearly: he wants $100 to 120 million – which he will probably also get – and this sum insured cannot be insured on the normal market at the moment,” Armin Andres, Vice President of the German Basketball Federation, said, per TalkBasket.net.
Schroder averaged 15.4 points, 5.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game last season, taking on a larger role with James and Davis out with long-term injuries. However, the consistency was not always there and he ended the year on a rough note. In Games 5 and 6 against the Suns, he shot 3-of-22 from the field and scored just eight combined points.
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Lakers Star Anthony Davis Break Silence on Injury in Candid Clip