The Warriors' aqcuisition of point guard Dennis Schröder likely gives Golden State a significant boost, but how will it impact Brandin Podziemski's role with the team?
Warriors coach Steve Kerr believes Schröder will have a positive impact on the second-year guard, who now can return to a role he thrived in during his standout rookie campaign last season.
"I think this will help Brandin. If you think about last year, he was playing next to Chris Paul and/or Steph [Curry] most of his minutes," Kerr told reporters before Sunday's game against the Dallas Mavericks. "This year, stepping into a primary ball handling role, that's a much tougher job. I think this will actually help him settle into a more familiar role that he was in last year.
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"Again, you never know how this stuff plays out. There's opportunity for everybody to step in and fit. We've got to find combinations that fit, that's the main thing. We're looking for two-way combinations. So, we'll let it play out."
After averaging 9.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists as a rookie, Podziemski's numbers are down across the board during the 2024-25 NBA season (7.9 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists).
Schröder has been exceptional this season, averaging 18.4 points, 6.6 assists and 3.0 rebounds in 33.6 minutes per game.
When flanked by another reliable ball handler, Podziemski thrived en route to NBA All-Rookie First-Team honors last season.
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Ideally, Schröder provides an additional safety blanket that allows Podziemski to return to his rookie form as Golden State seeks an NBA playoff spot.