SAN FRANCISCO – The Warriors couldn’t wait any longer. Losers in seven of their last nine games, the front office jumped at the first opportunity to improve the roster, acquiring veteran guard Dennis Schröder from the Brooklyn Nets, which became official Sunday.
Look back to three weeks ago in the Warriors’ 128-120 loss to the Nets, and it’s clear why Schroder was atop the front office’s list of short-term, immediate improvements. Schroder in many ways is a replacement for the injured De’Anthony Melton, whose loss was felt more and more over this tough stretch. But for how impactful Melton’s offense was, Steve Kerr has admitted that his absence has hurt the Warriors’ offense equally as well.
Andrew Wiggins is shooting a career-high 42.7 percent on 3-pointers and his offensive numbers are right in line with his 2021-22 NBA All-Star season. Jonathan Kuminga has scored 20 or more points in four of his last games, and his scoring potential (emphasis on potential) continues to be a subject of conversation. Neither creates shots like Schroder.
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The proof is in the pudding from that Warriors loss to the Nets on Nov. 25, a game where Golden State once led by 18 points midway through the third quarter.
“It felt like lost juice again tonight,” Kerr said after that loss. “Big lead late in the third and we can’t close the deal. Not a lot of energy, not a lot of force. You open up the door for a team in the modern NBA and they might make 20 threes like Brooklyn did tonight. They did a great job, I give them huge credit.
“Schroder was phenomenal tonight.”
His showing against the Warriors was one of his best this year in an impressive season for the 12-year veteran. Schroder scored a game-high 31 points on 10-of-18 shooting. He was 4 of 8 from 3-point range, a perfect 7 of 7 at the free-throw line, and also added five rebounds, seven assists and two steals. His 31-point night was his second game of 30 or more points at the time, and now his third of the season.
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Steph Curry has scored 30-plus points exactly three times this season, too. Wiggins has done so once, as has Kuminga.
It was the fourth quarter, and an area that has turned disastrous for the Warriors, that stood out most in Schroder’s performance.
Entering the fourth quarter down by five points after outscoring the Warriors by four in the third quarter, Schroder immediately cut the deficit to three points 24 seconds into the fourth by getting past Lindy Waters III and hitting a 13-foot floater to beat the shot clock. Just 26 seconds later, Schroder tied the game by draining a catch-and-shoot three from the right wing. A few possessions later, Schroder again hit a three, right as the buzzer rang, giving the Nets a 95-92 lead.
By himself, Schroder went on an 8-0 run to open the fourth quarter while erasing the Warriors’ lead. All those points also came with Curry watching from the sidelines. When Curry came in at the 7:29 mark of the fourth quarter, the Warriors were now trailing by five points, 102-97.
At that point, the game was spiraling out of the Warriors’ grasp and Schroder was the main villain they couldn’t stop. Curry scored 11 points in the fourth quarter. Wiggins scored nine, and the rest of the Warriors combined to score eight – three from Draymond Green, two from Kyle Anderson, two from Gary Payton II and one from Waters.
Schroder scored 17 fourth-quarter points in eight minutes and 43 seconds, making five of his seven shots from the field, two of his three 3-points and all five of his free throws, as well as dishing four assists. Below is his shot chart for the fourth quarter, and his shot chart for the entire game.
Dennis Schroder's shot chart from the fourth quarter and entire game when he dropped 31 points on the Warriors earlier this season, including 17 in the fourth
— Dalton Johnson (@daltonjohnson.bsky.social) December 15, 2024 at 12:19 PM
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Through 23 games, Schroder is shooting 45.6 percent in the fourth quarter and 43.3 percent on threes over the final 12 minutes.
The Warriors now rank 21st in fourth-quarter points per game (26.8). But in their recent nine-game stretch that has seven losses, including their blown lead to Schroder and the Nets, they’re dead last, averaging only 22.2 points from shooting 39.4 percent, 28 percent from three and a head-shaking 62.2 percent on free throws.
Execution, something the Warriors have been sorely lacking, wins games in the fourth quarter. So do playmakers and shot creators, something Schroder showed off at Chase Center three weeks ago, as opposed to the Warriors going three straight possessions without a shot, two of which were from shot clock violations, in their loss to the Rockets in Houston on Wednesday night.
Golden State’s front office, coaching staff and roster saw first-hand how Schroder can give them the same jolt that sent everyone searching for answers now instead of playing the waiting game.