National Basketball Association

Dennis Schröder's bet on himself proved costly in the end

Updated Aug. 11, 2021 6:12 p.m. ET

Sometimes, a gamble doesn't pay off.

In the case of Dennis Schröder, he is feeling the lingering effects of a miscalculated roll of the dice this past season.

In hopes of landing a larger payday, Schröder turned down a four-year, $84 million deal from the Los Angeles Lakers in March. Since then, he watched multiple point guards sign big-money contracts while his market dried up.

Now, nearly two weeks after becoming a free agent, Schröder has agreed to a one-year, $5.9 million midlevel exception deal with the Boston Celtics.

With one year left on his contract, Schröder was traded to the Lakers from the Oklahoma City Thunder during the 2020 offseason, after he finished second in Sixth Man of the Year voting.

With the Lakers paying the price of a first-round pick and Danny Green to acquire Schröder, the franchise made it a priority to offer him a contract extension, but Schröder declined the offer in hopes of securing a deal north of $100 million, according to reports.

But after an up and down season for Schröder — in which he missed multiple stretches due to health and safety protocols and struggled in the postseason, shooting just 40% from the field and 30.8% from 3-point range — the Lakers looked to upgrade at the point guard position.

L.A. traded for Russell Westbrook, and Schröder became expendable to the Lakers, raising questions about the path he chose.

As Shannon Sharpe detailed on "Undisputed," there is no guarantee that Schröder will be able to recoup the lost dollars in the future based on his situation in Boston.

"Let me tell you this: You're not going to make that up," Sharpe said. "I don't care what you do, you're not going to make that up. I don't believe he will get a $100 million contract. How? He's going to be coming off of the bench. And guess what, that's Jayson Tatum, that's Jaylen Brown's team.

"How are you going to get the opportunity to show you can average 20?"

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While Shannon believes Schröder was the victim of his own hubris, Skip Bayless said Schröder was made out to be the scapegoat for a Lakers team that lost in the first round of the playoffs a year after winning the title.

"He's in the crosshairs because if they fail, somebody has to pay for that. There has to be a reason that this team failed, and it's going to be him. It has to be Schröder because his numbers weren't quite what they were in Oklahoma City."

During the 2019-20 season with the Thunder, Schröder averaged career highs in points (18.9), field goal percentage (46.9%) and 3-point percentage (38.5%).

Those numbers came back down to earth this past season with the Lakers, as Schröder averaged 15.4 points on 43.7% from the field and 33.5% from 3-point range, all of which are right in line with his career marks.

Reports are that Schröder is in a funk as of Wednesday morning, to say the least.

While there seems to be no silver lining in his contract with the Celtics, stranger things have happened.

Schröder's climb back to $84 million begins next season.

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