When the Atlanta Hawks traded down in the 2018 NBA Draft and secured the prospect they had been pursuing all along in Trae Young, it appeared Atlanta was ready to move on from starting point guard Dennis Schroder.
After all, Schroder had made it clear he was growing anxious about his future in Atlanta, plus neither he nor Young have the girth or tools to play off the ball as a shooting guard. So while the Young selection was supposed to seal Schroder’s fate with the Hawks, new head coach Lloyd Pierce has other ideas. According to AP’s Charles Odum, Pierce wants to keep the German guard and play him alongside Young.
Schlenk and new coach Lloyd Pierce said they expect starting point guard Dennis Schroder to remain with the team and share time with Young.
Pierce said Schroder is on board with the Hawks’ rebuilding plan.
“Talking to Dennis, he’s excited,” Pierce said. “He was excited about who we were going to end up with in the draft and he’s excited about where we’re headed.”
Pierce said it will be important for Young to have Schroder as a mentor, just as former Hawks guard Jeff Teague set the example when Schroder entered the league.
“I think Dennis will be a tremendous role model,” Pierce said. “We’ve talked already about him and Trae not only co-existing but him being a leader for Trae and helping him on the court.”
Though Dennis Schroder and Trae Young are expected to share time, the experience Schroder has under his belt will likely get him the nod as Atlanta’s game one starter.
Based off Pierce’s expectations, it’s clear the Hawks hope Young develops into their franchise centerpiece before throwing him to the wolves immediately in his rookie season. Though he was expected to be the immediate replacement for Schroder, the Hawks intend to instead use the veteran to help accustom Young to the NBA game.
Though both are set to hold a substantial role this season, it still wouldn’t come as a surprise if the Hawks fielded some trade offers for Schroder. As a rebuilding team, some positions outside of point guard still need to be addressed, and Schroder will have to depart eventually in the future when they feel comfortable enough to hand over the reigns to their top draft pick.
