Dennis Schroder was one of the best pickups the Oklahoma City Thunder could have asked for. He made it to the team almost for free and hasn’t missed a beat since he’s been around.
Schroder has given the Thunder a top-notch offensive boost off the bench. He’s a never-ending source of energy grit, playmaking, and even defense. The team has looked deadly when he’s on the court with Chris Paul and Shai-Gilgeous Alexander, and that’s why he’s the leading candidate to win the Sixth Man of the Year award.
Even so, he’s going to have to beat a couple of members of the Los Angeles Clippers for the accolade, as Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell are also among the most-voted players for the Sixth Man of the Year.
Schroder being Schroder didn’t back down from any kind of controversies and recently claimed that he doesn’t understand how he has to compete vs. two players of the same team if we’re talking about Sixth Man and not Sixth Men:
“So I’m competing against two on the same team. I thought it’s Sixth Man,” Schroder said, as quoted by NBA Buzz.
Thus far, the former Atlanta Hawk is averaging 18.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.9 three-pointers per game on 46/38/83 shooting. Harrell, on the other hand, is averaging 18.6 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game on 58% from the floor, while Williams averages 18.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per game.
But perhaps the biggest takeaway on this year’s voting is the fact that the Oklahoma City Thunder was supposed to be a rebuilding team. They were given 0.2% odds of making the playoffs, which gives way more value to what Schroder has been able to do with his teammates.
The Clippers are stacked with talent and have 3 players that could be starters elsewhere. That definitely makes it easier for their substitutes to dominate opposing 2nd units.
