Winning a bronze medal with Germany in the 2022 EuroBasket tournament, Los Angeles Lakers guard Dennis Schroder is prepared to once again represent his home country in the 2023 FIBA World Cup in the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia this summer.
During the Lakers exit interviews on Tuesday following their defeat in the Western Conference Finals this season, Schroder spoke to the media about playing in the World Cup during the offseason.
“I didn’t see my kids too much so I’m going to take one to two weeks off, go on vacation with them, spend time with them and then I go back to Germany to see my family there, my friends,” Schroder stated. “And a couple of weeks later, training camp starts for the World Cup. I want to play for sure and I can’t wait to write another history this summer. That would be crazy for Germany, for myself, for the federation, so I am ready for it.”
Schroder led Germany in the EuroBasket tournament a year ago, averaging 22.1 points and 7.1 assists per game while shooting 45.1 percent from the floor in their eight tournament games. Falling in the semifinals to the eventual winners in Spain, Schroder and his team went on to claim the bronze medal over Poland. He was named to the All-Tournament team for his play in this event.
Representing his country in the FIBA World Cup this offseason would be another great experience for Schroder after finishing up his 10th NBA season. The 29-year-old guard put together a very solid season with the Lakers, sliding into a starting role for most of the regular season. He ended up averaging 12.6 points and 4.5 assists per game while shooting 41.5 percent from the floor in 66 games, 50 of which he started in.
Signing a one-year, minimum-like deal with the Lakers last summer, Schroder enters this offseason as a free agent once more. He has proven to be more than a minimum contract player, so it will be interesting to see if Los Angeles elects to keep him around on a new, higher paying deal. The free agent market as a whole is not very overwhelming either, so Schroder could wind up having a few different suitors this offseason.
