Nets’ Dennis Schroder makes professional soccer debut

Dennis Schroder is trading in the hardwood for the pitch this NBA offseason.

During his downtime this NBA winter, point guard Dennis Schroder of the Brooklyn Nets is switching from the hardwood to the pitch. On Friday, the 30-year-old made his debut in professional soccer for Germany’s sixth-tier FC Germania Bleckenstedt.

Dennis Schroder, a 10-year NBA veteran, made his professional soccer debut on Friday, playing 62 minutes in a 5-1 loss to SC Gottingen 05. He wrote on Instagram, “Not the result I wanted for my 1st ever official football game, but thanks to my brother-in-law for making it happen.” Schroder is a native of Braunschweig, Germany. Last summer, he led Germany to their first-ever FIBA World Cup gold medal, winning MVP of the tournament while averaging 19.1 points and 6.1 assists on 44/33/84 shooting splits. The Toronto Raptors then traded him to Brooklyn in a cost-cutting move during the NBA trade deadline.

Next season, Schroder will be paid $13.0 million as he approaches the last year of his deal. Since Ben Simmons has been unable to play all three seasons, Schroder is expected to be a key member of Brooklyn’s floor generaling unit in 2024–25. It’s unclear how the veteran will fit into the Nets’ future plans after that.

But he stated during the end of the previous season that he wanted to settle down in Brooklyn.
He told Brian Lewis of the New York Post, “I always want to be stationed somewhere where people show me appreciation.” And that’s what I sensed right away. People contacted my parents, my wife, and my family. That indicates, well, they [want me] truly. I am familiar with the commercial aspects of what they are looking for.