KEY POINTS

  • The Lakers may not have a lock on Schroder beyond this NBA season
  • Schroder is likely looking for a bigger, long-term payday
  • Schroder's performance could be an indicator of how much the Lakers may be willing to pay after this season

The Los Angeles Lakers are stacked this season, but most know that not all may be returning for the 2021-22 NBA season.

Andre Drummond is one of them, but it appears someone who has been performing well could also be out. He is no other than Dennis Schroder.

Recall that the Lakers tried to sign Schroder to a contract extension, but the offer was thumbed down. Critics felt it was something that should not be a cause for alarm.

However, it seems the 27-year-old will not limit himself to the Purple and Gold. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst revealed on the Hoop Collective podcast that Schroder plans to see his options in free agency and may unlikely agree to a deal with the Lakers before the offseason.

Windhorst went on to go deeper, alleging that the Lakers and Schroder have had talks but were unable to agree to an extension.

The maximum deal that the German guard could get was a four-year $84 million contract, but this pitch is up for debate with the ESPN representative questioning if it was guaranteed or not.

Although there were missing details, the bottom line is that the 6-foot-3 guard did not agree to it.

There are two ways to look at this. One is that the Lakers may have not offered a fully guarantee deal and want to see how things turn out.

While he has been performing well, the Lakers may prefer to gamble and reward Schroder after their current NBA campaign.

On the other side, there is no telling what Schroder is thinking right now. He could be eyeing a bigger package considering he is coming off a rookie-scale contract with the Atlanta Hawks. It could be a move to find a bargaining chip for him and see which offer is better by the offseason.

Dennis Schroder #17 of the Los Angeles Lakers
Dennis Schroder #17 of the Los Angeles Lakers Getty Images | Harry How

Lastly, most may have heard of that pitch that the Lakers were open to dealing Schroder to get Kyle Lowry to their side via The Athletic.

In a way, this hints that the Lakers may not yet be all in with the German guard even if he is holding up the fort.

Lastly, it would be best to note that even if Schroder tests the waters of free agency, it will still not address the financial woes of the Lakers.

Hence, this opens up further possibilities. The question now is, will the Lakers move on from Schroder or not?

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