Dennis Schröder thinks the NBA trade deadline is like “modern slavery.”
Schröder, who has been traded five times and is in his 12th season, shared his thoughts with NBC Sports Bay Area in an article published on Tuesday. According to the Warriors guard, the trade deadline feels like an event, while the games feel secondary—a combination he believes is "terrible for the league."
“It’s like modern slavery,” Schröder, 31, said. “It’s modern slavery at the end of the day. Everybody can decide where you’re going, even if you have a contract. Yeah, of course, we make a lot of money and we can feed our families, but at the end of the day if they say, ‘You’re not coming to work tomorrow, you’re going over there,’ they can decide that. They got to change that a little bit.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Schröder opened up about how it feels to be constantly moved around the league. “At the end of the day, your salary is still the same,” he said. “You go to a different city, of course, but at the end of the day, that’s not a real problem. That’s a luxury problem."
“It’s always exciting to you guys [the media] probably,” he added. “For me, being in my 12th season, business is business. I got my own team in Germany. I know how it works. For me, it’s a business at the end of the day.”
Referencing Luka Doncic’s recent trade from the Dallas Mavericks to the Los Angeles Lakers that sent shockwaves through the sports world, Schröder used the situation to drive his point home.
“Luka Doncic just got traded and got five fucking NBA First Teams,” Schröder explained. “All-Stars, he brought money to them, NBA Finals last year and $117 million he can’t sign now because he got traded, and that’s no state income tax. From now on, I see it even more crazier than it was, because to trade somebody like that, nobody’s safe.”
“Not even Steph Curry’s safe probably when I see that,” he continued. “It’s a fucked up business.”
No one probably understands Schröder’s complaints more than Doncic who was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers this previous weekend when he’d given no indication that he wanted to be traded. After the move, he shared a farewell post to Mavericks’ fans on his Instagram in which he expressed how “badly” he wanted to bring a championship to the city.
"Seven years ago, I came here as a teenager to pursue my dream of playing basketball at the highest level. I thought I'd spend my career here and I wanted so badly to bring you a championship," Doncic wrote. "The love and support you all have given me is more than I could have ever dreamed of. For a young kid from Slovenia coming to the U.S. for the first time, you made North Texas feel like home. In good times and bad, from injuries to the NBA Finals, your support never changed. Thank you not only for sharing my joy in our best moments, but also for lifting me up when I needed it most."
"To all the organizations I've worked with throughout the Dallas community, thank you for letting me contribute to your important work and join you in bringing light to those who need it," Doncic continued. "As I start the next part of my basketball journey, I am leaving a city that will always feel like a home away from home. Dallas is a special place, and Mavs fans are special fans. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart."
The Golden State Warriors acquired Schröder earlier this season, but he could reportedly be traded again if the team pursues a superstar before Thursday's deadline. Per ESPN’s Marc J. Spears on NBA Today, Schröder’s $13 million contract makes him a valuable trade asset, and the Warriors are actively trying to strike a deal.