National Basketball Association

Dennis Schorder Must Shine Brighter For The Atlanta Hawks

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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The Atlanta Hawks may have escaped with a win in their first outing, but Dennis Schroder still has a lot of work to do.

The Dennis Schroder era is officially underway for the Atlanta Hawks. While his premiere ultimately resulted in a win, and he did harass John Wall into a uncharacteristic 3-15 shooting night for only 12 points, he wasn’t all that impressive.

It’s entirely possible I have set my expectations for him as the starter outrageously high, but 14 points and 2 assists doesn’t move the needle much regardless. If this type of performance does become the norm going forward then Coach Mike Budenholzer needs his head examined.

I understand that perhaps it’s too soon to start much criticism of anyone after such a small sample size. With that said, he better show something, anything, in the coming weeks to merit the type of confidence he was afforded by the front office or else.

Many fans may exhibit more patience than me, but I was skeptical of his promotion from the start. To me, Jeff Teague was an all-star in his prime that had already proven himself as a valuable point guard. For Dennis to actually take his job, isn’t it rational to expect him to be better than what Teague was?

Apr 22, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Atlanta Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer talks with guard Dennis Schroder (17) during a break in the action against the Boston Celtics during the third quarter in game three of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Based on the very beginning of the regular season, I’ve got news for you incase you haven’t figured it out yourself, he’s worse. Much, much worse. He didn’t necessarily play bad, but he didn’t play good either. What he looked like out there was not any different than what he did as the back-up point guard the past couple years. For some that may be fine. For me though, it’s a humongous disappointment. The expectations that he had attatched to himself coming into this season probably was unfair.

Dennis Schroder is a unique talent that will unquestionably have many great performances this season. Going into this experiment, for him to at the very least be a fringe all-star would have been a reasonable accomplishment to ask of him.

He certainly has more strengths than he does weaknesses at this point which is good. I just don’t see any improvement at all from what he has already been and that is unsettling. After signing him to a four-year contract this week, I know a lot of fans want to see more as well.

Mar 5, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Dennis Schroder (17) brings the ball upcourt against the Los Angeles Clippers during the fourth quarter at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Paul Millsap cannot score 28 points with 6 assists every single game. There are some nights when the Hawks new starting point guard needs to have himself a 34 point, 11 assists and a few rebounds type of gargantuan outing. That will have to take place occasionally for Atlanta to seriously contend.

I have blogged about this before, outlining how Schroder’s development is a key to the Hawks ever winning a championship. Judging by his overall body of work and his most recent showing, it appears that will be impossible.