There's no swagger to Dennis Schröder as he walks into sneaker and street wear shop Snipes in Cologne to talk about the unveiling of a new line of clothing. His numerous social media channels may include the hashtag #SchrodersSwagTeam, but only his online fans believe that. The 21-year-old Atlanta Hawks point guard looks nervous as he takes to the stage to answers questions. Schröder doesn't look like the kind of imposing figure who is already taking the mantle off the legendary but ageing Dirk Nowitzki, or in fact the type of player to average an impressive 10.1 points and 4.2 assists a game in the final 10 games of the NBA season just finished. Then again, as the 30 second promotion video at the beginning reveals, Schröder is all about the basketball.
As soon as he's finished here, he will join Germany's basketball team as they prepare for Eurobasket - Europe's top international basketball competition - with a pair of tests against France before the big tip off on September 5th. It's on the court where Schröder feels most comfortable. The stage spotlight, the attention of the room; both are things he isn't comfortable with. Not yet, anyway. More and more hope is being rested on the young man's shoulders though, and even though he doesn't look like it, he says he's ready.
"Dirk [Nowitzki] said the whole team is behind me, which is a great honor for me. It's an honour to take it (the leader role) on," says Schröder, in between regular glances to the floor. It's clear that Nowitzki has become somewhat of a leading light in Schröder's life. Born into basketball by a fortunate twist of fate that saw him choose the ball over the skateboard, Schröder has constantly overcome the claim he was "too small, too slow, too weak." That self ac chip on his shoulder has been blunted as the youngster has matured from a difficult teammate to a leader, and Nowitzki has been there throughout.
No comments:
Post a Comment