One of the biggest keys to the Los Angeles Lakers making life difficult on Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry was the work of point guard Dennis Schroder. But in Game 6 of the Lakers’ series against the Warriors, things could have taken a turn for the worse thanks to Schroder going back and forth with Warriors defensive stalwart Draymond Green.
Schroder picked up a technical foul in the first quarter after jawing with the always talkative Green. Then midway through the third quarter, the two got into it again with Green even pushing the ball into Schroder’s face. But officials would issue an technical on Schroder, giving him his second of the night and causing his ejection.
Thankfully, the Lakers didn’t skip a beat with Schroder sent to the locker room and there were no hard feelings afterwards. In fact, Schroder went to his Instagram page to show respect to Green, even calling him a Hall of Famer:
While Green has undoubtedly had his fair share of controversy throughout his career, he also has a lot of respect from his peers because of his competitive nature. Schroder and Green share some similarities as both are known as agitators and menaces on the defensive end. The two going back and forth on the court was simply a matter of two competitors in a highly intense contest and more often than not there is always respect.
Now, Schroder must turn his focus towards the Lakers’ opponent in the Western Conference Finals, the Denver Nuggets where he will once again spend a lot of time defending a point guard capable of getting scorching hot, and someone who has no problem talking trash as well, in Jamal Murray. The key for Schroder will be not letting things get out of hand.
Because of his speed, stamina and peskiness, Schroder is able to defend guards the full length of the court and give them no room to breathe. The Lakers were able to survive his ejection on Friday night and while it was all respect between Schroder and Green after the fact, they would much rather have him on the court than in the locker room.
Dennis Schroder says LeBron James’ defensive effort inspires Lakers
Schroder is often at the point of attack for the Lakers defense, but the guard admits that seeing LeBron James give the effort on that end of the floor not only inspires him, but the rest of the team as well.
“On the defensive end, that’s where we got to put our hat on. Making hustle plays like that. Putting everything on the line,” Schroder said recently. “Seeing him after the game really don’t have no energy no more, that’s what we need from him. For our ballclub it means a lot. I think everybody in here knows we got to do the same thing that Bron does and match it. It’s just great to see.”
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