Bringing Dennis Schroder in as the starting point guard for the Sacramento Kings was an unmitigated disaster. Having him play off the bench was a brilliant move that has improved his game dramatically. And the Kings might have won their recent faceoff with the Suns if he had been there.
Look, winning two games in a row doesn't mean everything is rosy in Sactown. The Kings have been picking up some momentum since the return of Keegan Murray, which is good to see. With Murray back on the roster, Sacramento has a record of two and two, which is a drastic improvement.
Part of that reversal of fortunes has to be attributed to Dennis Schroder. The Kings brought him in to replace De'Aaron Fox as their starting point guard. That was a lot of pressure to put on him, particularly since he has always played better off the bench in the NBA.
The Kings made the right call in replacing Schroder as the starter and putting Russell Westbrook in as point guard. That move took said pressure off Schroder, allowing him to find his game and become increasingly consistent in his production and gameplay. All of that was missed against the Suns.
Dennis Schroder is now a key part of the Kings' secondary
Schroder playing off the bench has been amazing for the Kings. He's scoring has improved, as has ability to facilitate other players and his defense. Honestly, he just seems more at ease with his game, and is playing significantly better because of it.
Sacramento definitely missed him in the secondary against the Suns. Phoenix obliterated them in the first quarter, then the Kings were competitive in the rest of the game and closed the gap to an extent. Ultimately, they lost by 12 points, keeping in mind that Schroder's average PPG is 12.4 this season.
He was held out of the match due to right hip soreness and missed his first game of the season. On top of his 12.4 points per game average, Schroder is also getting 6.0 assists. Assuming he's assisting on two-point conversions, that's a potential 24 points missing from that final tally.
Even if he only produced 14 points between scoring and assists, that would have changed the outcome of the game. That doesn't even take his defensive capabilities into account. It's safe to say that Schroder has taken another step towards being the game changing point guard the Kings need.