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Thunder's Dennis Schroder Leaves NBA Bubble Ahead of Birth of 2nd Child
August 3, 2020
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Dennis Schroder has left the NBA bubble at the Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Florida, for the birth of his second child, according to Joe Mussatto of the Oklahoman.
"It happened this morning so he's with his family at this point and time," head coach Billy Donovan told reporters Monday. "I'll have a chance to probably talk to him and find out a little bit more, if it's not later today, tomorrow. But right now for at least this game, he'll be out. We'll probably be able to gather some more information once we get a chance to spend a little bit more time with him over the phone."
Schroder had previously indicated that he would leave the team for the birth of his second child.
"I'm not going to leave my wife by herself while she's having the second baby," he said last month. "I'm for sure going to go there and support her and try as much as I can to be there for my family. I love my teammates. I love basketball. But family comes first all the time."
Schroder, 26, is having an excellent season, averaging 18.9 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 30.8 minutes per game, shooting 46.9 percent from the field and 37.9 percent from three. He's a legitimate candidate for the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year award, as he's made just one start on the year and has been excellent coming off the bench.
The Thunder do have solid depth at guard, however, with Chris Paul, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Hamidou Diallo and Terrance Ferguson (recovering from a bruised leg) still available. Andre Roberson could also potentially see some minutes while Schroder is away from the team.
Losing his ability to run the second unit and create offense off the dribble will hurt, however. The Thunder (41-24) are currently the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference and battling for playoff positioning in the bubble.