Dennis Schroder's Hamstring Bails on the Hornets' Miserable Season

The Charlotte Hornets are currently operating less like a professional basketball team and more like a social experiment in misery. The latest blow arrived when Michael Scotto reported that veteran guard Dennis Schroder has been diagnosed with a left hamstring strain and will be re-evaluated in two weeks.

Schroder originally missed Friday's game with what the team called a left thigh issue, but the updated diagnosis guarantees he will be in street clothes for a while. He is officially ruled out for their upcoming matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers, leaving an already thin rotation gasping for air.

"Michael Scotto reported the diagnosis and two-week re-evaluation timeline."

Before his leg decided to opt out of the current campaign, Schroder was one of the few functional pieces on the floor for Charlotte. He was putting up 15.9 points and 6.7 assists over a recent stretch, providing actual NBA-level point guard play for a roster that desperately needs someone to organize the offense.

Losing your floor general is bad enough, but it hits different when your team is getting historically cooked. Charlotte just dropped a 119-80 game to the Boston Celtics and recently got blown out by 33 points against the Detroit Pistons. When you are losing to Detroit by a margin that looks like a college football score, you cannot afford to lose a guy who actually knows how to run a pick-and-roll.

For anyone looking at the betting markets, Charlotte was already an obvious fade candidate, but removing Schroder’s production makes their team totals look terrifying. The Hornets will try to survive the next two weeks without him, starting with Cleveland, but you might want to look away until he gets back on the court.