Veteran NBA guard Dennis Schroder was playing for his home country of Germany when he heard some disheartening noises from the stands. In a statement following the 107-88 win against Lithuania at EuroBasket 2025, Schroder revealed that he was the target of monkey noises and affirmed that such behavior has "no place" in the sport.
"The Lithuanian fans always travel with the team. But unfortunately, at halftime, they made monkey noises," Schroder told reporters. "That's something I really cannot accept. Racism in this world doesn't belong here. But nevertheless, it was a good game. I think there were some fans who had to leave the stands due to security concerns. I believe it was also reported."
It's an unfortunate and completely condemnable situation, which only serves to remind us how ugly some fans can really be. For Schroder, just speaking out isn't enough, and he's vowed to enact justice on the racist fans who dared to cross the line.
“Stop racism," wrote Schroder on Instagram. "First time this happened to me, now I know how it feels. I wish the people who made the monkey sounds were brave enough to do this outside of the arena, because I swear on my dad’s grave: he will be facing consequences that he cannot escape like he does inside the arena.”
The story went viral after the game, and the German Basketball Federation took action right away by showing solidarity with Schroder and taking steps to prevent further insults in the future. DBB President Ingo Weiss released the following statement in response:
"The racist insults directed at our captain Dennis Schroder by some Lithuanian fans are completely unacceptable to us," he wrote. "This has no place anywhere! We fully support Dennis and will intervene with the organizers to ensure that this does not happen again."
The incident, which happened at halftime, led to an altercation in the arena's corridor between players and staff members, seemingly over how security responded to the fans' behavior. Multiple players were involved, including Jonas Valanciunas and Daniel Theis.
Losing can often bring out the worst in people, and this turned out to be the ultimate example. As Germany was crushing Lithuania in the box score, Schroder led the way to finish with 26 points, three rebounds, six assists, and four steals on 50% shooting from the field and 50% shooting from three.
He's been one of the most efficient players in EuroBasket so far, and maybe the racist hecklers thought they could get him off his game by sparking outrage in the most heinous fashion. Clearly, the tactic didn't work, and all they got in return was a ban from the tournament.
Sadly, Schroder isn't the only player to experience racism on the court, and it's actually happened stateside as well, in NBA arenas all across America. It's a problem that is all too common in sports and may never truly go away, but it's an opportunity for the righteous players to come together and take a stand against those who taint the experience for everyone.
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