Dragan Bender News, Discussion and Highlights

[bwgood77]

I mean Bender has played timid, but to say he plays like a loser is seriously overplaying it lol. Can't say I understand how you think he "always makes the wrong play or screws things up" either, I feel basically the opposite... that sounds way more like Chriss than Bender to me.

It's not the first time... viewtopic.php?f=27&t=1474118&p=49490488#p49486860

[Veggamattic]

I mean Bender has played timid, but to say he plays like a loser is seriously overplaying it lol. Can't say I understand how you think he "always makes the wrong play or screws things up" either, I feel basically the opposite... that sounds way more like Chriss than Bender to me.

I'm certainly not comparing the 2. I watch a ton of Suns games and have been a fan since the 70's. I watch and keep a running tally of the great vs good vs bad vs horrible plays Bender makes and he scores poorly in almost every single game I watch him in. He screws up so much I think he is getting used to it and believes it to be acceptable.

[NTB]

I think Veggamattic is Papagiannis' dad.

[Veyron]

Hello Suns.

Im Croatian so i watched Bander quite a lot since he was kid (well still is )

He needs playing time, that is most important thing, he played very litlle last few years, even in Macabbi. He was all about potential not his game.

So him going to Eurobasket with Croatia will help him a lot.

[Thespianoid]

Hello Suns.

Im Croatian so i watched Bander quite a lot since he was kid (well still is )

He needs playing time, that is most important thing, he played very litlle last few years, even in Macabbi. He was all about potential not his game.

So him going to Eurobasket with Croatia will help him a lot.

as a Croatian with a Magic flair, what are your thoughts on Mario?

I still believe he could be a good player as he's got some important baselines (elite athlete, shooting, underrated passing vision) but over the years it seems he really has issues with decision making/shot selection. Handles seem shaky at times which hinders his ability to get to the spots to use his vision, and defensively also the awareness might not be there.

But similar to what you said about Bender it really seems like Mario needs playing time, no? Barely playing under Skiles but showing flashes, to playing even less under Vogel. Not a great development environment.

[NTB]

Read on Twitter

https://sports.vice.com/en_us/article/7x97nx/now-is-not-the-time-to-forget-about-dragan-bender

[bobbeaver]

Hello Suns.

Im Croatian so i watched Bander quite a lot since he was kid (well still is )

He needs playing time, that is most important thing, he played very litlle last few years, even in Macabbi. He was all about potential not his game.

So him going to Eurobasket with Croatia will help him a lot.

as a Croatian with a Magic flair, what are your thoughts on Mario?

I still believe he could be a good player as he's got some important baselines (elite athlete, shooting, underrated passing vision) but over the years it seems he really has issues with decision making/shot selection. Handles seem shaky at times which hinders his ability to get to the spots to use his vision, and defensively also the awareness might not be there.

But similar to what you said about Bender it really seems like Mario needs playing time, no? Barely playing under Skiles but showing flashes, to playing even less under Vogel. Not a great development environment.

Well they are similar in they need playing time for sure... But in other things they are very different. Bender is very bball smart and has a strong mentality, not as much as Saric, but is strong. But he is also very young with not much competition time, so he feels more timid and tries out less stuff, because he is unsure of them yet so as not to hurt the team. He is listening to the coaches (maybe a bit too much) and will take it gradually. For him i actually have no doubt he will be the Kukoc type player.
Hezonja is hmmm let me try to explain it. He is an amazing talent and athleticism but over all had very little actual competition game time. He is learning the game of basketball when to shoot when to drive and how to play organized defense. He is also a bit of a head case. Partly he is his worst enemy (mix between being to cocky and too much doubt and self hatred when rocked) mixed with atrocious coaching that would screw up any young players head. Absolutely contra productive coaching. Skillz was actually vs Vogel coaching actually good with him. Ill give you an example. While he had confidence and cockiness he in his rookie year he d make tough shots when noone could score anything and lead em to victory or take the buzzer beaters over opponents. Next year he couldnt hit an ocean. Second thing is because he hasnt the experience and there for has doubt he hesitates so his first step is neither surprising nor explosive, which he has in him. He needs to be worked both mentally and loosen him up and teach him organized bball. His shot and games will come from that. But Magic is a horrible franchise that doesnt know what it wants or how to develop players. He is a project, but time is ticking if he ll blossom.

[alldayeveryday]

I think Veggamattic is Papagiannis' dad.

I was going to say the same exact thing before I logged in to leave a comment.

[Bogyo]

From the article:
"Bender's Summer League assist rate is over double what it was last year, while his turnover percentage has been sliced in half. In a few years he'll be able to function in just about any system as a complementary piece beside just about any type of player."

Those numbers are very encouraging! The Booker/JJ/Bender lineup can be a very good passing team, even with a subpar passing PG.

[NTB]

Read on Twitter

http://arizonasports.com/story/1176304/suns-dragan-bender-shows-offensive-skill-end-summer-league/

[NTB]

https://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2017/7/18/15963206/wonderkid-the-dragan-bender-story-phoenix-suns-croatia

Everyone should show this to Bender doubters.

[gaspar]

I am now completely convinced of Bender>Chriss. Bender just needs the minutes and the conditioning. He seems to start games well but struggles in the second half.

Bender is superior to Chriss as a passer, shooter, and defender. If he can start rebounding, the competition is done. Chriss will have to be content to start alongside of Bender at best.

It will be interesting to see if Watson can get over his prejudice against Bender. I think it is real. Let me put it this way. If there is one player on this roster that Popovich would love to get his hands on, its Bender.

After one good Summer League game? What a joke.

Bender in 5 games in SL playing against a bunch of nobodies: 14.2 pts, 6.0 reb, 2.4 ast, 0.4 stl, 0.2 blk, .495 TS% in 31.4 mpg
Chriss in 25 games post ASB playing mostly against NBA starters: 12.7 pts, 5.9 reb, 1.0 ast, 0.9 stl, 1.4 blk, .580 TS% in 26.9 mpg

Bender has much more to prove before anyone should consider starting him over Chriss.
It's not prejudice, Bender has shown very little to get any meaningful minutes in the NBA.

[bigfoot]

I am now completely convinced of Bender>Chriss. Bender just needs the minutes and the conditioning. He seems to start games well but struggles in the second half.

Bender is superior to Chriss as a passer, shooter, and defender. If he can start rebounding, the competition is done. Chriss will have to be content to start alongside of Bender at best.

It will be interesting to see if Watson can get over his prejudice against Bender. I think it is real. Let me put it this way. If there is one player on this roster that Popovich would love to get his hands on, its Bender.

After one good Summer League game? What a joke.

Bender in 5 games in SL playing against a bunch of nobodies: 14.2 pts, 6.0 reb, 2.4 ast, 0.4 stl, 0.2 blk, .495 TS% in 31.4 mpg
Chriss in 25 games post ASB playing mostly against NBA starters: 12.7 pts, 5.9 reb, 1.0 ast, 0.9 stl, 1.4 blk, .580 TS% in 26.9 mpg

Bender has much more to prove before anyone should consider starting him over Chriss.
It's not prejudice, Bender has shown very little to get any meaningful minutes in the NBA.

Reality is Chriss is out-of-shape, and overweight. Coupled with a bad ankle injury I don't expect him to resolve his fitness issues by the time the season starts. Therefore I don't expect he will be fully ready to handle a starting role at the beginning of the season. Chriss played horribly this summer and it worries me we have "the bad" Shawn Kemp 2.0 on our team.

I would expect Warren to handle starting PF duties with Jackson taking over at SF. Bender and Chriss might compete for backup PF and/or C duties.

[gaspar]

I am now completely convinced of Bender>Chriss. Bender just needs the minutes and the conditioning. He seems to start games well but struggles in the second half.

Bender is superior to Chriss as a passer, shooter, and defender. If he can start rebounding, the competition is done. Chriss will have to be content to start alongside of Bender at best.

It will be interesting to see if Watson can get over his prejudice against Bender. I think it is real. Let me put it this way. If there is one player on this roster that Popovich would love to get his hands on, its Bender.

After one good Summer League game? What a joke.

Bender in 5 games in SL playing against a bunch of nobodies: 14.2 pts, 6.0 reb, 2.4 ast, 0.4 stl, 0.2 blk, .495 TS% in 31.4 mpg
Chriss in 25 games post ASB playing mostly against NBA starters: 12.7 pts, 5.9 reb, 1.0 ast, 0.9 stl, 1.4 blk, .580 TS% in 26.9 mpg

Bender has much more to prove before anyone should consider starting him over Chriss.
It's not prejudice, Bender has shown very little to get any meaningful minutes in the NBA.

Reality is Chriss is out-of-shape, and overweight. Coupled with a bad ankle injury I don't expect him to resolve his fitness issues by the time the season starts. Therefore I don't expect he will be fully ready to handle a starting role at the beginning of the season. Chriss played horribly this summer and it worries me we have "the bad" Shawn Kemp 2.0 on our team.

I would expect Warren to handle starting PF duties with Jackson taking over at SF. Bender and Chriss might compete for backup PF and/or C duties.

It was just an ankle sprain and he has 3 months to get in shape. He will be fine.

[Revived]

Thing with Chriss is that he has a bad attitude. He literally talks smack for no reason and picks pointless techs over and over again. He has zero composure.

I understand that he's young but there's plenty of players who didn't have such concerns when they were 19. I don't remember saying the same about Bender or Booker.

[lilfishi22]

Thing with Chriss is that he has a bad attitude. He literally talks smack for no reason and picks pointless techs over and over again. He has zero composure.

I understand that he's young but there's plenty of players who didn't have such concerns when they were 19. I don't remember saying the same about Bender or Booker.

That's that MoBros attitude which I hate. They haven't done s*** in the league but already feel like they are entitled to that attitude. It's that attitude which Watson appears to be praising left and right as something the team needed. I understand being tough and standing your ground but he talks so much on the court, expects superstar calls and like you said, just argues over tiny things. It doesn't give you a very good reputation among referees.

[Biff]

I saw more improvement out of Bender than Chriss. I hope he proves me wrong and turns into a stud.

[Murta]

[jcsunsfan]

Bender has filled out. His shoulders are much more developed.

[carey]

Ooh. A new picture to scrutinize!