Dragan Bender no longer a Draft and Stash candidate

[Eddie20]

Only seen a few youtube clips ... but it's Kirilenko that Bender reminds me of.

Not really a scorer. More of a defender. A perimeter defender. Can rebound well for a SF/PF. Provides some passing and a little ball-handling. Helps out in multiple ways. Glue guy type.

Could say the same about Marvin Williams or Jan Vesely as draft prospects though. Guys who could do an interesting range of things on the floor but lacked the CV showing they were capable of putting those tools together consistently every night.

Kirilenko??

No way.  Kirilenko was a blue collar hard nosed player. Bender is soft

Bender is a vesely with a bit better handle and shooter (though takes a while to setup). No mid range game

Lacks toughness and/or strength. Two key things Danny looks for in big players

Olynyk, Zeller, Mickey, and Jerbeko scream toughness and strength.

[Tr1boy]

Only seen a few youtube clips ... but it's Kirilenko that Bender reminds me of.

Not really a scorer. More of a defender. A perimeter defender. Can rebound well for a SF/PF. Provides some passing and a little ball-handling. Helps out in multiple ways. Glue guy type.

Could say the same about Marvin Williams or Jan Vesely as draft prospects though. Guys who could do an interesting range of things on the floor but lacked the CV showing they were capable of putting those tools together consistently every night.

Kirilenko??

No way.  Kirilenko was a blue collar hard nosed player. Bender is soft

Bender is a vesely with a bit better handle and shooter (though takes a while to setup). No mid range game

Lacks toughness and/or strength. Two key things Danny looks for in big players

Olynyk, Zeller, Mickey, and Jerbeko scream toughness and strength.

Yes. They have built up strength (except Mickey who is in progress). And KO, Jerebko have a high motor/toughness

[Eddie20]

Only seen a few youtube clips ... but it's Kirilenko that Bender reminds me of.

Not really a scorer. More of a defender. A perimeter defender. Can rebound well for a SF/PF. Provides some passing and a little ball-handling. Helps out in multiple ways. Glue guy type.

Could say the same about Marvin Williams or Jan Vesely as draft prospects though. Guys who could do an interesting range of things on the floor but lacked the CV showing they were capable of putting those tools together consistently every night.

Kirilenko??

No way.  Kirilenko was a blue collar hard nosed player. Bender is soft

Bender is a vesely with a bit better handle and shooter (though takes a while to setup). No mid range game

Lacks toughness and/or strength. Two key things Danny looks for in big players

Olynyk, Zeller, Mickey, and Jerbeko scream toughness and strength.

Yes. They have built up strength (except Mickey who is in progress). And KO, Jerebko have a high motor/toughness

So they have built up strength, but the 18 year old 7-1 teenager can't and is a finished product? Is there anything you can back these claims with? Any reports of Bender having some sort of condition that doesn't allow him to efficiently absorb nutrients, or perhaps an overactive thyroid that will make weight increase difficult?

[Tr1boy]

Only seen a few youtube clips ... but it's Kirilenko that Bender reminds me of.

Not really a scorer. More of a defender. A perimeter defender. Can rebound well for a SF/PF. Provides some passing and a little ball-handling. Helps out in multiple ways. Glue guy type.

Could say the same about Marvin Williams or Jan Vesely as draft prospects though. Guys who could do an interesting range of things on the floor but lacked the CV showing they were capable of putting those tools together consistently every night.

Kirilenko??

No way.  Kirilenko was a blue collar hard nosed player. Bender is soft

Bender is a vesely with a bit better handle and shooter (though takes a while to setup). No mid range game

Lacks toughness and/or strength. Two key things Danny looks for in big players

Olynyk, Zeller, Mickey, and Jerbeko scream toughness and strength.

Yes. They have built up strength (except Mickey who is in progress). And KO, Jerebko have a high motor/toughness

So they have built up strength, but the 18 year old 7-1 teenager can't and is a finished product? Is there anything you can back these claims with? Any reports of Bender having some sort of condition that doesn't allow him to efficiently absorb nutrients, or perhaps an overactive thyroid that will make weight increase difficult?

Well we won't know will we?

And you want to risk a number 5 pick on a guy who not only lacks strength but lacks the approach (toughness). He avoids contact.  Ivan Rabb is prob just as skinny like Sabonis was last year and they embrace the physical play

[Roy H.]

How can anybody make any definitive statements about his game at this point? Who can say he's "soft", or what level of defense he plays, or whether he has a "mid-range" game?  Whether he "avoids contact"?  This is based on what, three minutes worth of video? It's useless.

The kid is a total blank slate.  Is he Yi or Porzingis? No idea, because he has almost zero track record.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/euro/players/dragan-bender-1.html

Good or bad (and the results have been bad), 86 minutes isn't enough time to form conclusions. Whoever takes Bender is gambling 100% on perceived skill set and upside, rather than what he's shown on the court.

It does make you ask, though: if Skal Labissiere had gone to Europe and been benched for the season, would that have helped his draft stock?

[footey]

Only seen a few youtube clips ... but it's Kirilenko that Bender reminds me of.

Not really a scorer. More of a defender. A perimeter defender. Can rebound well for a SF/PF. Provides some passing and a little ball-handling. Helps out in multiple ways. Glue guy type.

Could say the same about Marvin Williams or Jan Vesely as draft prospects though. Guys who could do an interesting range of things on the floor but lacked the CV showing they were capable of putting those tools together consistently every night.

Kirilenko??

No way.  Kirilenko was a blue collar hard nosed player. Bender is soft

Bender is a vesely with a bit better handle and shooter (though takes a while to setup). No mid range game

Lacks toughness and/or strength. Two key things Danny looks for in big players

Olynyk, Zeller, Mickey, and Jerbeko scream toughness and strength.

Yes. They have built up strength (except Mickey who is in progress). And KO, Jerebko have a high motor/toughness

KO has a high motor? Seriously??

[Tr1boy]

Only seen a few youtube clips ... but it's Kirilenko that Bender reminds me of.

Not really a scorer. More of a defender. A perimeter defender. Can rebound well for a SF/PF. Provides some passing and a little ball-handling. Helps out in multiple ways. Glue guy type.

Could say the same about Marvin Williams or Jan Vesely as draft prospects though. Guys who could do an interesting range of things on the floor but lacked the CV showing they were capable of putting those tools together consistently every night.

Kirilenko??

No way.  Kirilenko was a blue collar hard nosed player. Bender is soft

Bender is a vesely with a bit better handle and shooter (though takes a while to setup). No mid range game

Lacks toughness and/or strength. Two key things Danny looks for in big players

Olynyk, Zeller, Mickey, and Jerbeko scream toughness and strength.

Yes. They have built up strength (except Mickey who is in progress). And KO, Jerebko have a high motor/toughness

KO has a high motor? Seriously??

Seriously??

[Smart457]

Dragon Bender will be a stud in the NBA. He might go top 2 if he has a good workout.

Him and Smart will be the future if we draft him.

[Tr1boy]

Dragon Bender will be a stud in the NBA. He might go top 2 if he has a good workout.

Him and Smart will be the future if we draft him.

And this is based on?

[kozlodoev]

Dragon Bender will be a stud in the NBA. He might go top 2 if he has a good workout.

Him and Smart will be the future if we draft him.

And this is based on?

He bends dragons!

[TheSundanceKid]

Dragon Bender will be a stud in the NBA. He might go top 2 if he has a good workout.

Him and Smart will be the future if we draft him.

And this is based on?

About as much as the predictions that Simmons and Ingram will be stars. I would say that just because people in the US have less access to European basketball does not mean you can discount it. Bender has been around a long time already and he's only 18.

[chilidawg]

Dragon Bender will be a stud in the NBA. He might go top 2 if he has a good workout.

Him and Smart will be the future if we draft him.

And this is based on?

About as much as the predictions that Simmons and Ingram will be stars. I would say that just because people in the US have less access to European basketball does not mean you can discount it. Bender has been around a long time already and he's only 18.

Don't we have a full season of NCAA basketball to base predictions about Simmons and Ingram on?  And nothing comparable for Bender?

[footey]

Only seen a few youtube clips ... but it's Kirilenko that Bender reminds me of.

Not really a scorer. More of a defender. A perimeter defender. Can rebound well for a SF/PF. Provides some passing and a little ball-handling. Helps out in multiple ways. Glue guy type.

Could say the same about Marvin Williams or Jan Vesely as draft prospects though. Guys who could do an interesting range of things on the floor but lacked the CV showing they were capable of putting those tools together consistently every night.

Kirilenko??

No way.  Kirilenko was a blue collar hard nosed player. Bender is soft

Bender is a vesely with a bit better handle and shooter (though takes a while to setup). No mid range game

Lacks toughness and/or strength. Two key things Danny looks for in big players

Olynyk, Zeller, Mickey, and Jerbeko scream toughness and strength.

Yes. They have built up strength (except Mickey who is in progress). And KO, Jerebko have a high motor/toughness

KO has a high motor? Seriously??

Seriously??

Yes. I am seriously incredulous that you would describe KO as having a high motor.  He is a talented 7' who can handle, create, and hit the 3. But guys with a "high motor" means that they are constantly making plays, mixing it up, tipping in missed shots, stepping in to take the charge.  Crowder has a high motor. Isiah has a high motor. Kelly does not.  The number one thing he has been criticized for by his coach, and by his own admission, is that he is not aggressive enough. Guys who lack aggression, who have to be told to be aggressive, do not, by definition, have high motors.

Seriously.

[Smart457]

What's not to like about a 7'1 guy who can pass, dribble and shoot from the perimeter?

If you like Giannis then you will like Bender.

[number_n9ne]

Only seen a few youtube clips ... but it's Kirilenko that Bender reminds me of.

Not really a scorer. More of a defender. A perimeter defender. Can rebound well for a SF/PF. Provides some passing and a little ball-handling. Helps out in multiple ways. Glue guy type.

Could say the same about Marvin Williams or Jan Vesely as draft prospects though. Guys who could do an interesting range of things on the floor but lacked the CV showing they were capable of putting those tools together consistently every night.

Kirilenko??

No way.  Kirilenko was a blue collar hard nosed player. Bender is soft

Bender is a vesely with a bit better handle and shooter (though takes a while to setup). No mid range game

Lacks toughness and/or strength. Two key things Danny looks for in big players

Olynyk, Zeller, Mickey, and Jerbeko scream toughness and strength.

Yes. They have built up strength (except Mickey who is in progress). And KO, Jerebko have a high motor/toughness

So they have built up strength, but the 18 year old 7-1 teenager can't and is a finished product? Is there anything you can back these claims with? Any reports of Bender having some sort of condition that doesn't allow him to efficiently absorb nutrients, or perhaps an overactive thyroid that will make weight increase difficult?

Triboy this claim is a bit ridiculous. Where are your sources besides what you've decided in your head? I posted quotes from the Vertical pretty much saying the exact opposite of what you've decided and you've completely ignored it.

Bender’s most underrated quality is his toughness. Some may look at his lanky frame and assume he’s just another soft European 7-footer who only wants to hide on the perimeter and jack up 3-pointers, but in reality that couldn’t be further from the truth.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/european-dispatch--getting-to-know-dragan-bender-195451386.html

I suppose you fall in the category that assumes he’s just another soft European 7-footer without actually reading up on him? The biggest knock on him is his frame, but he's also going to be one of the youngest players in the draft. You're telling me we've built up a 22 year old Olynyk but can't build up a 18 year old Bender?