The ups and downs of Dragan Bender

Jul 13, 2016, 7:08 PM | Updated: Jul 14, 2016, 11:30 am

ArizonaSports.com lead editor

While Devin Booker, Tyler Ulis, Alan Williams and even Marquese Chriss have rolled out the highlights for the Summer Suns in Las Vegas thus far, Phoenix rookie Dragan Bender has gone quietly about his business without great fanfare.

Maybe it’s because his most remarkable skill, lateral fluidity, doesn’t pop out to the untrained eye.

Maybe it’s because his skills are impressive in their quantity and not any one’s quality.

Surely, the youngest player in the NBA is struggling because he’s far from the strongest player on the Summer League floor. Yet, he’s not necessarily been disappointing.

Here’s the low-down on Bender from The Ringer’s Jonathan Tjarks.

The game was never too fast for him. He knew where the ball was supposed to go and he knows how to get to his spots. The scouts and executives in attendance came away raving about him. No one in Vegas seems to believe in cross-racial comparisons, though, as I had one executive compare him to Toni Kukoc and another to a 7-foot-1 Mike Dunleavy Jr.

…

You never want to overreact to a limited sample size against substandard competition, but Bender was the most impressive rookie I saw in Vegas.

The Suns’ hybrid forward has had his ups and downs over the past week while averaging 8.3 points and 5 rebounds through three games.

Up – Lateral movement: Bender’s biggest problem is his lack of strength. It’s not unsurprising for such a young player, but it casts an odd shadow on his biggest talent. With added weight, will the 7-foot-1, 220 pound forward continue keeping his feet against guards and small forwards?

While the debate rages between those who think Bender should be playing more small forward and those who think he will become more useful at center, it may have one answer to satisfy all — he will eventually play anywhere in the frontcourt. Still, it’s a wonder how the needed strength (and weight) to compete against bigger players will affect his agility against smaller ones.

Down – Explosiveness: In Game 1 against the Blazers, Bender used a hesitation dribble in transition that earned a driving lane against the slow-footed Jordan Bachynski, who was supposed to cut off the drive by sinking into the paint as the wing defender ICE’d Bender, attempting to push him away from a screen. Bender drove toward a sinking Bachynski, shouldered into him and hit a tough floater on his first shot.

It was fun to watch a 7-foot-1 player take a rebound and score at the other end, but that one play was the extent of it happening. Will Bender’s lack of outright explosion hurt his ability to score transition buckets in the NBA? How will he slip by defenders in the halfcourt? We probably won’t find out until he gets stronger.

Lots more where that came from! @DBender03 #NBASummer pic.twitter.com/kx3pfzTptk

— LW Branding (@LWbranding) July 12, 2016

Up – He’s never lost: In general, the offense runs fluidly through Bender, and already it’s clear he could become a high-post playmaker. Bender has developed a post-entry pass chemistry with center Alan Williams.

Any of Bender’s turnovers have come because he isn’t physically getting passes there quick enough or because he’s letting a dribble hang too loosely, not because he’s not seeing things fast enough. When it comes to many of his fouls, the good news is Bender is already in position to help drivers that blew by his Suns teammates.

Down – Foul trouble: Personal fouls have come in two ways for Bender: Protecting the rim and trying to win physical battles off the ball. That Bender was mostly defending undersized small forwards in the latter situations was concerning. Additionally, he showed a curious inability to challenge shots without fouling — leaning into drivers instead of going straight up was chief among the problems.

Up – Shooting: Scoring-wise, Bender has been at his best either shooting or cutting from the weakside and scoring a la T.J. Warren. After his first outing, Bender’s jumper looked more lively Tuesday against the Heat. He went 3-of-5 from deep.

Off the bounce, he’s not been able to finish through contact while driving but did flip a short lob pass to Alec Brown for a layup. He’s gone to the foul stripe six times in about 90 minutes of play through three games. Right now, he’s at his best catching and shooting from deep.