Will Dragon Bender’s excellent performance against Barcelona be remembered at a momentous moment in the Croatian’s career? After difficult years in the NBA (to say the least), Bender was forced to follow in his footsteps and returned to Maccabi Tel Aviv. The start of the renewed run in yellow was not smooth either (to say the least), when the forward seemed at times at a loss on the parquet. Then, then, came the game in the capital of Catalonia.
Against all early predictions, Maccabi Tel Aviv came out with a very impressive victory from Barcelona, 67:68. Equally surprising was the fact that Dragon Bender was the main executor of Yannis Sapropoulos, finishing the game with 15 points (7 of 10 for two). The young Croatian also showed excellent ability in defense and repeatedly hit the opponent’s highs, including Nikola Mirotic.
Bender’s appearance did not go unnoticed by the people in the homeland either, and the Croatian website “Sportsky” dedicated a long article for him under the headline “The rebirth of Croatian talent”. Remember, Bender came to the NBA as great potential and was even selected fourth in the 2016 draft by Phoenix, but failed to live up to expectations about him and is now under a magnifying glass.
“The fact that Bender’s game is not currently based solely on shots for three, which is required of him most of the time in the NBA, proves that in just three months he has taken a step of 100 kilometers at Maccabi Tel Aviv,” we celebrated in Croatia. “If he stays at Maccabi Tel Aviv until the end of the season, as the reports say, this is great news. He will become a better player, much better. Europe has already given him a new life.”
It reads: “Bender is only 23 years old, and faces many more years of basketball. He has earned about $ 15 million since joining the NBA, which means he no longer has to think about living. Just about how he brings himself to play the basketball we all have. “We were hoping for him from the moment we first saw him as a kid. And if he does, then he will also get another chance in the NBA. And when he gets back there, it will already be as a senior player.”
