He doesn't seem to play anywhere, including where he is in Israel.
What a horrific mistake he would be as a draft pick.
Just curious, Coach. What was your opinion of Porzingis going into the draft the last two years? Honest question.
Love Porzingis.
There is zero accurate comparison between him and this stiff Bender.
There's a little bit more to making it in the association besides being tall, and being mistakenly targeted at 15.
Bender is a poor man's Yi - who we all know Ainge was infatuated with.
And remind me. How many all-stars teams has Why made?
If Ainge takes Bender in the lottery, it will be the worst draft pick in Celtics history.
Comparing Bender to Yi? Really? And the comparison with Porzingis has been, is and will always be lazy. They are both European and tall, that's it!!!
Porzingis is a half court player, Bender likes to run and gun. Bender is an energy player who has an improving shot, quick feet for a player of his size and a well documented fierce work ethic.
He's been on the radar for a reason, it's exactly the same as when American kids get branded the next superstar in High School. People in Europe actually get to see these players before they come to the NBA, they aren't coming from the Arctic...
I get it, he hasn't played much this year. That doesn't mean he's a definite to be a bust. It means he struggled with injuries, his coach prefers playing vets, they have a shorter season. It's hardly unheard of for Euro players to play less before coming to the NBA. Classic case from last year was Hezonja. What people often ignore is the difference between the Euro clubs and the NCAA. In the NCAA they get a lot of money from attracting these high end recruits, so they are going to end up playing them. In Euro basketball (and this pretty much goes for all sports in Europe, not just basketball) there is just Pro. You turn 16 and the best go pro. Rarely do they waltz into the senior team. Why? Because they are so young, why would the coach play them? Unless you have the next Lionel Messi on your hands its likely you can trust your vets who have seen it all and the kid ends up fighting for bench minutes.
The system is so different from the NCAA where you are basically the unpaid main act for the circus before you're finally allowed to make money for yourself. You have to understand that before you make direct comparisons between the Euro guys and the NCAA guys.
Jennings is an example. he played 18mpg for Roma in the Euroleague and Lega Basket. If he had stayed in the USA I expect he would have gotten far more minutes than that. It's just the nature of the game in Europe
