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Milwaukee Bucks: Dragan Bender shines on assignment with Wisconsin Herd

By Jordan Treske

HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL - JANUARY 03: Dragan Bender #17 of the Wisconsin Herd goes to the basket over V.J. Beachem #2 of the Windy City Bulls at the Sears Centre on January 3, 2020 in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Randy Belice/NBAE via Getty Images)
HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL - JANUARY 03: Dragan Bender #17 of the Wisconsin Herd goes to the basket over V.J. Beachem #2 of the Windy City Bulls at the Sears Centre on January 3, 2020 in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Randy Belice/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Fourth-year big man Dragan Bender has seen minimal time with the Milwaukee Bucks this season, but his recent assignments with the Wisconsin Herd still show his potential ahead of his contract guarantee date.

After signing a two-year deal with the Milwaukee Bucks packed with multiple incentives, Dragan Bender has waited in the wings throughout his first season in the Cream City.

The Croatian international has regularly been inactive for the majority of the Bucks’ season so far and his 29 minutes on the season have come across three appearances, all of which have come during some of the team’s biggest blowouts.

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With the Lopez brothers locking down the Bucks’ center rotation, there just simply hasn’t been much use for Bender this season as the Bucks hold the best record in the NBA for the second straight season.

Now with the guarantee date in Bender’s contract looming this week that will ensure whether the 22-year-old will continue his stint in Milwaukee for the rest of the season, it’s natural to speculate as to whether Bender will stick around beyond that point.

That may be where Bender’s recent assignment with the Wisconsin Herd, the Bucks’ G League affiliate, comes into the picture as he’s trying to prove that he’s worthy of the investment the Bucks made over the summer to resuscitate his NBA career.

The Herd rung in the new year this weekend with a pair of wins that helped them to tie the Memphis Hustle for the best record in the G League at 17-4. And it was Bender who played an integral part in each of Wisconsin’s road wins over the Windy City Bulls Friday night and the Long Island Nets Sunday afternoon.

Starting with Friday night, Bender got off to an incredibly fast start as he reached double figures within the first five minutes of the contest, thanks to his ability to score at all levels of the floor. And it was the ability to use his size down low after rolling to the basket, to attack closeouts with his dribble drive skills and his stroke on fadeaways out of the post that fueled his season-high 27-point outing with 14 of those points coming from inside the paint.

Bender flipped his inside-out attack in the Herd’s win over the Nets as his marksmanship from long range lifted him from a cold start from the field after missing his first four shots on the day. That propelled him to a season-high five triples, all of which fueled his double-double performance (25 points, 10 rebounds).

Switching sides, Bender’s role as a rim protector has been a consistent feature throughout all of his assignments and it’s clear that his capabilities in that regard have grown as the season has worn on.

That was evident this weekend as Bender compiled seven blocks over the Herd’s two wins and his use of verticality has been key in being able to replicate the drop defensive coverage the Herd mimic from the Bucks’ system. Along with that, Bender’s active hands led to a season-high three deflections Friday night against the Bulls, elevating his defensive performance even further.

Across his nine appearances with the Herd this season, Bender is averaging 21.1 points on .504/.415/.808 shooting splits, 9.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.8 blocks across 29 minutes per contest.

The effect that Bender has had while down on assignment with the Herd has been immense and it all starts with the fact that they have an 8-1 record when the seven-footer is on hand for Herd head coach Chase Buford. And that’s translated into Bender having the highest net rating of all players that have played for the Herd this season and the team is outscored by -1.0 points per 100 possessions by their opponents when Bender is not in the mix or on the bench, per the G League’s stats database.

The combination of the influence, performance and overall development that Bender has shown in Oshkosh and with the Herd overall is precisely what made him an interesting flyer on the Bucks’ part last summer. An ankle injury that Bender suffered on assignment with the Herd last month and kept him out of action for a few weeks may have prevented this from being a steadier development to watch as the affiliate follows the footsteps of their parent club this season.

Next. Brook Lopez challenging for title of NBA’s blocks leader. dark

Bender is not the first example of Milwaukee taking a gamble on grooming a young, developing big man that has yet to find his place in the NBA (i.e. Christian Wood), but how Bender has been able to acclimate to the organization’s system and development track shows why he’s worth the continued investment this season and beyond.

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