Dragan Bender facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Dragan Bender

Bender with Maccabi Tel Aviv in September 2015
Power forward / center
Personal information
Born	(1997-11-17) 17 November 1997 (age 27) Čapljina, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Nationality	Croatian
Listed height	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Listed weight	225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
NBA Draft	2016 / Round: 1 / Pick: 4th overall
Selected by the Phoenix Suns
Pro career	2012–present
Career history
2012–2013	Split
2013–2014	Kaštela
2014–2016	Maccabi Tel Aviv
2014–2015	→Ironi Ramat Gan
2016–2019	Phoenix Suns
2019–2020	Milwaukee Bucks
2019–2020	→Wisconsin Herd
2020	Golden State Warriors
2020–2021	Maccabi Tel Aviv
2022–2023	Obradoiro CAB
Career highlights and awards
Israeli League champion (2021) 2× Israeli Cup champion (2016, 2021) 2× Israeli League Cup champion (2015, 2020)
Medals Men's basketball Representing  Croatia European U-18 Championship Bronze 2014 Turkey U-18 Team

Dragan Bender (born 17 November 1997) is a professional basketball player from Croatia. He last played for the Monbus Obradoiro team in Spain. Dragan is very tall, standing at 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m). He plays as a power forward or center. In 2016, the Phoenix Suns picked him fourth overall in the 2016 NBA draft. Bender also plays for the Croatian national team. He has played in many junior tournaments in Europe. Before playing in Israel, he played for different teams in Croatia. He also trained at Nikola Vujčić's basketball academy.

Early Life and Basketball Start

Dragan Bender was born on 17 November 1997, in Čapljina, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Later, he moved to Split, Croatia. When he was 12, he started playing basketball at Nikola Vujčić's academy. Nikola Vujčić was a famous player for Maccabi Tel Aviv. He became Dragan's guardian and helped him learn to play all positions on the court.

Dragan played there with his older brother, Ivan. He also played against older kids. While growing up, Dragan looked up to Toni Kukoč, a Croatian NBA player. He watched Toni's old games to learn from him. Dragan mostly watched EuroLeague games. He also played with the youth teams of KK Split. He played for Croatia's under-16 national basketball team too.

Professional Basketball Journey

Starting in Croatia (2012–2014)

Dragan Bender started his professional career at just 15 years old. He played for KK Split. In his first season, he played only a few minutes.

The next season, he joined KK Kaštela, another team in Croatia. This team played in the country's second-best league. Dragan helped them get promoted to the top league, called the A-1 Liga. He even made a game-winning shot to secure their promotion. In 2014, Dragan also played for the KK Cedevita junior team. He played in the Euroleague Basketball Next Generation Tournament.

Playing in Israel (2014–2016)

In 2014, Dragan signed a long contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv. This is a big team in Israel and also plays in the EuroLeague. Maccabi Tel Aviv then loaned him to Ironi Ramat Gan. This team was in Israel's second-tier league.

Dragan played his first game for Ironi Ramat Gan on 21 October 2014. He scored 13 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. He had many good games, including one where he scored 25 points. By the end of the season, he was averaging almost 10 points and 7 rebounds per game. After this season, he went back to Maccabi Tel Aviv.

In October 2015, Dragan played his first game for Maccabi Tel Aviv. He helped his team win the Israeli State Cup again in 2016. He was also chosen as a foreign All-Star for the 2016 Israeli All-Star game.

NBA Career with Phoenix Suns (2016–2019)

On 6 April 2016, Dragan decided to enter the 2016 NBA draft. He was seen as one of the best international players available. People liked his ability to shoot and his potential to grow as a player.

On 23 June 2016, the Phoenix Suns picked Dragan as the fourth overall player. This made him the highest-picked Croatian player in an NBA draft. He signed his first contract with the Suns in July. Dragan played his first NBA game on 26 October 2016. He scored 10 points. He was one of three teenagers on the court for the Suns in that game.

In December 2016, Dragan had his first "double-double." This means he got 11 points and 13 rebounds in one game. In February 2017, he had surgery on his right ankle. He returned to play in April 2017.

Dragan played in the 2017 NBA Summer League in July 2017. He averaged over 14 points per game. In the 2017–18 season, he kept improving. He scored a career-high 20 points in a game in January 2018. Then, in February 2018, he scored a new career-high of 23 points. In April 2018, he also had a career-high 14 rebounds in a game.

In July 2018, Dragan played in the 2018 NBA Summer League again. In October 2018, the Suns decided not to keep him for another year. This meant he would become a free agent after the season. In April 2019, he had a career-high seven blocks in a game.

Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors (2019–2020)

In July 2019, Dragan signed a two-year deal with the Milwaukee Bucks. He also played for their minor league team, the Wisconsin Herd. In February 2020, the Bucks decided to let him go.

On 23 February 2020, the Golden State Warriors signed Dragan for a short time. In his first game with them, he played against his old team, the Phoenix Suns. He scored 13 points and got 9 rebounds. The NBA season was stopped in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dragan became a free agent before the season started again.

Return to Maccabi Tel Aviv (2020–2021)

On 23 September 2020, Dragan went back to play for Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel. During the 2020–21 season, he averaged about 6.6 points and 3.8 rebounds in EuroLeague games. In May 2021, he got an injury that made him miss the whole next season.

Playing in Spain (2022–Present)

On August 23, 2022, Dragan signed with Monbus Obradoiro in Spain. In December, he suffered a serious knee injury called a torn ACL. This injury ended his season. He was averaging 17.2 points and 6.6 rebounds in 10 games for Obradoiro. He was expected to miss the entire 2023–24 season as well.

Playing for Croatia

Junior National Team

Dragan played for Croatia's Under-16 team in 2012 and 2013. He improved a lot in these tournaments. In 2014, he played for the Under-18 team. He averaged 14.4 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game. He helped his team win a bronze medal and was named to the All-Tournament Team.

In 2015, Dragan was chosen for the FIBA Under-19 World Cup. But he could not play because of a conflict with shoe sponsors. The team had a deal with Jordan Brand, but Dragan had a deal with Adidas. Adidas later made special shoes for him without their logo. This allowed him to play for Maccabi Tel Aviv, which also had a Jordan Brand sponsorship.

Senior National Team

In June 2017, the Phoenix Suns allowed Dragan to play for the senior Croatian national team. He played in EuroBasket 2017. In 6 games, he averaged 4.3 points and 2 rebounds.

Player Style

Dragan Bender has often been compared to another tall player, Kristaps Porziņģis. They have similar playing styles. While Porziņģis might be a better shooter, Dragan is known for being a stronger passer and good at handling the ball.

Career Statistics

NBA

Regular season

EuroLeague

Personal Life

Dragan's older brother, Ivan, also played college basketball. He played for the Maryland Terrapins.

To learn English when he was young, Dragan watched American TV shows. Some of his favorites were Friends and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

See also

In Spanish: Dragan Bender para niños

• List of oldest and youngest National Basketball Association players
• List of European basketball players in the United States