The Return of the Dragan
In last night’s 12th straight loss (now tied for the second-longest losing streak in franchise history) the Dragan returned, ending the coolest series of movie-themed tweets aimed at his coming back to action for the Suns (Release the Dragan; The Release of the Dragan; The Return of the Dragan; The Dragan Returns).
The Dragan played a very solid and efficient game coming off the bench in his first game in two months scoring 9 points on 4-9 from the field including 1-3 from three, grabbing 7 rebounds, and blocking 2 shots in only 14:09. He also committed three personal fouls in that span which is high, but in a game in which 47 personal fouls were called between the two teams, he didn’t stick out from the fray.
More importantly Bender looked fluid and did not seem to play with any hesitation or fear of making a cut or jumping on his right ankle. He never limped and moved a lot on both offense and defense. At times he reverted back to his original role of running down court on offense and picking a spot in the corner, but that again is very likely just his role in the offense at this time. Hopefully by next season his offensive responsibilities will have grown and evolved and we will see more of an assertive and explosive offensive big man.
It would have been nice to have had Bender over these past 28 games (plus the four before a one game return on February 1), but the Suns undoubtedly waited until they were absolutely sure that there would be no residual effects from the procedure and were not throwing him out into NBA action until they knew that his ankle would remain stable and intact. Obviously Bender missed lots of playing opportunities during the full-on tanking period, but hopefully the Suns work with him strenuously this offseason to make sure he does not fall too far behind and he enters next season a more important piece in the roster.