Dragan

Bender

It’s reportedly a 3-month deal with an option to extend it for the full season. This means it’s a possibility that an NBA team scoops him up at some point next season. The former No. 4 pick back in 2016, Bender had unsuccessful stints with the Suns and Bucks but did have some decent moments with the Warriors, averaging 9.0 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.2 triples in 21.7 minutes.

He also made all five of his free throws and the 23 points tied his career high. Of course, this was a garbage-time special in a blowout and the return of Draymond Green (knee) would hurt Bender, so it’s tough to get overly excited here. But if you rolled the dice on him in DFS or in any other league, congratulations are in order.

He shifted to basically a straight C2 role, which is a big change. In the previous five, he had 49 minutes next to Marquese Chriss, so this new rotation tweak is bad news for Bender. He’s a drop in most formats.

Head coach Steve Kerr spoke highly of Bender after his first 10-day stint expired, and the Dubs re-signing him may indicate that Draymond Green (knee) could be headed for another game on the sidelines, as he’s currently listed as questionable tonight. Bender has been hit-or-miss in Golden State, so he’ll need to be a bit more consistent during this second 10-day stint in order to lock up a rest-of-season deal.

“I really like Dragan,” Steve Kerr said. “I think he’s got a lot of potential. We’ll see what happens. I’d love to give him another 10 days, if possible. But we’ll figure that out as an organization going forward.” Bender was hit-or-miss during his time in Golden State, but now that he doesn’t have a contract, he’s safe to send to the waiver wire in all formats.

This was his last day on a 10-day contract so he might be done in GSW. If that’s the case, Eric Paschall will see a boost after scoring 22 points with a full stat line in the win.

Looney sat out Sunday’s loss to the Wizards as it was the second game of a back-to-back. Should he not be able to play Marquese Chriss and Dragan Bender would both continue to figure prominently in the Warriors’ rotation.

After struggling mightily in his first start as a member of the Warriors, Bender was much better Saturday night. Of course, there’s a huge difference between Phoenix and the Lakers squad that he and the Warriors had to deal with on Thursday. That being said Bender’s in the midst of a 10-day contract, and really needed a showing like this after some underwhelming efforts. Golden State has four games on the schedule for next week, beginning with the Wizards Sunday night. Should Draymond Green (left knee) be limited or unable to go, Bender would have some value as a stream in deeper leagues.

With Andrew Wiggins (back) out, it was head scratching that coach Steve Kerr would even go there to start Bender, but it’s not like the Warriors are playing for wins anyway. Bender didn’t exactly help himself and he may not make it the rest of the season with the Warriors. He’s only a desperation stream for Saturday unless Draymond Green and Wiggins miss that one.

Wow. Coach Steve Kerr goes with a huge lineup as he trolls the Suns with Marquese Chriss also out there. Bender had been used as a combo forward in his early Phoenix days, but he had shifted to more of a PF/C as his career progressed. Bender isn’t really an add with this news, but it’s not great for Eric Paschall and Juan Toscano-Anderson.