NBA Mock Draft 2016: Lottery Set, Who Do Lakers Get at No. 2?

Height: 7-1
Weight: 225 pounds
Wingspan: 7-2
DOB: 11/17/97

The youngest prospect in the entirety of the 2016 NBA Draft and also the top international prospect, Dragan Bender could be something special of the Kristaps Porzingis variety. While there’s equally the risk that he’s going to be a bust that resulted from the hype from the Knicks big man drafted at No. 4 in 2016, Bender at the very least has a massive amount of potential at just 18 years old.

Obviously the size sticks out as a legitimate seven-footer at his age and with a wingspan that isn’t unreal, but isn’t anything to scoff at either. And while he hasn’t played much for Maccabi Tel Aviv overseas throughout his time with the team, what the big Croatian has shown as he’s come up in European basketball and international play is that he has tremendous versatility and skill for a player his size. While he needs to put on muscle to succeed in the NBA down low, he has the skill to score there along with the ability to step out and score from the perimeter. His size lends itself to defensive potential also.

Bender is a risk without question, but the Suns have to take a risk if they’re going to improve in any significant way. I’d love to see Bender alongside someone like Tyson Chandler or Alex Len and how that would allow him to open up, grow, and adapt moving forward.

Next: No. 5 Timberwolves