Washington’s Gilbert Arenas probably has the NBA’s Comeback Player of the Year award sewn up already… and rightly so. Agent Zero is on his way back to all-star form — he dropped 45 points and 13 assists on the Golden State Warriors last night.
Elton Brand might get some consideration for comeback honors as well; he seems to be adapting to a bench role after missing the better part of two seasons due to injury. Last night Brand scored a game-high 23 points — including the winning basket, a tip-in of a Marreese Speights miss with 7.7 seconds remaining — and helped the Sixers beat first-place Boston, 98-97.
But the most dramatic comeback story in the NBA this year is newly-signed Knick forward Jonathan Bender.
Bender scored nine points off the bench in the Knicks’ 95-91 win over the Clippers at Madison Square Garden. He wasn’t one of the stars of the game — those honors would go to David Lee, who finished off the Clips with a monster second half, and Chris Duhon, who posted a 17-point, 10-assist double double. But they were a remarkable achievement.
Last night was Jonathan Bender’s first NBA game in over four years.
The fifth-overall selection in the 1999 draft, Bender joined the Indiana Pacers right out of high school, with off-the-charts potential and a dynamite jump shot. His best season came in 2001-02, when he appeared in 78 games and averaged over 20 minutes, 7.4 points and 3.1 rebounds. But chronic knee trouble ruined his Pacer career; he played in just 31 total games over the next three seasons, and in February 2006 announced his retirement.
The general manager who brought him to Indiana was none other than Donnie Walsh — now president of the Knicks. Walsh cited their history, and the work Bender put in to get himself back into NBA shape, as reasons for the signing.
Now, the skeptical Knick fan (And aren’t we all skeptical, at this point?) might suggest that putting Bender ahead of Nate Robinson, Eddy Curry or first-round draft pick Jordan Hill is yet another example of what’s wrong with the team. We’ll leave that discussion for another day.
Welcome Back, Jonathan Bender originally appeared on About.com Basketball on Saturday, December 19th, 2009 at 16:38:01.
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