NBL champ calls for sharpshooter to embrace 'bench role'

He may be just four games into his new bench role, but one NBL champion believes Adelaide 36ers sharpshooter, Dejan Vasiljevic should remain in this spot for the remainder of the Hungry Jack's NBL26 season.

During Monday's NBL Overtime, Damon Lowery explained why he believes two-time NBL champion Vasiljevic, who exploded for 17 fourth-quarter points in Saturday's win over South East Melbourne, can be extremely impactful in his current role in Mike Wells' rotation.

"He's a flamethrower and a prideful dude," Lowery said on NBL Overtime.

"[I know] he doesn't like being the eighth-man on the team and he doesn't want to win the Sixth Man of the Year award, but his role now is on the bench.

"Mike Wells is going to either start Isaac White, who got that start on Saturday, or he's going to eventually start Troy Brown Jr.

"DJ will never probably start on this team anymore, but that doesn't mean he can't play impactful minutes.

"It's all about the minutes he's playing. Anywhere between 20 and 25 minutes and run some plays for him to get his shot going. That's who DJ is.

"Every time DJ says something like 'I want another championship. I got two championships. I want a third one'.

"If this is what it takes to get a championship, are you prepared to do it? Or are you going to sit over there and quietly wish you was in the starting lineup? [It's up to you]."

Lowery's sentiments are echoed by 1990 NBL MVP Derek Rucker.

"If I can have the type of impact that Vasiljevic had on Saturday, that's what I prefer to do if I were him," Rucker said.

"Coming off the bench, you get more of a free rein also because your role is designated.

"Everyone's starting to understand what he can do and how he can do it."

Vasiljevic, who is averaging 12 points a game since coming off the bench, and his 36ers next play the Brisbane Bullets on Friday, December 5 at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

That Round 11 fixture tips off at 7.30pm AEDT, live on ESPN.