Beenders played the
center position on the 1941 NIT champion
Long Island University team, and was team captain during the 1941–42 season under Hall of Fame coach
Clair Bee. He served with the
United States Army Air Forces during World War II. Beenders was one of the first international basketball players in the
Basketball Association of America (BAA), which became the
National Basketball Association (NBA). Beenders averaged 12.3 points in his rookie season with Providence, which was 13th best in the league that season. He played for Providence the following season until he was sold to the
Philadelphia Warriors on January 15, 1948. On May 1, 1948, Beenders was traded to the
Boston Celtics with
Chick Halbert for
Ed Sadowski. ==Later life==