Tuesday, April 28th, 2009...6:23 am
Buck Harvey Marks the Time
The Express-News’ Buck Harvey has written a timely column that deserves your attention. The cliff notes version goes like this: tonight might be Bruce Bowen’s last game as a Spur. Yes, Bowen is under contract. But if you read the column you’ll see that Harvey’s rationale runs down a coherent line. I’m not going to rehash it, he’s already done that work. But Harvey has only convinced me of what I’ve suspected since midseason. Namely, this is Bruce Bowen’s last go ’round as a Spur. We’re all hoping the Spurs extend their series against the Mavericks tonight-and I think they will. But let’s pause for a second under the assumption that they lose this evening.
Players come and go, but Bruce Bowen has been the most important piece of the championship era not named Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili or Tony Parker. A Bowen-less Spurs outfit is a fundamentally different team. The Spurs may go on to win more championships, but that will be because they’ve successfully changed the guard, not because the old guard was rejuvenated.
So here is my humble request for those of you who will be at the game this evening: Cheer the man. If Popovich decides to give Bruce Bowen the starting nod-as we all know he should-send him off in style. If he spots up in the corner, let it be the corner three heard around the world. When he forces his man into a bad shot, pour in the praise as if he had bounded through the lane with a 360 tomahawk. Bruce Bowen is one of the most vilified players in the league, but not by you. And not tonight. Treat tonight’s game like the last call. Drink it all in, and drink deeply.
13 Comments
April 28th, 2009 at 6:55 am
I never imagined I’d feel this wistful over the possible last season of Bruce Bowen. Although not as dominant as he once was, our defensive struggles this year really confirmed his worth to the Spurs organization.
I hope this is not his last season. He can still contribute. But as the season progressed and it became increasingly clear Pop wasn’t saving Bowen for the playoffs, it began to look increasingly grim. Bowen became a victim of Pop’s attempt to improve our stagnant office. Although I understand Pop’s decision behind this, I think it muddled the identity of the team to some degree.
I personally am yearning for a return to “Spurs” basketball next year, and hopefully Bruce Bowen will be along for the ride.
April 28th, 2009 at 7:47 am
Don’t you think that by starting Bowen tonight, we are signaling the end of the series before it ends?
We should try and win and keep that as our priority. If we wanted a sendoff for Bowen, we could have him on court for the final minutes and give him the game ball or something.
April 28th, 2009 at 7:54 am
Since there was nothing I wanted to watch on the tube last night, I slipped in discs with two of our finals games against the Cavaliers in ’07. What a revelation! We were a defensive juggernaut and Bruce was the centerpiece. His lockdown of BronBron was absolutely fucking unbelievable. It also was a revelation of how Pop’s tinkering this year with making us more of an offensive team was ill-conceived. For sure, Manu’s absence has been HUGE, as the dvd’s show. But it’s more than that. That team started Fab (yes, I can hear the groans). But dammit, the guy played solid. No mistakes on defense, a few junk points on offense, three or four tap outs on offensive boards to give us extra possessions. And Horry, man his last good year. He didn’t score much, didn’t get that many rebounds, but his IQ on the court was spectacular everywhere except in the stat sheet. As Rocko says: maybe next year we’ll get back to Spurs basketball. If anyone can’t remember what exactly that is, check out one of those ’07 games.
April 28th, 2009 at 7:59 am
Count me in; I’ll be cheering from my living room couch, several hundred miles away.
April 28th, 2009 at 8:06 am
Navin,
No, I don’t. But I do agree the Spurs should absolutely play to win. In this case, starting Bowen and winning seem to walk hand-in-hand. I’d actually love to see the Spurs start Parker-Hill-Bowen-Duncan-Bonner tonight. The Spurs are not going to outscore the Mavs, and they can’t ask anymore of Parker then he’s already giving. They should try to keep the game in the 80s. Hill and Bowen offer the best opportunity at that. Plus Mason, Finley and Gooden off the bench might offset the loss of Parker’s offense when he is substituted. It’s a tall order no matter how you carve it up, but that’s the direction I’d take this thing.
April 28th, 2009 at 8:15 am
I’m with you, Tim. Starting Bowen in no way concedes defeat. Bowen started the last game, and I thought it was a great move, as he seemed to keep Barea in check to start the game and keep that pest from getting going. You also make a good point in that bringing Mason, Fin, and Gooden off the bench may take up some scoring slack when TP is out of the game. I don’t think there is any way Pop starts Hill, but I like the idea.
April 28th, 2009 at 8:55 am
Even with a win tonight it may be Bruce’s last home game. Those that are there, please show him the love. I hope it’s not; even a younger and improved roster next year needs a vet who can still contribute, knows the system and can teach the young guys the importance of preparation for defense. Didn’t the old Showtime Lakers keep an aging Cooper on the roster?
My lineup hope: Parker, Mason, Bowen, Duncan, Bonner. Hill the first sub off the bench, for Mason, who struggles off the bench. Gooden plays with Finley, Mason and Hill. And with rebounding having been so poor, why not give Fab more minutes? If you’re a big and can’t board your minutes go down. Everything else aside, that one area has been the biggest downfall in games 1 & 4.
April 28th, 2009 at 9:10 am
Thanks for putting some perspective on tonight’s game.
I’m a huge Bowen guy, always preaching his style of play to the young peeps in my family who only seem to idolize Lebron and Kobe.
Bowen’s testament is hard work.
April 28th, 2009 at 11:16 am
If Timmy has anything left in the tank, tonight is the night to use it. I remember when I used to look forward to Duncan entering the 4th quarter with only 1-2 personal fouls. I always knew that he would be extremely agressive defensively.
We have learned this year that the three distinct styles of Parker, Duncan and Ginobli were complimentary and forced opposing teams to constantly alter their style of defense. With only one an a half of that crew left, we need the bench to add 45+ points and that hasn’t happened.
I will always be a fan of the Spurs as long as the organization retains its character. Here’s hoping for another visit to Dallas.
April 28th, 2009 at 12:01 pm
[...] could be the last we see of Bruce [...]
April 28th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
I am admittedly repeating myself for the majority of this comment. But in light of the recent discussion of Bruce Bowen’s apparent imminent status with the Spurs, I thought it was worth restating here.
If there was anything good about game 4 (and there wasn’t much), it was decent playing time for Bowen & Hill. I’m not sure this series can be salvaged. But win or lose, I’d like to see the tough, hard-nosed defense the Spurs are known for. Let Bowen have 30 minutes+ again tonight. Give Hill 20+. Put him on Terry every minute he’s on the floor. Let him harass JT all night long.
I know we need points from somewhere other than Tony/Timmy. But I’d be happy to see the minutes of Bonner & Finley cut (maybe around 20 each- let them shoot with fresh legs) and have those now-available minutes split among Bowen (30 min)/Mason (30 min)/Hill (20 min), with a smattering of Udoka (15 min).
Beyond that, Pop needs to allow Drew Gooden the opportunity (ie. minutes) to assume more of the scoring burden. Give him 25 minutes. Let him establish an offensive rhythm & make Dirk or Dampier work on defense when Tim is out. Personally, I’d like to see a second unit comprised of Hill/Finley/Udoka/Gooden/Thomas (or heaven forbid, Oberto). That provides inside/outside scoring without sacrificing too much on defense.
The minutes in the box score should read as follows. If they do, we’ve done something right. If not, well then I think the outcome is inevitable:
Parker- 38 minutes
Duncan- 36
Mason- 30
Bowen- 30
Gooden- 24
Finley- 20
Hill- 20
Bonner- 18
Udoka- 13
Thomas- 7
Oberto- 4
Vaughn- DNP (ever again)
April 28th, 2009 at 12:54 pm
for hardcore bowen fans who were going to chant and support him on every play tonight even if it wasn’t his last game, i recommend buying some gift certificates for your significant others to Yardley’s Salon and Spa. It’s a nice spa that Bowen’s wife and him opened up, although i’ve never been there and live hundreds of miles away. Oh, they also opened up a woman’s clothing store, but if you’re anything like me, your girlfriend probably wouldn’t like any article of clothing you buy for her. Cielo is the name of the store, just in case. Anyways, Bowen’s the man, we should definitely keep him, if not for our own use, then at the very least because he could make any team much better. But in my opinion, Bowen more useful than two thirds of our roster.
April 28th, 2009 at 1:44 pm
I’d ask him to retire after the season and sign as an asst. coach.
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