duncan228
12-13-2008, 10:12 PM
Wrestling with a choice, Spurs' Bonner chooses to shoot (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Wrestling_with_a_choice_Spurs_Bonner_chooses_to_sh oot.html)
By Jeff McDonald
Finally, after 29 minutes and 33 seconds of grappling and tugging, scratching and clawing, Craig Smith had officially had quite enough of Matt Bonner.
The two were slap fighting for a rebound late in the Spurs' victory at Minnesota on Friday when Smith, the Timberwolves' Rottweiler of a power forward, went Greco-Roman. Smith hooked his right arm into Bonner's left and, in one fell motion, flung the Spurs center back-first onto the Target Center floor.
It was in that moment, staring at the ceiling both bewildered and amused, that Bonner first began to consider his eventual retirement.
“I think I've got a career in WWE coming up after basketball,” Bonner said. “Me and Craig Smith will start a tag team.”
Bonner, whose Spurs host Oklahoma City tonight, chuckled at the audacity of his own joke.
“Hey,” he said, “everybody needs a Plan B.”
These days, Bonner's improbable Plan A — starting center for the Spurs — seems to be working out just fine.
After languishing on the bench for much of his two seasons in San Antonio, causing some in the organization to privately wonder if he would amount to anything approaching a useful player, the 28-year-old Bonner at last seems to have discovered his NBA niche.
In six games since joining the starting five, Bonner is averaging 11.2 points and shooting 28 of 45 from the field — a simmering 62 percent. Bonner is making 51.9 percent of his shots from 3-point range, which means the Spurs' starting center also is the league's leading long-range marksman.
“It's a pretty easy gig, because you've got Tim (Duncan), Tony (Parker) and Manu (Ginobili),” Bonner said, failing to note that he occasionally also has the likes of Smith flying at him. “They attract a lot of attention.”
At 6-foot-10, Bonner isn't a conventional NBA center. He isn't an intimidating defender, and the next post-up basket he scores will be his first.
But Spurs coach Gregg Popovich loves the way Bonner's jump shot can stretch the floor, clearing space for a player who can score from the post, namely Duncan.
As such, Bonner has slid almost seamlessly into the role previously occupied by Robert Horry. In his fifth NBA season, Bonner is averaging career highs in points (7.8) and rebounds (4.6), while shooting 55.9 percent from the field, also a career best.
“He's finally getting minutes, consistent minutes,” Duncan said. “And he's learned to make the most of them.”
Bonner has played a significant part in the Spurs' five-game winning streak, a whirlwind turnabout from the three-game stretch in mid-November in which he logged a grand total of 42 seconds.
Bonner had fallen out of the rotation, and in private, some team officials wondered if he would be able to play his way back into it. If Bonner heard the whispers, he did his best to ignore them.
“When you start thinking about that kind of stuff, it will drive you crazy in this business,” Bonner said. “For me, it's a game, and I'm just going to work hard at it and do what I can to help the team win.”
Bonner readily admits his problem has always been one of confidence.
A self-flagellating perfectionist, Bonner would often flog himself over every missed shot. Long before Smith came along, Bonner was his own wrestling partner.
Eventually, he would stop shooting altogether, and eventually, he would find himself on the bench.
Bonner says he can't quite pinpoint the moment this season when his confidence began to increase. Popovich can.
“I decided to stop screaming at him and just let him play,” Popovich said.
Bonner disputes that account, at least partially.
“He still screams at me sometimes, but not for shooting,” Bonner said.
Still, Bonner does credit Popovich for clarifying his role earlier in the season. One day in November, Popovich came to Bonner with a simple directive: Shoot or sit.
“He made it clear: If I'm open, I need to shoot the ball,” Bonner said. “And if not, I'm not going to get in the game.”
Bonner has made his choice. He will shoot. And, Popovich willing, he will play.
The WWE's loss is the Spurs' gain.
By Jeff McDonald
Finally, after 29 minutes and 33 seconds of grappling and tugging, scratching and clawing, Craig Smith had officially had quite enough of Matt Bonner.
The two were slap fighting for a rebound late in the Spurs' victory at Minnesota on Friday when Smith, the Timberwolves' Rottweiler of a power forward, went Greco-Roman. Smith hooked his right arm into Bonner's left and, in one fell motion, flung the Spurs center back-first onto the Target Center floor.
It was in that moment, staring at the ceiling both bewildered and amused, that Bonner first began to consider his eventual retirement.
“I think I've got a career in WWE coming up after basketball,” Bonner said. “Me and Craig Smith will start a tag team.”
Bonner, whose Spurs host Oklahoma City tonight, chuckled at the audacity of his own joke.
“Hey,” he said, “everybody needs a Plan B.”
These days, Bonner's improbable Plan A — starting center for the Spurs — seems to be working out just fine.
After languishing on the bench for much of his two seasons in San Antonio, causing some in the organization to privately wonder if he would amount to anything approaching a useful player, the 28-year-old Bonner at last seems to have discovered his NBA niche.
In six games since joining the starting five, Bonner is averaging 11.2 points and shooting 28 of 45 from the field — a simmering 62 percent. Bonner is making 51.9 percent of his shots from 3-point range, which means the Spurs' starting center also is the league's leading long-range marksman.
“It's a pretty easy gig, because you've got Tim (Duncan), Tony (Parker) and Manu (Ginobili),” Bonner said, failing to note that he occasionally also has the likes of Smith flying at him. “They attract a lot of attention.”
At 6-foot-10, Bonner isn't a conventional NBA center. He isn't an intimidating defender, and the next post-up basket he scores will be his first.
But Spurs coach Gregg Popovich loves the way Bonner's jump shot can stretch the floor, clearing space for a player who can score from the post, namely Duncan.
As such, Bonner has slid almost seamlessly into the role previously occupied by Robert Horry. In his fifth NBA season, Bonner is averaging career highs in points (7.8) and rebounds (4.6), while shooting 55.9 percent from the field, also a career best.
“He's finally getting minutes, consistent minutes,” Duncan said. “And he's learned to make the most of them.”
Bonner has played a significant part in the Spurs' five-game winning streak, a whirlwind turnabout from the three-game stretch in mid-November in which he logged a grand total of 42 seconds.
Bonner had fallen out of the rotation, and in private, some team officials wondered if he would be able to play his way back into it. If Bonner heard the whispers, he did his best to ignore them.
“When you start thinking about that kind of stuff, it will drive you crazy in this business,” Bonner said. “For me, it's a game, and I'm just going to work hard at it and do what I can to help the team win.”
Bonner readily admits his problem has always been one of confidence.
A self-flagellating perfectionist, Bonner would often flog himself over every missed shot. Long before Smith came along, Bonner was his own wrestling partner.
Eventually, he would stop shooting altogether, and eventually, he would find himself on the bench.
Bonner says he can't quite pinpoint the moment this season when his confidence began to increase. Popovich can.
“I decided to stop screaming at him and just let him play,” Popovich said.
Bonner disputes that account, at least partially.
“He still screams at me sometimes, but not for shooting,” Bonner said.
Still, Bonner does credit Popovich for clarifying his role earlier in the season. One day in November, Popovich came to Bonner with a simple directive: Shoot or sit.
“He made it clear: If I'm open, I need to shoot the ball,” Bonner said. “And if not, I'm not going to get in the game.”
Bonner has made his choice. He will shoot. And, Popovich willing, he will play.
The WWE's loss is the Spurs' gain.