Bowens defense on Kobe

[RsxPiimp]

is it just me? but bowen is not as physical to Kobe as he is to other players.


Why is that? Is it because Kobe is really that good? or Bowen and Kobe really just have a level of respect to each other?

[coachmac87]

is it just me? but bowen is not as physical to Kobe as he is to other players.


Why is that? Is it because Kobe is really that good? or Bowen and Kobe really just have a level of respect to each other?


i think because if you get physical kobe goes to the line.

spurs wanted kobe to shoot.

[coachmac87]

and im starting to think that i think the spurs were wrong playing off kobe like that.

kobe really worked on his shooting the past couple of years and he is a very good shooter. i think he is one of the best in the league. its just cause he is KOBE he doesnt get that label.

but i think i would live with kobe at the line all the time. cause that doesnt allow his teammates to get involved as much.

take your chance with kobe at the line. he wont make allllll of them. and he didnt really have to work to hard for his points shooting jumpers all game. he can do that. he likes shooting

[RsxPiimp]

no not even that. i dont see bowen pulling all kinds of his dirty tricks on kobe. u know like elbows,kicks,puttinh his feet under kobe's legs etc

[coachmac87]

i think its respect. they love playing against each other.

kobe is a winner

ray allen, vince carter, steve nash etc. those arent winners

[polandprzem]

Allowin Bowen go phisical with Kobe = Bowen 20 minutes in the game.
Then who you want to play with?

[RsxPiimp]

rip is a winner. but he does this to him.

http://img360.imageshack.us/img360/1240/bowen20jerseybg0.jpg

[coachmac87]

rip is a winner. but he does this to him.

http://img360.imageshack.us/img360/1240/bowen20jerseybg0.jpg



that picture is a fucking joke....thats not even dirty bro be real

[rascal]

What do you mean physical? Bump him, if so Bowen would just pick up fouls.

[rascal]

that picture is a fucking joke....thats not even dirty bro be real

Grabbing jerseys is dirty.

[coachmac87]

Grabbing jerseys is dirty.

you must not play basketball...i can live with somebody tuggin on my jersey with their fingers

[RsxPiimp]

you must not play basketball...i can live with somebody tuggin on my jersey with their fingers

no its not dirty but ive seen bowen do that to rip more than once. and thats not a natural part of baksteball defense. u do it once in a while sure but bowen is blatant and habitual jersey pulling lover.


my point is bowen seems to keep a certain distance to kobe. i think the fact that they both respect each other works to kobe's advantage.


kobe's a killer. the moment he sees you respect his skills, he'll go for the kill.


thats all im sayin.

[intlspurshk]

Yeah Kobe is the golden boy. If U touch him, he goes to the line. And I love clean plays, even if it means some loss. The strategy is to make Kobe tired but I think Bowen is also tired too and Ime can't help.

[z0sa]

bowen's defense on kobe was excellent. And he forced Kobe into help, and he was forced to shoot over it.

kobe just made unbelieveable shots. A couple of those jumpshot/floaters at the top of the lane, when bowen was behind him, were so contested by tim I honestly believed he got a piece of one of them.

Of course not.

[Harry Callahan]

People should appreciate what Bowen did against Kobe - particularly when you consider he is 36 or 37 years old. Players ten years younger than him could not have competed and (sort of) limited him like that. Bryant had great numbers this series and was just "on". But the Spurs slowed down the Lakers enough to have a chance and the Spurs played very well defensively, but its the other end of the floor that betrayed them.

[ballhog]

Not much you can do against those fall-aways and hang-in-the-air shots that he was pulling off.

[urunobili]

is it just me? but bowen is not as physical to Kobe as he is to other players.


Why is that? Is it because Kobe is really that good? or Bowen and Kobe really just have a level of respect to each other?

he was asked not to foul Bryant at all

[florige]

Not much you can do against those fall-aways and hang-in-the-air shots that he was pulling off.


Yeah really. With the way Kobe is playing now you are going to have to damn near blow these fools out from start to finish to feel safe.
We could never keep the foot on the gas through the game.

[NZ Spurs]

Kobe didn't beat the Spurs.

[SAGambler]

Bowen's defense on Kobe is exactly what it was supposed to be. Not send him to the FT line over and over again. Make him shoot jumpers and limit his assists.

NZ Spurs is right. Kobe didn't beat us. Our "dry spells" on offense is what beat us. It's great when Spurs are hitting 60+ %, but it sucks when we go on one of our 1 for 15 streaks, with about 4 or 5 dumb turnovers.

But that has plagued this team all season. No reason to expect it wouldn't continue into the playoffs.

The Spurs have shown all year long that they can get a huge lead, and then give it back in a short time. That's why other teams don't get discouraged when they are down double digits. They know eventually the Spurs will go on a dry spell, and let them back in the game.

3 of the 5 games vs Lakers, Spurs had huge double digit leads, and managed to lose 2 of them, and eventually lose the game.

Maybe next year it will get better. Let's hope so.

[mrspurs]

kobe is that good...there is no other like him in the current nba, and bowen has lost a step....much like every player on the spurs roster except for mighty mouse,horry,finley,barry,fab,manu,duncan,parker,ku rt and.......pop....they lost 2 steps...go spurs go

[imatroll]

no not even that. i dont see bowen pulling all kinds of his dirty tricks on kobe. u know like elbows,kicks,puttinh his feet under kobe's legs etc

The elbows and kicks maybe. But he put his feet under Kobe's legs pleanty of times.

The strategy Pop and Bowen used on him was unique. And it could have been a smart move, but making Kobe shoot the ball might not always work. Especially in the playoffs. He is just too good.

Pop is a great coach to think that up by the way. And Bowen is a great defender to stick to the plan all series long.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

Seeing the way that Kobe blew up the second Bowen went the bench in game 1 probably had something to do with Bruce looking a little less physical. The drop off between Bowen to Udoka meant that foul trouble for the Bruce would be a nail in the Spurs coffin.

[LakerLanny]

People should appreciate what Bowen did against Kobe - particularly when you consider he is 36 or 37 years old. Players ten years younger than him could not have competed and (sort of) limited him like that. Bryant had great numbers this series and was just "on". But the Spurs slowed down the Lakers enough to have a chance and the Spurs played very well defensively, but its the other end of the floor that betrayed them.

I agree. Kobe went for 39, he might have gone for 59 on a weaker defender.

Bowen and Battier are still the two best in the league at guarding Kobe, but no one shuts him down entirely over the course of a series.

At least he (and some bizarre officiating) kept him off the FT line, that was a smart strategy.

[Spurminator]

Bowen did what we needed him to do all series. Our offense failed us.

[JamStone]

Kobe is really fucking good.

[K-State Spur]

and im starting to think that i think the spurs were wrong playing off kobe like that.

kobe really worked on his shooting the past couple of years and he is a very good shooter. i think he is one of the best in the league. its just cause he is KOBE he doesnt get that label.

but i think i would live with kobe at the line all the time. cause that doesnt allow his teammates to get involved as much.

take your chance with kobe at the line. he wont make allllll of them. and he didnt really have to work to hard for his points shooting jumpers all game. he can do that. he likes shooting

disagree. it kept kobe in check for long stretches and he wasn't able to get his teammates involved like he did in previous series.

the spurs lost this series because their offense stagnated at the absolute worst times. not because of how they defended kobe.

[bigdog]

rip is a winner. but he does this to him.

http://img360.imageshack.us/img360/1240/bowen20jerseybg0.jpg

If you've ever played basketball you know that this is nowhere near dirty. Every player in every league, whether it's high school, college, professionally, shit, even MIDDLE school do this. It's just something that happens.

[Lake_show]

Nobody can guard Kobe.

[InK]

take your chance with kobe at the line. he wont make allllll of them. and he didnt really have to work to hard for his points shooting jumpers all game. he can do that. he likes shooting

Wow stupid.:flag:

[ManuTim_best of Fwiendz]

Pop's gameplan against Bowen was flawed.

he relied too much on the bowen factor. We should have thrown different defenses (not one on one guys) but mix in some double teams off Kobe, force him to be facilitator at times, etc. Taking a chance off someone not Kobe, is better than allowing Kobe himself to throw up any thing.

Kobe did whatever the fuck he wanted. Sloan did a better job at defending Kobe and had a better gameplan than Pop. Pop had too much confidence in Bowen, and even though Bowen keeps us from relying on double teams, Bowen can't stop Kobe. He's not as young as Battier.


Nobody can guard Kobe.

Pop got outcoached. It's obvious in the fact that, we lost in the same exact way in game 1 and game 5, all Kobe had to do was wait and then take over in the clutch. Kobe needed to see more double teams. He can get any shot he wants, the other four players cannot.
Without Manu's aberration, we would have gotten swept with a team that was good enough on paper to make the series go seven games--given the opportunities we gave ourselves in the second half. I don't understand why we thought we had to keep a double digit lead by taking 40 percentage shots instead of continuing with points in the paint. We never solved the issue of offensive droughts.

[K-State Spur]

Pop's gameplan against Bowen was flawed.

he relied too much on the bowen factor. We should have thrown different defenses (not one on one guys) but mix in some double teams off Kobe, force him to be facilitator at times, etc. Taking a chance off someone not Kobe, is better than allowing Kobe himself to throw up any thing.

Kobe did whatever the fuck he wanted. Sloan did a better job at defending Kobe and had a better gameplan than Pop. Pop had too much confidence in Bowen, and even though Bowen keeps us from relying on double teams, Bowen can't stop Kobe. He's not as young as Battier.



Pop got outcoached. It's obvious in the fact that, we lost in the same exact way in game 1 and game 5, all Kobe had to do was wait and then take over in the clutch. Kobe needed to see more double teams. He can get any shot he wants, the other four players cannot.
Without Manu's aberration, we would have gotten swept with a team that was good enough on paper to make the series go seven games--given the opportunities we gave ourselves in the second half. I don't understand why we thought we had to keep a double digit lead by taking 40 percentage shots instead of continuing with points in the paint. We never solved the issue of offensive droughts.

Outside of the second half of game 5, Kobe's offense did not win this series.

The defensive gameplan was good enough to beat the Lakers...handedly. The offensive execution wasn't even close.

[KobeOwnsBowen]

Yep Bowen wasted his effort on Kobe which he had no chance against. He should've guarded Odom.

[Mamba24]

Bowen is the best defender on Kobe, with Battier a close second. I agree with other people, if Bowen played too physical with him, he would have been in foul trouble the whole series. I won't mention several non-calls against Bowen, because it's moot at this point. There is no other defender on the Spurs roster who would have come close to defending Kobe well. Udoka....please! Ginobili would have been abused...Duncan couldn't leave the paint to go out and guard Kobe. Finely.....LOL! Barry is far too slow....so Bowen was the best option.

[KobeOwnsBowen]

Bowen is the best defender on Kobe, with Battier a close second. I agree with other people, if Bowen played too physical with him, he would have been in foul trouble the whole series. I won't mention several non-calls against Bowen, because it's moot at this point. There is no other defender on the Spurs roster who would have come close to defending Kobe well. Udoka....please! Ginobili would have been abused...Duncan couldn't leave the paint to go out and guard Kobe. Finely.....LOL! Barry is far too slow....so Bowen was the best option.
Kobe will get his no matter who guards him. San Antonio should've done to us what they did to New Orleans. Let Paul get his and shut down Stojakovic (Odom or Radmanovic)

[angelbelow]

Kobe will get his no matter who guards him. San Antonio should've done to us what they did to New Orleans. Let Paul get his and shut down Stojakovic (Odom or Radmanovic)

you could be right.

[21_Blessings]

Bowen is the best defender on Kobe, with Battier a close second. I agree with other people, if Bowen played too physical with him, he would have been in foul trouble the whole series. I won't mention several non-calls against Bowen, because it's moot at this point. There is no other defender on the Spurs roster who would have come close to defending Kobe well. Udoka....please! Ginobili would have been abused...Duncan couldn't leave the paint to go out and guard Kobe. Finely.....LOL! Barry is far too slow....so Bowen was the best option.

Prince guards Kobe better than Battier.

Laffo at Battier guarding Kobe well. You do realize Kobe has dropped 50+ on Battier more than once right.

[Fake Dynasty]

Kobe gives Bowen a taste of his own medicine and he's one of the only cats that dictates to Bowen. He muscles him, hits him, and doesn't allow Bruce to ride him. It's not that the Spurs wanted Kobe to be a shooter, Kobe simply isn't the same shot-jacker he used to be and understand better than anyone how to play against Bruce Bowen.

That being said, Bruce played well this series. He did force Kobe into some tough decision-type situations and if Kobe only gets to the line 11 times in a 5-game series, you did your job. Kobe just played smart basketball and was able to get to pretty much any spot he wanted to, tks for good screen n' roll offense with Pau. Kobe respects Bowen and I'd bet he'd tell anyone in a heartbeat that Bruce is without a doubt his greatest challenge, defender-wise. You could see the respect after the game: Bruce was beating on Kobe's chest and seemed to be encouraging him to go get the O'Brien trophy.

The Spurs need to get more athletic and it'd be really nice if they could land an athletic 4 or 5. They'll be back though... same pain-in-the-neck Spurs.

[Ghost Writer]

This is why it no longer makes sense to carry the liability of Bowen when anyone can invite Kobe to shoot.

[E20]

Grabbing jerseys is dirty.

I guess Ron Artest is dirty too. Moreso than Bowen because he pulls down peoples pants...............GMAFB :rolleyes

[pjjrfan]

no its not dirty but ive seen bowen do that to rip more than once. and thats not a natural part of baksteball defense. u do it once in a while sure but bowen is blatant and habitual jersey pulling lover.


my point is bowen seems to keep a certain distance to kobe. i think the fact that they both respect each other works to kobe's advantage.


kobe's a killer. the moment he sees you respect his skills, he'll go for the kill.


thats all im sayin.
A lot of shirt pulling goes on in the NBA, check out Tim whenever he makes a move on someone, his jersey mysteriously stretches. As for Bowen's D on Kobe, it was the game plan, blame Pop, they didn't want him to go to the line, seems from that angle Bowen did one helluva job. What's all the complaining about?

[Brutalis]

Dude up there nailed it but I will add.

Kobe is the MVP on the #1 seed Lakers so there is no way he doesn't get the call anytime BB tries to hold defense. Therefor he lays off a little, gives him room to juke the shit out of him and dunk it all over Duncan for the 654th time in his career.

[Spurs da champs]

IMO The should of just trapped Kobe and doubled him a lot of the time. Put finley and bowen on him ocassionaly and let radmanovich take those shots b/c they'res not gurantee he'll make them plus in one game he had a bunch of open shots that he missed.

[Ghost Writer]

Again, if no one on the planet can guard Kobe, why play Bowen?

He makes no one work on the other end, and all he has is the occasional baseline 3.

[demosthenes247]

Again, if no one on the planet can guard Kobe, why play Bowen?

He makes no one work on the other end, and all he has is the occasional baseline 3.

The alternative is what? Putting Finley or Barry on Kobe who both have no chance of guarding Kobe? In that case, Kobe will score 40+ easily and you'll get 5-10 more points on offense, maybe? The defense was fine, you just needed more offensive production from Ginobili.