Who the is Matt Bonner?
Nowitzki back on Bonner's 'hit list'
Jeff McDonald
The list of players Spurs center Matt Bonner has been asked to guard this season reads like a who's-who of All-Star big men.
Amaré Stoudemire. Kevin Garnett. Dirk Nowitzki. Pau Gasol. David West.
Never one to be confused with a defensive specialist, Bonner self-deprecatingly calls this his “hit list.”
“Pretty much every game, I go in more focused on defense than on offense, for sure,” said Bonner, who will start on Nowitzki again tonight when Dallas comes to the AT&T Center. “Usually I am at a disadvantage against those guys, and I have to find a way to overcome that.”
Known more for his sweet 3-point stroke, Bonner harbors no delusions about morphing into a defensive stopper. In one of the more unheralded success stories of the Spurs' season, however, he has begun to mold himself into a serviceable defender.
Even coach Gregg Popovich has taken notice.
“In the beginning, he kind of played like an erector set,” Popovich said. “He's learning to bend his knees, move his feet, read situations. It's a repe ion thing. I think he's come a long way since the beginning of the year.”
There was a time when Bonner would have been more likely to win a Miss Hawaiian Tropic compe ion than earn praise from Popovich about his defense.
Bonner, 6-foot-10, earned his starting job on the basis of his 3-point accuracy, which at 49.7 percent leads the NBA. He might not have been able to keep the job, however, had it not been for steady march toward competence on the defensive end.
In a victory at Washington on Saturday, Bonner had a hand in holding Antawn Jamison to 16 points on 6-of-17 shooting.
“I'm not quite at the level of Bruce Bowen just yet,” Bonner said. “I'm just trying to manage my limitations, basically.”
Post-break blues: Since returning from the All-Star break, Tony Parker has been struggling to regain his shooting groove.
In three games, Parker has made just 31.9 percent of his field goals (15-of-47). He did most of the damage to his shooting percentage in a loss at New York, in which he went 5-of-20.
“That first game was tough for me,” said Parker, who was 7-of-11 for 14 points in the All-Star game. “After that, it should be back to normal.”
Parking lot closed: Due to ongoing clean-up from the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, Lot 1 at the AT&T Center will be unavailable for tonight's game against Dallas and Wednesday's game against Portland.
Fans attending the game are urged to allot extra time to park.
You'll find out tommorow. Whoops, I mean later. Damn these time zones....
The Dirk Stopper.
id sticky this parking situation... i know ill be there at the game tom and didnt know anything about that.
a basketballplayer in brian scalabrines body!
the real question is, is dirk the bonner stopper?
The most acurate 3 point shooting big on the court tomorrow night--move over Dirk...
Matt is no Dirk, but he has turned a corner this year.
I think everyone is MUCH happier we have Matt this year and next.
Could this translate into a long term contract beyond 2010?
"erector set"
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I wonder how long it takes for them to get the smell out of the AT&T Center.
You mean after the Mavs leave?![]()
I've been to games after, and I never noticed a smell.
Small price to pay for alot of the good the rodeo does.
Also the biggest scrub on the court, move over J-Ho.
Bonner will hit at least 4 three's bc of Dirk's lack of defensive awareness which will leave Bonner open along the arc
The internet is a communications tool, used the world over so people can come together and about movies and share pornography with one another.
It's also where people can anonymously call each other " gots" and " s".
I raise you that Dirk will hit 70% of his 18fot fadeaways because he's playing the Spurs and he always makes that bull at a high clip against the Spurs![]()
Sorry, he's no flyin Ryan Bowen.
getting off topic but this aspect of the Internet has always amused me. People with anger issues get on an anonymous site and just let it rip. The amusing part is (a) they are not identifiable and (b) they have no way to carry out their threats. So they're really just jerking off. I always laugh at them. Especially when I best them in whatever the actual game of the site is.
The Internet actually sucks pretty bad in this respect. It provides an outlet for these at best non-productive and at worst destructive tendencies in people.
the joys of home court advantage.![]()
Bonners gonna teach Dirk the Rainbow 3
He still runs like a T-rex with his hands in front of him.
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