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That's another problem because if it's not Bonner (1ST half tonight and against HOU), it's Pop's other Bonner clone and 3-pt mancrush Novak (2ND half tonight and against HOU). So instead of just one problem, it's double trouble for the Spurs.
I don't think Bonner's the scapegoat, but his consistent 20 mpg had to be of concern at some point due to the Spurs lack of defense. Don't get me wrong - his shooting has been phenomenal, but he'll always be limited on what he brings to the table on protecting the paint.
The rest of the team has played like crap, but a better defense would hide a little bit of that. It's just hard to get used to a Spurs team that has to shoot well or they don't win when it counts.
That's another problem because if it's not Bonner (1ST half tonight and against HOU), it's Pop's other Bonner clone and 3-pt mancrush Novak (2ND half tonight and against HOU). So instead of just one problem, it's double trouble for the Spurs.
it's not just Bonner. it's the Bonner/Blair combo particularly. teams just waltz right into the paint when those two are on the floor together. that stretch in the 1st and 2nd when Pop had them both in the game is when the game started getting out of hand, and the Spurs never recovered. i think they went down 8 or 10 and it just ballooned slowly until the Spurs knew they lost the game and just mailed it in. before you knew it it was way out of hand. Miami was just playing with so much confidence once they had that cushion.
as sad as this sounds. Looks like Dice needs to go back to the bench and Blair needs to start. Otherwise our 2nd unit gets assraped.
to be fair, it was only partially his fault. it was that tiny midget frontcourt of Blair/Bonner.
but i agree. that 7 minutes stretch was where it started to go downhill.
Worst thing that happened was all of Bonner's three's against the Heat last game. It gave Pop renewed confidence in him!
Why Pop plays Bonner and Blair together is beyond me.
no doubt about the defensive end, but I think that affects every big man the Spurs have. They try to defend bigs outside of the paint only to have them backed down all the way to the paint. Those types of back downs constantly kill the Spurs.
Bonner isn't the scapegoat for this recent loss. However, he represents the type of limited-skill player that the Spurs have chosen to align themselves with. If the Spurs had another long, tall frontline player, who was both a good paint presence on both ends of the court, that would help offset some of Bonner's deficiencies and would help Duncan immensely.
Bonner is also the poster child for the newly-discovered, flawed philosophy of the head coach, who now seemingly values offense and 3-pt shooting over rebounding and defense.
Not just that, the other thing that kills our bench is guard penetration. Bonner just puts his hands up and backpedals till the guard gets an and-1, and Blair can't challenge at the rim either.
yes that's unfortunately true too
well bonner plays alot of minutes at center and thats the most defensive position go figure like ive said all year were screwed playing bonner +20 in P.O its just dumb. and i didnt even watch this game because i heard all the cheers so i chose to ignore haha but good thing i did or i would be really upset. i hope fans tell pop to release me too
That's been a statement that is usually attached by ridicule because there was apparently no long and tall bigs available. Maybe that's true, but I have a hard time understanding how having a player that is remotely athletic and that can play some bit of defense wouldn't be useful when Blair and Bonner are being overmatched. I would think that's more valuable than having Novak on the bench.
If Anderson's not going to get playoff minutes - send him back to Austin and pick up a 3 that will try and play d during the 5-7 minutes of playing time that are available.
I'm sure Pop knows what he's doing, but I don't think it's wrong to be concerned with this team's chances and especially given how important this year is as one of Timmy's last.
You know what? Sure, it's partially Pop's fault for giving him a role that obviously is well beyond his capabilities. But at the same time, Pop has given him chance after chance to improve his game on the defensive end. He has the size to be a decent rebounder. He should have enough seasons under his belt to learn how to take a charge. You would think he would have some sort of pride to really hand a hard foul or get frustrated of being toyed around. He's been seemingly forever in this system to miss rotation after rotation on a nightly basis. It's not about effort. He plays hard, no doubt about it. There's obviously some kind of cap he just can't seem to get over.
I can't think of one player Pop has had more patience with than him, honestly. And he just keeps goofing around night after night. Just being happy to be there.
So you have to pin some blame on him. The Spurs made an investment on this turd, and for the life of me I cannot fathom they though he would be this kind of turnstile on defense. I just can't convince myself that they ever thought his offense would outproduce the leaking sieve he's on defense.
Bonner will always get ted on here, even when his shot is on. Nothings really changed since Bonners been here. Bonner is and has been that one trick pony. The problem is that, for years the Spurs have not been able to fill the frontline void with a true bigman. My hope is that Splitter will be that guy next year, since this season is basically a lost cause for Splitter.
The Spurs willingly re-signed Bonner this offseason, and Pop handed him the 3rd/4th big role.
If they wanted to move away from him, they had every chance to do so.
Obviously, this is what they wanted, there's no two ways to look at it.
Bonner should not even step on the court vs the following teams: LA, Miami, Memphis, Portland.
So then why would one start a thread alluding to Bonners lack of defense when he isnt even the 'main' scapegoat? Why not start a Steve Novak thread or Anderson thread?
Isnt it reasonable to assume that when a poster makes a thread en led 'LMAO Bonner Defense' that the poster somehow alludes that player is responsible for loss?
Last edited by LongtimeSpursFan; 03-15-2011 at 12:35 PM.
http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursna...o-south-beach/Monday, Bonner went 0 for 1 from long range, picked up two quick fouls and was benched for good early in the second quarter “because he was horrible defensively,” Popovich said.
Complaining about Bonners defense is redundant at this point. Bonner/Blair has to be the worst defensive combo in the NBA.
Matt Bonner can only shoot 3's. And in the playoffs he will choke at that. LOL Mat Bonner and not just lol his defense. This guy should not even play 10 minutes per game.
We do have some size, but pop chose not to develop Splitter, and instead gave the minutes to Blair. So much for that, he's already warming the bench as playoffs get closer. You telling me that no matter how much of an adjustment it is for Splitter, he couldn't learn to provide the spurs with 10 solid minutes of the bench at center. Give me a break.
He shouldn't have played him the 2nd half of the season.
THIS is what drives me crazy!!!. pops been blue ballin duncan with low post help since robinson left and the one chance he has to get a legit young primed 7fter in there what does he do??? he benches his ass and signs bonner for 3 years, i think it takes the spurs fans calling his name in the arena to embarrass pop and make him feel guilty/stupid
Bonner's Defense if ing garbage
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