Guess who could be re-signing with the Spurs...

[Kindergarten Cop]

Let's not forget either that Bonner has got to be one of (if not the most) singled-out player in the league as far as officiating goes. The guy is basically playing defense with an arm tied behind his back. As soon as he moves the officials blow their whistles and call a foul on the guy.

We've all witnessed this hateful treatment by the league's refs towards the guy .. Bonner hanging his head in shame, muttering obscenities under his breath, while he basically gets raped the other way and nothing is called.

I still remember vividly that ugly mohawked ----er on the kings (can't recall his name) slapping down HARD on Bonner's arm (who was in the process of securing a crucial rebound), which jerked Bonner's arm so hard he not only lost control of the ball he ended up falling on his head and 3 refs just stood there watching and did nothing.

Point is, not only is Bonner a liability with his own choking tendencies come playoff time, the guy literally cannot play physical on the defensive side of the ball without accruing costly fouls. And with Blair becoming a fixture in the 2nd unit (and his defensive woes) we need players who can play defense (or in Bonner's case, are allowed to).

I agree with this 100%. I remember noting this after a few games in April:


http://spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=150496

I guess I am in the minority here, because I have been pleasantly surprised by Bonner's play this year - especially on defense. Last night's game was a great example of how he has improved and how much he hustles on defense. He will never be in the discussion as a great post defender but if he maintains what he does on offense (including his new baby sky hook ) and continues to improve on the defensive end, I would LOVE for the Spurs to re-sign him and continue to bring him off the bench. As he continues to improve defensively, he will begin to get more respect from the officials also. He has had clean blocks in back to back games (that even the opposing play-by-play guys noted) that were called fouls simply because they are not used to seeing him play effective defense. Again, I realize that I am in the minority here but I just thought I'd chime in.

Unfortunately, this will always be the case and likely hurt the Spurs if they choose to bring him back. I am however, going to stick with my approval of bringing Bonner back as the 5th big off the bench because he would likely get much more respect from the refs (defensively) going up against the opposing team's bench than he would the starters - but I am not in favor of bringing him back if he's placed ahead of the top 4 bigs (of course, assuming Splitter signs).

[taps]

i am unequivocally against Bonner's return to Spurs but using a vaguely eugenic argument to justify the lack of respect he gets is a reach. It's about ability, not race

[AFBlue]

So has there actually been any news on this front in days, or has this thread devolved into another "I want him/I don't want him" argument thread?

[Obstructed_View]

i am unequivocally against Bonner's return to Spurs but using a vaguely eugenic argument to justify the lack of respect he gets is a reach. It's about ability, not race

It's about the fact that he's the first big off the bench when he should be a role player. It's about the fact that he's playing interior defense against first line players. It's about the fact that he commits fouls and doesn't get superstar calls.

[EIC]

Let's not forget either that Bonner has got to be one of (if not the most) singled-out player in the league as far as officiating goes. The guy is basically playing defense with an arm tied behind his back. As soon as he moves the officials blow their whistles and call a foul on the guy.

We've all witnessed this hateful treatment by the league's refs towards the guy .. Bonner hanging his head in shame, muttering obscenities under his breath, while he basically gets raped the other way and nothing is called.

I still remember vividly that ugly mohawked ----er on the kings (can't recall his name) slapping down HARD on Bonner's arm (who was in the process of securing a crucial rebound), which jerked Bonner's arm so hard he not only lost control of the ball he ended up falling on his head and 3 refs just stood there watching and did nothing.

Point is, not only is Bonner a liability with his own choking tendencies come playoff time, the guy literally cannot play physical on the defensive side of the ball without accruing costly fouls. And with Blair becoming a fixture in the 2nd unit (and his defensive woes) we need players who can play defense (or in Bonner's case, are allowed to).

This is not a bad point and, when combined with his choke-artistry, may explain the uncanny momentum-killing effect he has when he steps on the court. When he checks in, it's like the other team are a bunch of Great White sharks and Pop has just dumped a bucket of chum in the water: it's a feeding frenzy for the other team.

[EIC]

So has there actually been any news on this front in days, or has this thread devolved into another "I want him/I don't want him" argument thread?

Neither, actually. It's about a 20:1 ratio in favor of Bonner haters. But for the most part, we've moved past just kicking him in the nuts and have now begun analyzing precisely why he is almost entirely worthless in a Spurs uni.

[TJastal]

This is not a bad point and, when combined with his choke-artistry, may explain the uncanny momentum-killing effect he has when he steps on the court. When he checks in, it's like the other team are a bunch of Great White sharks and Pop has just dumped a bucket of chum in the water: it's a feeding frenzy for the other team.

As funny as this analogy is, its eerily accurate. And with Bonner all it really takes is one of those typical touch/barely any contact type fouls in a crucial situation that they love to whistle him on to make him hang his head in shame and stop playing even his normal "matador" defense. And then the opposing team basically gets a confidence surge knowing that ref has their back and Bonner won't be playing anything resembling "defense" the rest of the game.

[TJastal]

i am unequivocally against Bonner's return to Spurs but using a vaguely eugenic argument to justify the lack of respect he gets is a reach. It's about ability, not race

Just looking at this from the POV of Matt Bonner, I would argue he has the ability to play fair defense (seen flashes of it). The ability is there but he is basically limited to playing "matador" defense (ie not attempting to hinder, block or otherwise stop an offensive player). And for a guy playing "matador" defense (which is to say, almost zero defense) he gets whistled well more than his fair share IMO.

[Chucho]

Let's not forget either that Bonner has got to be one of (if not the most) singled-out player in the league as far as officiating goes. The guy is basically playing defense with an arm tied behind his back. As soon as he moves the officials blow their whistles and call a foul on the guy.

We've all witnessed this hateful treatment by the league's refs towards the guy .. Bonner hanging his head in shame, muttering obscenities under his breath, while he basically gets raped the other way and nothing is called.

BWAHAHAHA...it's because he's a black superstar, right? Give me a friggin break.

[Russ]

I don't know where Bonner is signing.

All I know is that he is a free agent.

He's out there.

And rumor has it he's booked an hour of time on the Fly Fishing Channel tomorrow night . . .