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I finally agree on something with you...
If my memory serves me right, I remember Randolph was having a field day against the Spurs back when he was in Portland. Pop put Bowen on Randolph... Bowen bumped him, fronted him, and pretty much cooled him off. So no, Bowen usually does not guard 4s, but he's versatile enough to handle guarding some 4s at certain times.
I finally agree on something with you...
agreed with whott, Bruce is an all-legend NBA defender..his tricks are unmatched, he's been able to guard ANY position, including perimeter Cs like Okur, he gets inside most players heads..we won't be getting another Bowen..
as for our next defensive stopper..Hill is obviously going to be an elite PG defensive player, he's already one of the best defensive PGs in his rookie season..he's obviously too small to defend most SGs though, so he'll have to stick to the 1..
I love Hairston's individual D from what I've seen..he can definitely be groomed to become a good defensive player in our system..
I haven't seen much of Gist, but I love his body..we haven't had a player with that kind of body in a while..
He turned Shawn Marion into a skidmark annually for a couple of years there...Shawn Marion made the AS game as a PF.
Add Chris Bosh to the list of 4's Bowen has shut down.
Not a chance.
Raja Bell would be a nice replacement IMO
To the point he will be difficult to replace, at least in the role he serves on this team, think of it this way.
Who in the league (without regard to having to figure out a trade) would you take from another team to replace the role he plays?
Of course there are guys like LeBron, etc.. but I am talking about how Bowen fits this team, percentage of salary cap, does not have a big role on offense, etc...
There just isn't anyone like him out there. Replacing Bruce will have to me more on the order of what Bruno says, all other perimeter players are going to have to step up a notch.
Off the top of my head Dirk, Bosh, Randolph, Okur, Jamison, Aldridge, Odom, Marion, Diaw. He even had success against Karl Malone.
lol @ "should be as effective at guarding the 2".
That's an amazingly ludicrous statement. Bowen is one of the top ten players in NBA history in terms of defending shooting guards. To make it a given that Hill will match that level of defense prior to Hill ever defending any shooting guard in the NBA for an extended period of time is crazy.
I like Hill and he undoubtedly has very good defensive potential but he's the same guy who got eaten alive by Roko Ukic earlier in the season.
We should be able to find a replacement for Bowen around the time we find a replacement for David Robinson.
List of high profile players that have had Bruce Bowen unleashed on them by Pop (with some success):
Kobe Bryant
Vince Carter
Ray Allen
Steve Nash
Dirk Nowitzki
Peja Stojakovic
Shawn Marion
Zach Randolph
Chris Bosh
Jamal Crawford
Mike Miller
Wally Sczerbiak
Chauncey Billups
LaMarcus Aldridge
Richard Hamilton
Carmelo Anthony
Richard Jefferson
Michael Redd
Mike Bibby
Mehmet Okur
List of players that have given Bowen fits (he nevertheless has managed to win some battles against them):
Allen Iverson
Lebron James
Paul Pierce
Andre Miller
Tracy McGrady
Chris Paul
Dwayne Wade
Brandon Roy
That is versatility...
I suspect Bowen's replacement is going to have to come in defensive contributions by Hill, Hairston, and hopefully Gist. If the three of them can bring the same things collectively that Bowen has brought to the Spurs in the past several years, then the team has a very bright future. I don't think a player with Bowen's skill set and versatility exists anywhere in the league, and if he does, the Spurs aren't going to be likely to pry him away from his current team.
I agree Hill becoming a reliable defensive stopper. But he is not a Bruce replacement. Hill is good on scoring, he both can score and defense. Replacement for Bowen is Hairston. I saw him being put to guard LBJ, and saw him getting tips from Bowne on the sideline. He is long,athletic, able to dunk and scoring so I think he will be a plus. If Bowen keep teaching him he will be Bowens heir. George Hill got better job to do than replacing Bowen, he will help Tony in point guard position and tearing up defense....
its quite amazing the see a player get zero time almost until last quarter and play as well as he does, he wouldnt even really be warmed up.
bowens replacement is playin on the warriors, portland or orlando team atm....
theres at leasts 3 guys im interested in takn bowens place....
We shouldn't be looking for a bruce bowen replacement
we need a sean elliott
a ninja that can play offense and defense.. someone like ron artest
Maybe Batum in few years
The Spurs are still searching fo rthat mythical long SF.. Batum has the potential.. so does Ariza. I'm sure if they try hard enough they can find one. hopefully not shorter than 6'7'' and ideally even taller and longer.
Maybe, but guys who can defend hall of famers at four positions night in and night out and do so successfully for several years are pretty rare. So rare that we might just as easily be talking about who's going to step in and do the things Duncan does. Reality suggests that it's going to take good efforts from multiple places to fill that void, that's all I'm saying.
Damn i thought this was a Nicolas Batum thread.
it makes me very sad to think of bowen on borrowed time.
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