Bruce Bowen will hold a press conference tomorrow

[manufan10]

Almost all HOF'ers. You do the math

Almost, but not all.

[TD 21]

If you can't make the distinction, then theres no hope.

Horry made contributions, but he wasn't as VITAL to the team's success as Bruce Bowen.

Look at their record when Bowen would not play. Look at their defense when Bowen wasn't present.

Bruce Bowen brought Spurs defense BACK to the forefront and was argueably the MVP of the 2007 NBA Finals.

I can make the distinction, but you didn't answer the question: Where do you draw the line?

After thinking about it, I do think Bowen's jersey should be retired, but I still don't think it should be an automatic. Duncan is an automatic; Bowen is debatable.

Let's get something straight. Robinson and Duncan were the genesis of the Spurs becoming a historically great defensive team. Then, Bowen, along with damn near everyone who put on the jersey, followed suit.

[angelbelow]

I dont think we should rush retiring his jersey, just incase he decides he wants to come back for the playoffs :p

[Mel_13]

Almost all HOF'ers. You do the math

They have retired 11 jerseys since they were founded in St. Louis in 1882. That is an average of one jersey retirement per 11.5 years. Every one of the retired jerseys is a Hall of Famer except for one, Ken Boyer, who was the consummate Cardinal who unexpectedly died at an early age. There are even several HOF players who played a substantial number of years with the Cards and who were enshrined as a Cardinal and they haven't had their jerseys retired.

By your standard, the Celtics have been too lenient.

Bottom line, each franchise in every sport sets its own standards. Once the Yankees retire "2" for Jeter and "6" for Torre all the single digits will be retired. The Lakers have been much more stingy.

These arguments over whether his number should or should not be retired are a bit silly as each poster will weigh the decision against his own standards. There will be no agreement on a common standard.

The only real question is will his number be retired? If Popovich and Holt remain in their current positions, the answer to that question is yes.