greens
11-19-2006, 03:49 AM
Johnny Ludden
Express-News Staff Writer
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Tim Duncan pushed himself from the chair in front of his locker, felt his right ankle start to buckle and for one brief moment late Friday, the Spurs' championship hopes appeared to hinge on, of all things, the stability of a small, plastic bottle.
Fortunately for Duncan, the bottle underneath his foot gave way just as he started to stumble, spraying red sports drink up the wall of the locker and allowing him to regain his balance. As Duncan stared down at the floor in disbelief, someone wondered aloud if Bruce Bowen, branded in recent days as the NBA's most notorious foot fiend, had somehow played a role in the near accident.
Duncan looked across the room at Bowen. "You're going to be getting a call," he said, "from Stu."
"That's not funny," Bowen replied before laughing.
Stu would be Stu Jackson, the NBA's executive vice president of basketball operations, otherwise known as the league's lord of discipline. It was Jackson who – much to the chagrin of Spurs officials -- phoned Bowen a week ago to tell him he faced a possible fine or suspension should his feet again find their way underneath those of an opponent.
Bowen admits the warning unsettled him and Spurs coach Gregg Popovich doesn't think it's a coincidence that Houston's Tracy McGrady lit up the Spurs for a half two nights later. Or that Charlotte rookie Adam Morrison scored 27 points against Bowen on Wednesday.
"You try to move past and do things where that doesn't necessarily affect you," Bowen said. "I figured with all the new rules changes and all that, maybe I could get past this as well. But it's a little different."
Which is why Bowen was relieved when Popovich pulled him aside Friday morning and told him to forget Jackson's warning. Keep playing, Popovich said, the same way you've always played.
"He told me, 'Hey, I need you to be who you are,' " Bowen said. " 'Not this guy worrying about what someone is going to say or do regarding you.'
"Once I got his word, it was almost like, 'You may marry my daughter.' I was like, 'Well, OK.' "
With Popovich's permission, Bowen returned to the same harassing ways that have made him one of the league's best defenders – and one of its most infuriating pests. On Friday, he helped limit Chicago point guard Kirk Hinrich to 12 points. When Popovich switched him onto Ben Gordon, he helped force a pair of traveling violations and an offensive foul.
It's been a rough start to the season for Bowen. New York guard Steve Francis sprained his ankle after landing on him, which triggered another round of stories questioning whether Bowen is endangering shooters by stepping under them. Francis never made the allegation himself, but when the teams met again four days later, Knicks coach Isiah Thomas threatened to break Bowen's foot.
Bowen is accustomed to scrutiny, much of which has been generated by his run-ins with Seattle's Ray Allen. But Spurs coaches worry that the recent attention has begun to wear on him. One referee recently told Bowen he needed to watch himself because he's now a "marked man."
"It's funny how for somebody that doesn't do a whole in this game," Bowen said, "I'm sure talked about a whole lot."
The league has instructed its officials to call a foul whenever a defender doesn't give a shooter enough room to land. But Popovich didn't think Bowen needed a warning from the league. He was further upset that Jackson never spoke with anyone from the team about the call until Friday.
"I don't agree that he even thought he had to call him for any reason," Popovich said, "let alone that he did call him."
Bulls coach Scott Skiles thinks the league will have a difficult time fairly evaluating whether a defender is encroaching too much on a shooter or whether he's simply doing his job well.
"Pretty much every game, if you challenge a shot properly, there's a possibility a guy could land on your foot," Skiles said. "Now why that has happened to (Bowen) so many times I don't know. But that would be very hard to judge if that is intentional or not. I tend to think it's not.
"It's just an unfortunate thing that happens. Maybe not enough guys challenge shots. Maybe that's the reason you don't see it more."
Bowen wants to be liked and respected for his accomplishments just like anyone else. Few players are more active in the community, and he hopes that work isn't tarnished by the controversy that's followed him on the court in recent years.
But Bowen also said he can't afford to worry too much about what others think. Tonight, he'll probably spend time on both Kevin Martin and Ron Artest. Over the next week, he'll face Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki and Allen.
"One thing I learned is I can't be somebody I'm not," Bowen said. "So whenever I hear things like, 'Oh he's dirty,' I can't control that.
"I can only control the way I am, and that's about going out and working hard."
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA111906.01C.BKNspurs.bowen.2d09332.html
Express-News Staff Writer
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Tim Duncan pushed himself from the chair in front of his locker, felt his right ankle start to buckle and for one brief moment late Friday, the Spurs' championship hopes appeared to hinge on, of all things, the stability of a small, plastic bottle.
Fortunately for Duncan, the bottle underneath his foot gave way just as he started to stumble, spraying red sports drink up the wall of the locker and allowing him to regain his balance. As Duncan stared down at the floor in disbelief, someone wondered aloud if Bruce Bowen, branded in recent days as the NBA's most notorious foot fiend, had somehow played a role in the near accident.
Duncan looked across the room at Bowen. "You're going to be getting a call," he said, "from Stu."
"That's not funny," Bowen replied before laughing.
Stu would be Stu Jackson, the NBA's executive vice president of basketball operations, otherwise known as the league's lord of discipline. It was Jackson who – much to the chagrin of Spurs officials -- phoned Bowen a week ago to tell him he faced a possible fine or suspension should his feet again find their way underneath those of an opponent.
Bowen admits the warning unsettled him and Spurs coach Gregg Popovich doesn't think it's a coincidence that Houston's Tracy McGrady lit up the Spurs for a half two nights later. Or that Charlotte rookie Adam Morrison scored 27 points against Bowen on Wednesday.
"You try to move past and do things where that doesn't necessarily affect you," Bowen said. "I figured with all the new rules changes and all that, maybe I could get past this as well. But it's a little different."
Which is why Bowen was relieved when Popovich pulled him aside Friday morning and told him to forget Jackson's warning. Keep playing, Popovich said, the same way you've always played.
"He told me, 'Hey, I need you to be who you are,' " Bowen said. " 'Not this guy worrying about what someone is going to say or do regarding you.'
"Once I got his word, it was almost like, 'You may marry my daughter.' I was like, 'Well, OK.' "
With Popovich's permission, Bowen returned to the same harassing ways that have made him one of the league's best defenders – and one of its most infuriating pests. On Friday, he helped limit Chicago point guard Kirk Hinrich to 12 points. When Popovich switched him onto Ben Gordon, he helped force a pair of traveling violations and an offensive foul.
It's been a rough start to the season for Bowen. New York guard Steve Francis sprained his ankle after landing on him, which triggered another round of stories questioning whether Bowen is endangering shooters by stepping under them. Francis never made the allegation himself, but when the teams met again four days later, Knicks coach Isiah Thomas threatened to break Bowen's foot.
Bowen is accustomed to scrutiny, much of which has been generated by his run-ins with Seattle's Ray Allen. But Spurs coaches worry that the recent attention has begun to wear on him. One referee recently told Bowen he needed to watch himself because he's now a "marked man."
"It's funny how for somebody that doesn't do a whole in this game," Bowen said, "I'm sure talked about a whole lot."
The league has instructed its officials to call a foul whenever a defender doesn't give a shooter enough room to land. But Popovich didn't think Bowen needed a warning from the league. He was further upset that Jackson never spoke with anyone from the team about the call until Friday.
"I don't agree that he even thought he had to call him for any reason," Popovich said, "let alone that he did call him."
Bulls coach Scott Skiles thinks the league will have a difficult time fairly evaluating whether a defender is encroaching too much on a shooter or whether he's simply doing his job well.
"Pretty much every game, if you challenge a shot properly, there's a possibility a guy could land on your foot," Skiles said. "Now why that has happened to (Bowen) so many times I don't know. But that would be very hard to judge if that is intentional or not. I tend to think it's not.
"It's just an unfortunate thing that happens. Maybe not enough guys challenge shots. Maybe that's the reason you don't see it more."
Bowen wants to be liked and respected for his accomplishments just like anyone else. Few players are more active in the community, and he hopes that work isn't tarnished by the controversy that's followed him on the court in recent years.
But Bowen also said he can't afford to worry too much about what others think. Tonight, he'll probably spend time on both Kevin Martin and Ron Artest. Over the next week, he'll face Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki and Allen.
"One thing I learned is I can't be somebody I'm not," Bowen said. "So whenever I hear things like, 'Oh he's dirty,' I can't control that.
"I can only control the way I am, and that's about going out and working hard."
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA111906.01C.BKNspurs.bowen.2d09332.html