Bowen Ds Up on BRoy, Spurs Win

With the start of the official NBA season, I think it's fitting to have my first post about Bruce Bowen from the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. I love watching Bowen play, the Spurs superpest, because he's such a great defender. It's no secret that I'm a big defensive guy so I love watching guys like Bowen, Raja Bell, Battier, Camby, Okafor, etc... I posted earlier on Bruce Bowen doing his TNT fundamentals segment on becoming a better man-to-man defender. He's just so great at moving his feet and using his hands. Watch the video and then you can read my thoughts below.



Here are some more things that I love about Bowen,

- He allows you to drive but gives you a bump with his body to let you know he's there. Once you pick up your dribble, he uses his body to force you away from the basket.
- The charge, maybe a little embellishment, but at least he knows how to take a charge.
- Even when he gets beat, he uses the angle to his advantage by forcing BRoy into help.

BRoy's stat line, 39 minutes, 2-for-10, 7 points, 4 turnovers. Now that is what I call shutdown.

There's something to be said about a player who takes pride in shutting down the other team's best player. If you have a player like that on your team, it can be a god-send.

A great DVD that breaks down the man-to-man fundamentals is Geno Auriemma's 8 Essential Defensive Drills DVD. Coach Auriemma is the head coach of multiple national championship winning lady Huskies of UConn.

Go over the Coaching Basketball Forum to discuss.