Is Bruce Bowen bad for the NBA? I personally can't fault Bruce Bowen for knowing his limitations and tailoring his game to his strengths. He is a rare commodity in the league- a bonafide defensive stopper who can hit the three. With that being said he will also ultimately make any game he plays in less entertaining and the purpose of professional sports is to be entertaining, so we have a problem. Bowen is constantly guarding the best scorer (and usually most exciting player) on the opposing team, frustrating that player by throwing everything but a hadouken fireball at him. His clutching, grabbing, kicking, and tripping ways neutralize the opposing team's star thus making every game involving him less fun unless of course you are a Spurs fan. Honestly, would you rather watch Kobe have a real shot to light it up for 50 or watch Bowen hack Mamba into a 7-28 shooting night? It would be one thing if Bowen played defense on the up and up, but he is widely considered the dirtiest player to enter the league since Dennis Rodman. My fear is that other NBA teams will try to find their own Bowens and that there will soon be an influx of marginal players who transformed themselves into defensive stoppers and every team will look like Mike Fratello's Cleveland Cavaliers.
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