Bruce Bowen

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Bruce Bowen

Position	Small forward
Height	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Weight	200 lb (91 kg)
Team	San Antonio Spurs
Nationality	United States
Born	June 14, 1971 (age 35) Merced, California
College	Cal State Fullerton
Draft	Undrafted
Pro career	1997–present
Former teams	Miami Heat (1997) Boston Celtics (1997–1999) Philadelphia 76ers (1999–2000) Miami Heat (2000–2001)

Bruce Bowen (Born June 14, 1971 in Merced, California) is an American professional basketball player who currently plays small forward for the San Antonio Spurs of the NBA.

Bowen played four seasons at Cal State Fullerton, appearing in 101 games, and averaged 11.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. He averaged 16.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 36.6 minutes in 27 games as a senior in 1992-93, paving the way for him to be named to the All-Big West Conference First Team. Bowen ranks 12th on the Titans’ all-time list in career points (1,155) and is seventh all-time in rebounds (559).

After bouncing around the CBA, and later as a journeyman for several teams in the NBA, Bowen finally found his niche with the San Antonio Spurs in 2001. His defense and clutch shooting meshed well with the likes of David Robinson, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker. He won championships with the Spurs in 2003 and 2005.

[edit] Player profile

Considered a defensive specialist, Bowen has gained a reputation for being one of the toughest perimeter defenders in the NBA. He ended as runner-up in both the 2005 and 2006 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Awards behind Ben Wallace and made the NBA All-Defensive Teams in the last six consecutive years, making the Second Team in 2001, 2002 and 2003, and the First Team in 2004, 2005 and 2006. In 2005-06 Bowen was the leading vote getter for the NBA All-Defensive Team.[1]

Bowen's usual game assignment is to neutralize the opponent's best backcourt player. If needed, he also guards outside-shooting big men (like Dirk Nowitzki in the 2005-06 Western Conference Semifinals), making up for his lack of height with toughness. Bowen's effective "in-your-face" defense has drawn much ire from many of his one-on-one opponents, particularly Ray Allen and Vince Carter who both have accused Bowen of stepping under them during their jumpshot. The issue was further brought to the forefront when Bowen caused Steve Francis to injure his ankle by undercutting him.

On offense, Bowen is also a remarkable three-point shooter having lead the league in three-point shooting percentage in 2002-03 with a mark of 44.1%. He finished the 2005-06 regular season 9th in 3-point percent at 42.4% having played in all 82 games and averaging 33.6 minutes per game (with only Tony Parker (33.9) and Tim Duncan (34.8) averaging more minutes).

On the other hand, his miscellaneous contributions are rather average: his lifetime averages of 6.4 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game, and .566 foul shooting are considered mediocre, especially for his position. His foul shooting, in fact, is poor enough that he has at times been made the target of the so-called "Bruise-a-Bruce" defense. Nonetheless, Bowen is widely considered as one of the best role players in the NBA, especially on defense.

Bowen is also the current Ironman of the NBA, displacing Morris Peterson and Joe Johnson who failed to continue their respective streaks, and has now played 425 consecutive games since 2002 (as of March, 29th 2007).[2]

[edit] Personal life

Bowen is currently working toward his college degree at the University of Texas at San Antonio. He is married to Yardley Barbon, and the couple has one son, Ojani (born September 7, 2005). Bowen maintains an off-season home in Miami.[3] On his website, Bowen states that he is a big fan of the Dallas Cowboys and that he runs the Bruce Bowen Foundation, an organization set-up to provide scholarships, tuitions and to help those less fortunate. Bowen also states that he wants to become a teacher after his NBA career.