Bonner inspires New Hampshirine kids
Kevin Gray of the Union Leader wrote an article about Matt’s return to his hometown against the Boston Celtics pointing out that the last two times he’s visited the Garden he’s either been injured or benched. But not this time and Bonner put on a show, dropping a season-high 23 points including a must-make jumper in the dying minutes of the game.
“At the end of the game, when we kind of wrapped it up and they were fouling, I started getting goose bumps. That’s such a great feeling,” said Bonner, who made 10 of 17 shots and grabbed eight boards with two steals.
The Red Rocket made six previous trips to the TD Banknorth Garden, including four games with the Raptors, but always left the arena wanting more. Yesterday, in the final minute, Bonner atoned for a turnover and buried a 14-footer after dribbling past Kevin Garnett.
Even Celtics fans were primed to give Matt Bonner his dues, as one Celtics blog posted:
I have to tip my hat to Mr. Matt Bonner however. While I will continue to dislike the Spurs, I have no conflict with cheering on a guy from New Hampshire who can put up 23 points against one of the best defenses in the NBA.
Bonner looked like he was playing for the Celtics crowd, hitting 3-of-6 from the 3-point range and running so hard that he looked like he spent too much time in the sun and got an Irish suntan. The only part of Bonner that didn’t look 100% pure Irish was his black and silver jersey with Spurs logo on the front.
Matt Castello from the Telegram quoted Spurs coach Gregg Popovich on Bonner’s performance.
“Matt is taking advantage of the minutes he is given this year and has positioned really well from the beginning of the season,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “Tonight for him coming to his home territory and just playing like a real pro like he has been doing it for 10 years, he didn’t let anything affect him.”
No related posts.
Recent Comments