So who is the dirtiest player in the NBA?

[Ryanwb]

Bruce Bowen?
Stephen Jackson?
Danny Fortson?

Thoughts on this?

 

[Covert Rain]

Bruce Bowen?
Stephen Jackson?
Danny Fortson?

Thoughts on this?

Hands down Bruce Bowen. Stephen Jackson in my opinion is just a hot head.

 

[Hat]

Whoever is on the Squirts

 

[CardShark]

Bruce Bowen?
Stephen Jackson?
Danny Fortson?

Thoughts on this?

I never took too much account of this, but after seeing the way Bowen has played and hearing that it's been his history, then he gets the award. I would put Kobe Bryant on the list as well with the way that he swings his elbows at opponents faces. He did get suspended twice for it this past season.

 

[F-Dog]

Bowen and Fortson are the two guys who come to my mind.

Fortson might be out of the league next year, though.

 

[scotsman13]

fortson. bowen isnt trying to cost you your career he may want you out with a sprang or a pull or a deep bruce but never have i seen him do anything like what fortson did.

 

[Ryanwb]

I think the NBA has really let this get out of hand. The Risk/Reward for a dirty game changing play is so one sided that players almost don't even think about it anymore.

If this was 1987 you'd name a few players and always start with Bill Laimbeer as the dirtiest but he took the risk of getting sucker punched and or elbowed in the jaw as retaliation. The NBA is now the supreme punisher and they have taken out that piece where the players kept the dirty players in check.

 

[Bong]

Bowen is worse than everyone else combined

 

[Arctic]

fortson. bowen isnt trying to cost you your career he may want you out with a sprang or a pull or a deep bruce but never have i seen him do anything like what fortson did.

I agree completely. While Bowen is awfully pesky, he's not the kind of player that goes for the throat. I've heard it said that he is a world class athlete that is 100% in control of all parts of his body at all times, and therefore he can step on achilles, place feet under jumpers, place his knees strategically, and so on with deadly accuracy while making it look incidental. Frankly, I don't give him that much credit. Dirty player? sure, when compared to most. Dirtiest player? Not a chance.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Fortson.

Bowen.

Rest aren't even close.

 

[TucsonDevil]

This shouldn't even by a discussion... go to youtube and see how many times Bruce Bowen has played his style of defense and pissed off the league...


btw, I am still unaware of any suspensions for Bruce Bowen. Does he have nude pictures of David Stern's Wife with someone else... while David watches?

 

[Soul_Patch]

http://sports.aol.com/photos/dirtiest-athletes

 

[Soul_Patch]

http://espn.go.com/page2/s/list/readers/dirtiest/players.html

 

[Soul_Patch]

I am a novice at your boards, but can't figure out why all my paragraphs and what not run together. Sorry for the multi posts. I think those lists transcend more than basketball, but definately puts into perspective the whole "bruce bowen is dirty" debate.

 

[SpursUSATeam]

Dirty Players

This thread proves most people have not followed basketball for a long time. The 80's and 90's had rough plays worse than any of these years.

I think the problem is fans are becoming sissies.

Bowen isn't just a dirty player, he's one of the best defenders in the league, minus dirty plays.

To say he's worse than all other combines shows ignorance.

Is he dirty? Yes. A great defender as well? YES.

 

[F-Dog]

Dirtiest in the league today? Yes.

80's had enforcers stepping off the bench to make sure a Bowen doesn't get to play until he's 36. You can guess what happened to that, I think.

 

[JM Cardsfan]

I am always shocked that Ron Artest is never in this conversation. He is VERY physical and borderline malicious on a game to game basis.

As for the other players mentioned, I think Bowen is definitely a physical player but I don't consider him as dirty as Fortson. DF seems to try to hurt players. And no, I don't buy that Bowen is trying to hurt people, he just plays sneaky, cheap defense. Bowen reminds me a lot of the way Stockton used to play D. He would regularly step into players in the air and he was normally called "gritty" and "hard-nosed", not dirty.

I don't think Kobe's arm flailing is dirty. Just a cheap way to pick up a foul.

Stephen Jackson is not dirty, just dumb....

And to be honest, Raja is definitely physical to the point of being borderline cheap. He plays hard D that from time to time goes over the line (anyone remember the clothesline???).

I miss the days where what Raja does was the norm and if a player like Bowen stepped over the line (which he has done more than once), he would get a nice retributive shot from one of the bruisers on the opposing team.

Just my two cents....

 

[JM Cardsfan]

Double post....sorry....

 

[Gaddabout]

Danny Fortson is the king of (active) punks. No one else even compares. He's up there with Rick Mahorn, Bill Lambier, and Karl Malone with the all-time punks.

 

[Arctic]

Bowen doesn't even appear in the ESPN link.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

I am a novice at your boards, but can't figure out why all my paragraphs and what not run together. Sorry for the multi posts. I think those lists transcend more than basketball, but definately puts into perspective the whole "bruce bowen is dirty" debate.

You have whats called an Enter key. Use it.

If you do, you can post down here.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Without making a separate thread.

 

[azirish]

This thread proves most people have not followed basketball for a long time. The 80's and 90's had rough plays worse than any of these years.

I think the problem is fans are becoming sissies.

Bowen isn't just a dirty player, he's one of the best defenders in the league, minus dirty plays.

To say he's worse than all other combines shows ignorance.

Is he dirty? Yes. A great defender as well? YES.

Comparing Jackson to Bowen is entirely irrelevant. Jackson doesn't intentionally try to hurt people, he's just a loose cannon. Bowen knows how to hurt people and avoid getting tossed. IMHO, the guy who intends to hurt people is far worse than someone who just loses his head.

In some ways, the fact that Bowen is a very good defender makes his actions worse. Fortson is just a thug and can't play any other way. Bowen can, but chooses to cross the line when he feels a key guy is hurting the Spurs.

He tries to hurt Amare, who is not even his man, on a play where there no possible justification for even being hehind him. But take away Amare and the Suns are a scrappy, but not superior team.

Intentional Harm = Dirty

 

[Taco]

How about Reggie Evans

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Itu6BeKEi8Y

 

[panfolk]

For awhile the Sonics had the dirtiest frontline in the league with Fortson and Reggie "nut grabber" Evans. I can't recall which player called them out year before last but it was pretty hilarious.