#LETBONNERSHOOT Campaign

[SPUROFTHAMOMENT]

C'mon guys (and gals)... let's help Matt Bonner's campaign!

Matt Bonner's Indie Rock Campaign for the 3-Point Shootout - The Triangle Blog - Grantland

Matt Bonner is an unlikely candidate for a fan-driven NBA All-Star campaign. The San Antonio Spurs center is averaging just 3.8 points and two rebounds per game coming off the bench this season. But his shooting percentage from downtown — 48.4 — is surprisingly robust; even if he is playing just 11 minutes every night, Bonner is raining 3s as accurately as anybody in the NBA.

Because of his 3-point game, Bonner has garnered a small but significant following that is now soliciting the league to allow the 6-foot-10 shooter to participate in this year’s 3-point contest during All-Star Weekend. There’s an online petition at Change.org that currently has more than 250 signatures, and a Twitter hashtag — #letbonnershoot — that’s been catching on among indie-rock bands, including Arcade Fire. "There's so much injustice in the world that we can't do anything about, but this is something we can change. #LetBonnerShoot," reads a recent tweet that was RTed 300 times. (The campaign is reminiscent of the Let Shannon Dunk push in 2010. That one ended with an underwhelming Shannon Brown appearance in the slam dunk contest.)

The man behind the online push is Dave Hartley, bassist for the excellent Philadelphia rock band The War on Drugs and the new solo project Nightlands, whose sophomore album, Oak Island, comes out today. "Matt is an outsider in the NBA, someone I would always root for," Hartley told Spin. "He takes public transportation to games, works his ass off for various charities and foundations (some of which he has started), and is utterly down to earth. He is a fan of rock and roll (and indie) music. Basically, he is a hero for someone like me. Also, I'm friends with him, so I want to see him do well."

Bonner’s brother Luke has also taken up the cause; according to his Twitter page, he is appearing on NBA TV today to speak about the #letbonnershoot movement. Whether any of this will actually make a difference is unclear at this point, though short of reviving the ghost of 1988 Larry Bird, this could be one of the things the league could do to make the 3-point contest intriguing again.paign-for-the-3-point-shootout

[Jose_TheGenius]

i'm not hating on Bonner, but his release won't let him get far in the contest. he needs to set up and take longer than a traditional technique and they barely get the shots off unless they're naturals at it. dude is going to get embarrassed out there and the people pushing for this will too

[alh1020]

If Bonner were to be selected to participate, I hope his psyche doesn't liken it to the playoffs, he might very well start throwing up air balls. But I do agree with Jose, his release is not quite conducive to a timed event. I would think Gary Neal or Patty Mills would compete much better in this competition.

[Uwe Blab]

He wouldn't win, but he wouldn't embarrass himself. It's not like the traditional shooters aren't doing set shots either. Once they get to the rack, they are shooting set shots, just grabbing the ball from the rack and shooting in rhythm, just like getting a good pass in a game. Bonner's release takes milliseconds longer and it would keep him from finishing all the racks, but I think it would be a good showing. Larry Bird's shot was slightly different but that didn't slow him down (not comparing the two, aw who am I kidding, Bonner's a Bird clone!).

[Jose_TheGenius]

Originally Posted by Uwe Blab

He wouldn't win, but he wouldn't embarrass himself. It's not like the traditional shooters aren't doing set shots either. Once they get to the rack, they are shooting set shots, just grabbing the ball from the rack and shooting in rhythm, just like getting a good pass in a game. Bonner's release takes milliseconds longer and it would keep him from finishing all the racks, but I think it would be a good showing. Larry Bird's shot was slightly different but that didn't slow him down (not comparing the two, aw who am I kidding, Bonner's a Bird clone!).

that's in a game though. the pass has to be on point for him to catch then release with a slower mechanism. now you're talking about running to a rack, grabbing a ball on the side, positioning his feet, then positioning his arms in the motion (low close to his face), then releasing and doing that over. a traditional motion is overhead and guys usually keep their feet set throughout (right handers keep their right foot in place) and launching a higher percentage shot.

better way to explain it is like this: guys who enter the contest can run to the ball during a game and catch and shoot because the motion allows them too. Bonner absolutely can't come close to that and that's something the players do during the contest.

[Uwe Blab]

Originally Posted by Jose_TheGenius

that's in a game though. the pass has to be on point for him to catch then release with a slower mechanism. now you're talking about running to a rack, grabbing a ball on the side, positioning his feet, then positioning his arms in the motion (low close to his face), then releasing and doing that over. a traditional motion is overhead and guys usually keep their feet set throughout (right handers keep their right foot in place) and launching a higher percentage shot.

better way to explain it is like this: guys who enter the contest can run to the ball during a game and catch and shoot because the motion allows them too. Bonner absolutely can't come close to that and that's something the players do during the contest.

But in the contest, the only time they run to the ball is that first sprint to the rack. After that, it's set shots until they have to go to the next rack. He'd be slow, but a shot is a shot, and he shoots a high percentage.

[katyspursfan]

Originally Posted by Jose_TheGenius

i'm not hating on Bonner, but his release won't let him get far in the contest. he needs to set up and take longer than a traditional technique and they barely get the shots off unless they're naturals at it. dude is going to get embarrassed out there and the people pushing for this will too

Wouldn't he be able to get it off even quicker, since he doesn't lift the ball as high as his head?

I couldn't care if he makes the event or not. Even if the 3-pt Shootout is closest to actual game skills (Hey, there's a rack of balls. How many can you make from behind THAT line?), it's still just a time/arena/parking lot filler.

[Kager]

Hey let the man shoot, I am part of it as he just deserves to be there.... lets not be too pagent mum about it and only be happy if we think he will win.

[Jose_TheGenius]

Originally Posted by Uwe Blab

But in the contest, the only time they run to the ball is that first sprint to the rack. After that, it's set shots until they have to go to the next rack. He'd be slow, but a shot is a shot, and he shoots a high percentage.

he has to set his feet every time since he's not "pigeon" toeing it. check out his mechanics from a couple of highlights (if there's any on YouTube) and you'll see how precise he actually has to be to get it off or else he puts it on the floor. he uses some leg but mostly arm and his follow up on the shot takes a sec or two longer than traditional. you're probably looking at around 3 or 4 seconds longer overall than any other guy competing.

Originally Posted by katyspursfan

Wouldn't he be able to get it off even quicker, since he doesn't lift the ball as high as his head?

I couldn't care if he makes the event or not. Even if the 3-pt Shootout is closest to actual game skills (Hey, there's a rack of balls. How many can you make from behind THAT line?), it's still just a time/arena/parking lot filler.

good point. he starts off low but then goes high. the thing about the way he shoots is he has to be completely in motion to get the shot off, sorta like a statue. compare other shooters and how they grab the ball then use their legs to jump, the elevation gives them somewhat of a chance to get back in motion a bit or square up. Bonner doesn't elevate mostly and has to be stationary for it.

if the dude can get in, all power to him. i'd hate for him to try it and either miss the majority of them because he can't get in his groove or get in a groove and not get to the 4th rack

[Uwe Blab]

Originally Posted by Jose_TheGenius

he has to set his feet every time since he's not "pigeon" toeing it. check out his mechanics from a couple of highlights (if there's any on YouTube) and you'll see how precise he actually has to be to get it off or else he puts it on the floor. he uses some leg but mostly arm and his follow up on the shot takes a sec or two longer than traditional. you're probably looking at around 3 or 4 seconds longer overall than any other guy competing.



good point. he starts off low but then goes high. the thing about the way he shoots is he has to be completely in motion to get the shot off, sorta like a statue. compare other shooters and how they grab the ball then use their legs to jump, the elevation gives them somewhat of a chance to get back in motion a bit or square up. Bonner doesn't elevate mostly and has to be stationary for it.

if the dude can get in, all power to him. i'd hate for him to try it and either miss the majority of them because he can't get in his groove or get in a groove and not get to the 4th rack

Go watch some old three point shoot outs. They are ALL taking set shots. They aren't sprinting through the thing.

[Uwe Blab]

[tabspur]

Make sure hes doesnt think its the playoffs instead of a shooting contest, or he wont show up......

[Jose_TheGenius]

Originally Posted by Uwe Blab

exactly to my point. you see how straight he has to be when he catches the ball and how he doesn't move because he's completely set? that's IF the pass is perfect. now when he doesn't get a perfect pass, he puts it on the floor.

that isn't the same from reaching out to the side and grabbing a ball after each shot. he has to position himself again, especially if he moves a toe and he's surely to move it when he has to grab after the first ball.

[Uwe Blab]

Originally Posted by Jose_TheGenius

exactly to my point. you see how straight he has to be when he catches the ball and how he doesn't move because he's completely set? that's IF the pass is perfect. now when he doesn't get a perfect pass, he puts it on the floor.

that isn't the same from reaching out to the side and grabbing a ball after each shot. he has to position himself again, especially if he moves a toe and he's surely to move it when he has to grab after the first ball.

Still don't see your point. Even if it was absolutely impossible for Bonner to make a shot while not having his feet in concrete on the floor, the shoot out would be the perfect setting for him. He reaches for the rack without moving his feet and shoots. And do it over again. It's not like his rhythm is off once he comes back down for the next shot. How do you think he practices? He takes shot after shot. Again, I'm not saying he would win, I'm saying he wouldn't be as bad as you think.

[WILLTHETHRILL]

Hope he makes a bunch of 3's next season with a different team!lol

[SilverSpur]

Update:

Matt Bonner being Matt Bonner, the realization that the social media campaign to get him into this year’s 3-point shootout was gaining momentum took place at a sandwich shop. A man behind the counter at Lenny’s Subs told the scarlet-haired sharpshooter he had re-Tweeted the movement’s suddenly ubiquitous hashtag — #LetBonnerShoot –in support. “I had to look up what hashtag meant,” said Bonner, who does not have Twitter or Facebook accounts. “Then I came to realize this whole social media phenomenon had started. It’s very flattering. I’m honored to have so much support.”

Spurs Nation

[tabspur]

Then he proceeded to go out and chip the paint off the rims vs the Hornets. Apparently he realizes the play offs are close!

[Jose_TheGenius]

Originally Posted by Uwe Blab

Still don't see your point. Even if it was absolutely impossible for Bonner to make a shot while not having his feet in concrete on the floor, the shoot out would be the perfect setting for him. He reaches for the rack without moving his feet and shoots. And do it over again. It's not like his rhythm is off once he comes back down for the next shot. How do you think he practices? He takes shot after shot. Again, I'm not saying he would win, I'm saying he wouldn't be as bad as you think.

yes Uwe, he takes shot after shot, but (99.9% of the time) they have a ball boy or a teammate pass him the ball straight away giving him a chest pass. he doesn't have to reach for it. i'm not saying he'd win either, that's exactly the point why i think he shouldn't be in it. his shot isn't made for the contest. as a top 3 point shooter, he'd likely embarrass himself and miss the majority of the shots. i don't like the guy's game on the floor, but i'm not heartless enough to see him get embarrassed on national tv.



look at that vid and tell me if any of those guys stay stationary in their position while grabbing a ball and shooting the rock.

Bonner is way more dependent on his overall form than those guys because they can recover to their true form in the air because they use their legs. Bonner doesn't come close to using his legs.

[Uwe Blab]

Originally Posted by Jose_TheGenius

yes Uwe, he takes shot after shot, but (99.9% of the time) they have a ball boy or a teammate pass him the ball straight away giving him a chest pass. he doesn't have to reach for it. i'm not saying he'd win either, that's exactly the point why i think he shouldn't be in it. his shot isn't made for the contest. as a top 3 point shooter, he'd likely embarrass himself and miss the majority of the shots. i don't like the guy's game on the floor, but i'm not heartless enough to see him get embarrassed on national tv.



look at that vid and tell me if any of those guys stay stationary in their position while grabbing a ball and shooting the rock.

Bonner is way more dependent on his overall form than those guys because they can recover to their true form in the air because they use their legs. Bonner doesn't come close to using his legs.

Again, you're assuming that Bonner HAS to keep his legs on the floor to make a shot, which isn't the case. Yes, the other shooters move their feet, but they aren't running to the ball, they are shuffling their feet in the same space. Much different. Bonner actually does that about half his shots too. In that same video, Boobie Gibson is what you would call a traditional shooter and he did horrible. If you want to argue about a guy who would have done horrible in the three point shootout, look at Bruce Bowen's shot. He literally had to wind up for each shot.

[td4mvp2k]

Matt Bonner was in line at a local deli not long ago, preparing to do the thing he does second-best — put together a primo sandwich — when the sub artiste stopped him mid-order.

The man behind the counter interrupted to boast he’d just joined the Twitter movement bent on getting Bonner, the flame-haired Spurs’ forward, into the NBA’s annual 3-point contest.

“He told me he had ‘hashtagged’ me,” the social media-shy Bonner said. “So I had to look up what ‘hashtag’ meant.”

The campaign — #LetBonnerShoot — began as a joint venture between Bonner’s younger brother, Luke, and his friend Dave Hartley, bass player for the indie rock band War on Drugs.

Luke penned a tongue-in-cheek plea for Bonner’s inclusion in the Feb. 16 shootout in Houston during All-Star weekend for the website FlipCollective.com, while Hartley posted a similar message on his band’s website and opened a petition online at change.org.

When Hartley first broached the possibility of starting an Internet drive on his behalf, Matt Bonner didn’t think much would come of it.

“My first thought was, ‘War on Drugs is a great band, but they’re not U2,’?” said Bonner, 32.

In short order, the grassroots effort spread like digital wild fire, attracting support from names as varied as New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan, actress Eva Longoria and members of the musical group Arcade Fire, another Bonner favorite.

Last week, the movement went mainstream, with Luke Bonner granting an interview to NBA TV, and his older brother talking with ESPN during the national broadcast of Saturday’s Spurs-Dallas game.

Though the #LetBonnerShoot movement is not what you’d call high-minded — the Bonners aren’t aiming to end poverty or cure rickets — its goal is to right what many in the Spurs’ organization view as an annual injustice.

Though perennially one of the NBA’s top 3-point shooters, with a career success rate of 41.6 percent, Bonner has never been asked to participate in the league’s annual All-Star weekend extravaganza.

The Spurs have not had a shooter in the 3-point contest since 2009, when Roger Mason Jr. participated in Phoenix.

“I think that’s messed up,” point guard Tony Parker said. “Matt Bonner’s one of the best shooters in the NBA. I’ve seen him in practice go 50 for 50. I think he’d win it. He’s a machine."
There are two ways for Bonner to make this year’s field. He can be selected the old-fashioned way, by the NBA’s basketball operations department.

Or, he could be chosen as an at-large participant by a to-be-determined Western Conference captain, as part of a new East-vs.-West format to this season’s All-Star Saturday Night festivities.

If Bonner were to score an invitation to this year’s contest, it could be justified as a career achievement nod.

“For him not to ever have been in it, I am surprised,” guard Danny Green said. “This year it’s a little understandable, because of the (lack of) attempts. Every other year, he’s had the attempts and he’s had the percentages. I don’t see why he’s never been in the contest.”

Having been passed over with better percentages before — at the 2011 All-Star break, he was shooting 45.7 percent —Bonner won’t get his hopes up.

Yet as a longtime Boston Celtics fan, Bonner would relish the chance to follow in the footsteps of his idol, Larry Bird, who won the first three NBA long-distance shootouts from 1986-88 in a hail of sharpshooting and trash talking.

If selected, Bonner has vowed — perhaps (hopefully) jokingly — to grow a mullet and mustache and don ’80s-style short shorts in Bird’s honor. (Note to Bonner: This is not helping your cause).

However he gets in, and however he’s dressed, participating in the 3-point contest would be a lifelong dream come true for Bonner.

“From a selfish, egotistical, personal angle, this is it for me,” Bonner said. “I’m never going to make the All-Star team. I always get looked over for the dunk contest. For me, the 3-point contest is what I do. It’s what I hang my hat on in the NBA.

“So it would be great to participate, even if I go 1 for 25, just to be able to say I was selected as one of the best shooters in the league.”

Jeff McDonald/S.A. Express-News

[ATHENEA]

[Jose_TheGenius]

Originally Posted by Uwe Blab

Again, you're assuming that Bonner HAS to keep his legs on the floor to make a shot, which isn't the case. Yes, the other shooters move their feet, but they aren't running to the ball, they are shuffling their feet in the same space. Much different. Bonner actually does that about half his shots too. In that same video, Boobie Gibson is what you would call a traditional shooter and he did horrible. If you want to argue about a guy who would have done horrible in the three point shootout, look at Bruce Bowen's shot. He literally had to wind up for each shot.

so ur saying Bonner might not have to move his feet?

EVERY guy moved his feet! even the bigs (look at Dirk when he was in them). you have to move ur feet, he's not going to be too close to the rack and even if he is, he has to rotate for his right or left arm depending on the rack.

i think Bruce would've done poorly too, but that doesn't prove Bonner wouldn't either. Bowen needed to wind up but he also had to pigeon toe both feet and he'd be horrible with picking up his feet up to get the ball.

glad you saw they shuffle their feet in the same spot, but ur missing the point: they have a traditional motion. it doesn't matter if Gibson made his or not, his traditional motion helped him reset in mid air. look at those players and how a Ray Allen plays: he runs to the ball, gets the ball, sets with one foot, and recovers his form in mid air with his elevation. Bonner cannot do that, that's what your missing. Those guys in all the 3 point contests had traditional motions that helped them recover in mid air. Bonner needs his feet set and doesn't elevate while having a low shot. he'd have to literally chuck them up like if he was playing a basketball game at Dave & Buster's, rushing the shots and missing the majority of them. he wouldn't just miss the majority of them, he'd look horrible with his motion just chucking balls straight from his face.

[Rzarector7]

Originally Posted by tabspur

Make sure hes doesnt think its the playoffs instead of a shooting contest, or he wont show up......

[td4mvp2k]

Originally Posted by Jose_TheGenius

he'd have to literally chuck them up like if he was playing a basketball game at Dave & Buster's, rushing the shots and missing the majority of them.