SAN ANTONIO — Bruce Bowen won’t be pestering the NBA’s best anymore.

The former San Antonio Spurs forward retired Thursday after 12 seasons and a reputation as one of the league’s most menacing defenders, hounding opponents with a tenacity that some players groused was more dirty than dogged.
Then 38-year-old Bowen started on three Spurs championship teams and was named eight times to the NBA’s all-defensive team. He lost a step last season and was moved to the bench after 550 consecutive starts when on the active roster.
Bowen was traded to Milwaukee this summer for swingman Richard Jefferson. The Bucks cut him shortly after the deal.