Seriously, I got tired of the Steve Francis talk with everbody here last year and I actually felt sorry for him when he got traded. But after that quote in that article, all I can say is screw Francis. To think, I actually thought he was improving his game and was starting to get the concept of a team game last year. Glad he's gone.
"...your strengths" equals the ISO game + customary turnovers. "...didn't feature me enough" equals less ISOs + more shots for Yao.
Ok, so Ford starts the article saying that we look good on paper. Then he uses Weisbrod as his only source in order to put a negative spin on the whole team. Christ, i hate this man.
"I couldn't be happier being here playing in the program, a system, that suits my game 250 percent better than what I played in last year," Francis said. "Not saying that Houston's system wasn't good. It just wasn't a perfect system for me." "It was a tough, tough year," Francis said. "It's tough when a coach asks you not to use your strengths to help your team win. … I'm not saying Jeff's offense didn't feature me, but it didn't feature me enough." I think both of those statements say basically the same thing. In another thread, the top quote was agreed with, and many commended steve for his classy quotes. 1 day later in another thread steve gets ripped and berated for saying basically the same thing.
It's obvious that Steve wanted to do the "take turns" offense like under Rudy. JVG wanted Steve and Yao to play off of each other, but Steve was not capable of doing so. That was the most disappointing aspect of last year. He just couldn't hit shots without dribbling. Steve just didn't fit that type of philosophy, so we got someone who hopefully will. It's not Steve's fault. He just is what he is.
You're surprised by this? Remember, this was the same forum where, a few months ago, people started blasting him for taking out an ad in the paper thanking the city of Houston and for hosting a charity basketball game, and turned a thread about it into a massive b****fest about how selfish he is.
For the most part, everyone's response to this article is right on. Like you guys have said, Ford ignores the fact that Weisbrod had no other choice but to make the trade. He is now trying cover his own ass by making McGrady the scapegoat. It's so obvious, but Ford chooses to ignore certain facts in order to try to make his own "work" more interesting. Ford is trying to sell more "insider" subscriptions (which seems to good only for fantasy crap) with his lazy and inconsistent writing. I really don't think Francis was bashing JVG or thr Rockets. He's probably right on. His game is iso, iso, iso. But whatever -- that still doesn't explain his dribble off foot, screw up every fastbreak, and his "kiss my ass" for shooting over 40% comments. I like Steve and I think he's great, but not a "francise" type player. Francis seems to focus on how the team can make him better, rather than how he can make the team better.
If Weisbrod thought Tmac was unprofessional and had a poor work ethic, just wait until the first time he skips a team flight to go to football game... Or two years from now, when he refuses to pass the ball to a now-dominant Dwight Howard because "it doesn't emphasize his strengths"... Or when he allows his impressionable young teammates to indulge their, ahem, extracurricular habits (hello MoT, EGriffin) b/c he doesn't have the leadership skills to take control of a team on and off the court... Just wait WiseAss, if you thought Tmac was bad...
Did Ford say anything wrong about the Rockets? Clearly T-Mac has had maturity/effort/intensity issues in the past. Remember how he has always seemed to get into a one-on-one verbal spar with an opponent's player via the media? T-Mac ran his mouth every year in the playoffs about how he is better than Big Dog or Baron Davis, and every year he got beat in the 1st round. I am hoping he matures and doesn't do that crap as a Rocket. However, Ford is not an idiot for questioning T-Mac's ability to fit in here. We basically got a 6 ft 8, more talented version of Francis. T-Mac proved to be high-maintenance in Orlando. We can only hope he matures and shows that his past does not reflect his future or present as a Rocket.
Congratulations Milos, I think this is the most dumbass Francis bash ever. And considering how well Howard has done so far, that criticism is pretty stupid also.
