During the radio portion of tonight's game versus Charlotte; A segment was on about Francis being officially named to the all- star game as a starter and although not verbatim, Steve gave praise to the coaching and his team, in addition showed some classy modesty by saying when all is said and done he would be a 3 or 4 time all-star while Eddie Griffin will get in the next 12. Although I don't buy the modest "3 or 4"...What really impresses me is his voicing praise to teammates and this can only gain respect from his teammates. He seems to always lay blame on himself if something regarding the team's production isn't right. He hasn't finger pointed and his poise has improved. He has talked about Coach Don Nelson (during his first or second year) telling him to "stop being an Ass", after a little showboating,...and instead of this raising Steve's ire, Steve acknowledged himself to be in the wrong and stated how he would work to improve... Just stuff like this has really impressed me about Steve Francis as a team leader and it is a trait that other so-called "team leaders" often lack.
I agree that, off the court, Stevie really usually says all the right things, and I think he even went to the NBA head offices to ask how he should comport himself in order to become an ambassador for the game. However, his on-court decisions can still leave much to be desired...
