I'm not sure about the Rafer going back to being Rafer comments. When did Rafer ever stop being Rafer. He didn't shoot well last year and he didn't shoot well this preseason. He's Rafer. Rafer is not better than he was; He just doesn't have to be our 3rd scoring option and play 40+ minute at the pg.
The guy signs here, has his little 3:33 press conference, has his coach basically say the starting job is his to lose, and what does he do? He loses it. To 3 different players. Sorry, but if he can't beat out Rafer fair and square, he doesn't deserve to be in the rotation. I don't hate the guy. I think he will eventually contribute to this team before it's all said and done. But he had his chance to win the job. And he didn't. This is 2007, not 2002. Some people here seem to think the last 2 or 3 years didn't happen. Steve is not the same player he was when he left. Get used to it.
you guys have it all wrong. the starting job wasn't Francis' to lose. Adelman just assumed Francis was his best point guard, but then he saw all his faults and weaknesses up close in person. this is the SAME Steve Francis we saw 5 years ago. Nothing is different. Remember when Van Gundy joined the Rockets? he realized Francis wasn't as good as they said and he critiqued Francis' game to no end. Adelman is just realizing the same thing. Francis isn't as good as he thought.
This makes me worry. In that case, the profit of getting a ready-to-go Bonzi and Scola could really be canceled by the team being unfamiliar with the new coach and new 'system'. And that means the rockets probablely would end up just like last season, maybe even worse.
no we will defintely do better than last season because of the addition of Bonzi Wells, Luis Scola, and Mike James, but championship contenders? Not quite.
Oh yes we are, it may not be right away but by February we should be KILLING teams. There are no weaknesses on the team, they ARE championship contenders...THIS year. DD
Agree. We have everythin' good team, championship-caliber team needs. We have two stars inside and out. We have good coach, and we have depth. We only need health. Of course we need time to play as we should play but it'll come.
This is what I hate about stuff like this. Somehow, everything said gets exagerated. RA never said the starting job was his to lose. All he said was he thought Francis would be the starter coming into training camp. But I agree to a point, Francis had his chance. Now, this is the real test for Stevie. Can he overcome his biggest obstacles to get into the rotation? We'll see. Another misconception is that Francis fans want the old Steve Francis which is untrue. We don't need that Steve Francis anymore. But that doesn't mean he doesn't have anything left. Based on limited preseason action, he still has his athleticism, not like his rookie years but it's there. Then again, he is older but that is what happens when you are not 21 anymore. But you can see he can still attack the basket, draw and foul and finish. Something we lacked a lot last year. The Francis fans aren't asking for him to be a star again. Hell, Stevie himself said he doesn't have a problem with taking a back seat. Just a problem with not playing at all. Most of the fans just want to see him do good again. For somebody who got traded from here, his love for the city still is unmatched. He's been on non-playoff teams for the majority of his career so this is different for him. His career can still be revived if he wants it that much. The season is very long and anything can happen.
BTW, in reference to the 82games.com on Rafer's vs. Steve's defense: Last year, Rafer's opponents averaged 15.8 pts/48 min. Steve's opponents averaged 18.2 pts/48 min. The Rockets defense improved by 4.2 pts/100 possessions with Rafer on the floor. The Knicks defense improved by 0.8 pts/100 possessions with Steve on the floor. Rafer is the better defender. Anybody notice that Steve never says anything thoughtful? I would think, after being an 8 year veteran, Steve would respond to the questions with something mature like "I had to adjust to JVG's offense, which took some time, but I did it. Then I had to learn some motion offense cuts in NY. RA's offense is similar. I'm disappointed, but I'll improve with some repetitions." Instead he says, "I'm going to continue to be myself and play the way I always played." The PG is supposed to be the smartest player on the floor...
i really doubt Francis can play his way into the rotation. it doesnt matter if rafer cant make a rock in an ocean, he'll still be starting, and it doesnt matter if James jacks up every shot, he'll still be backing up rafer. also Head will get plenty of minutes obviously.
Serious props to Adelman - it took stones to do this and not wedge him into the rotation. He's doing what's best for the team. Francis just doesn't look like he has a place in an offense that does not allow him to keep the ball in his hands. Hopefully he'll finally learn how to develop that. Evan
Wow, I can't believe that SF3 is such a dud! I love the guy...but if he can't read the writing on the wall after three teams in two years passing on him, he deserves to ride the pine.
If we enter playoffs with Rafer still being the starting pg, that would be our weakness. And what Adelman is doing really indicates this is more possible than i would think. We were already killing a lot teams the last season, that is, until we faced the Jazz in playoffs. I don't want to watch it happen again.
Somewhat true but that doesn't mean you can't be successful if your PG is NOT the smartest player on the floor. Skip won't be the smartest player on the floor and neither will James when he plays. If you are trying to say Skip is the smartest Rocket then you are definitely wrong Your comments in anything relating Steve Francis are rendered useless. At least when others make cases for Steve not playing, they actually have intelligent points. You on the other hand are like the loser that lost his girl to the much cooler guy and now you hold a grudge forever. Anyone who reads your post lose more brain cells than a junkie with a lifetime supply of Elmer's Glue. Seriously, your post are biased enough to make the biggest YOF jealous.
I can't believe how far Francis has fallen since he left Houston. I can't feel too sorry for the guy simply because there are more important things in life than basketball and he's set for life financially at age 30, but it must be hard going from being 'Franchise' to not being able to make the rotation in just two short years (I'm counting him falling out of the rotation in NY too).
I don't really understand why people think Steve would be an improvement on Rafer shooting wise in this offense. There is no doubt that Steve is a hundred times better at creating his own shot and being a primary scorer. I just envision that our starting PG will be the 4th or 5th option, getting lots of wide open 3's, and in that role Rafer has a better career 3pt % than Francis, and was ONE percent less than James last year. Defensively Francis has never been particularly good. Rafer is no Gary Payton in his prime, but he isn't nearly the liability many of you percieve him to be by just looking at the box score and seeing the scoring numbers of opposing PG's. You can hate JVG all you want, but you can't deny he was a defense first coach and not one to give false praise publicly to players just to make them feel better. With that in mind, JVG said Rafer one of the best team defenders, and pointed out that it was the Rockets horrible pick and roll defense by our big men that leads to most of the big scoring nights by opposing guards. Obviously if we had a Steve Nash or Chauncey Billups then I would happily relegate Rafer to the end of the bench. But the reality is that the other 2 vetran pg's on the team couldn't even earn starter positions on lottery teams last year. Francis can be a great replacement for JLIII this year if he is willing to accept that role. Either way we'll find out if he really matured or not soon enough. It just seems like alot of you are more intrigued by which player can make the more spectacularly difficult shot or dunk than who is the best fit for the team.
