I thought the article below by Steve Kerr offered a pretty good take on the big picture for Francis, and the Rox. http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=sk-sixplayers&prov=yhoo&type=lgns "Steve Francis, Houston Rockets There comes a time in every NBA player's career when he defines himself. This is Francis' time. Is he going to continue to over-dribble and display his best Marcus Haynes impersonation during games? Or is he going to lead the Houston Rockets to the playoffs by moving the ball, managing the game and getting the ball into Yao Ming consistently. It's up to him. I think Jeff Van Gundy is the right coach at the right time for Francis. Jeff will instill a discipline in this team that has been lacking the last couple of seasons, and he will insist that the offense runs through Yao. That means less dribbling for Francis, better spacing, more ball movement and open jump shots for the Rockets' perimeter guys. Steve must learn to catch and shoot without hesitation when he receives the ball out of the double teams. The guess here is that Francis, a good guy and a wonderful talent, will make the adjustment and help the Rockets win. And become a true star in the process. "
I agree with this statement 100%. i can count on one hand the number of times Francis has received the ball while open and immediately firing without hesitation. He simply does not do it that often at all. He likes to catch the ball and just hold it, waiting for the defender to recover, and then taking the defender off the dribble. Another thing i have noticed in the past is that Francis is not very good at moving without the ball. Hopefully he will get used to this as he plays more shooting guard.
If he helps Yao have a breakout year, then Steve has proven himself. Even if he has terrible stats, the most important thing is to make sure that Yao gets the ball. Stats do not make a player, wins do. Besides, you don't get assists for passing the ball into the post.
I've always liked Kerr! Seriously though, you can't deny that the guy knows by now what kind of formula a team needs to win. He went from playing with the Jordan Bulls to the Duncan Spurs, and that will get you in the mindset to dominate.
So you saying .. .you would still b*Tch if we win 55 games . . .and Yao didn't get the ball?? Rocket River
I have been a persistent critic of Francis' game, because he hasn't changed it much since he arrived. JVG said it best when he pointed out that Francis "makes the game harder." Kerr was on the money when he alluded to Francis' lack of "timing." I have been "blasted" for saying the same things on this board. Some people know the game and some don't. Nevertheless, if Francis doesn't refine his game under JVG, he becomes trade bait. Pure and simple. The Rockets will probably be the loser in that case, so I am hoping for a "Francis Reformation."
Francis didn't have a reason to change his game before. 1. Rookie year- Takes over team halfway through season, wins co-rook of year, 34 win season isn't bad for a really-really young team. 2. 2nd year- leads team to a 45 win season putting up really nice numbers plus an array of highlights, somehow missed the playoffs(shame). 3. 3rd year- Didn't play much of the season, just showed how much the Rockets relied on him (only winning 2 games w/o him). Putting up career numbers when he played. 4. 4th year- Finally some help came along, was still the most consistent player on the team, Yao was still a rookie that made rookie mistakes, needs time to learn to play with Yao. I truly believe that Rudy would have taken us to the playoffs, just look at our record with L. Smith, no point crying over spilt milk though. 5. 5th year?- I do agree that Steve's game needs to change a little now. I think Steve recognizes this, I think he knows that he can't do it by himself. Like above, Steve had no reason to change his game until Yao came along. Steve basically never needed to pass inside before, Cato had no hands, Eddie didn't play inside, MoT didn't play at all.
I find it interesting that it is Kerr saying these things and not one of us armchair coaches. Also, I really like the optimistic outlook on Stevie.
Kerr is right on the money aboyt Francis, and the difference b/w Kerr and the Francis bashers is way he stated his pointv w/o going overboard and talking about how he sucks, had done nothing for the franchise, and that he should be traded. Kerr also has give Stevie a vote of confidence in that he can and will change. Funny how the nicest think I've read about Steve here on a Rox fan site comes from a member of the media.
