what kind of crap is this? You're starting a thread just to solicit hostility towards SF with no information on your own? How about retitling this thread to "Anyone have any kind of negative media coverage of SF? Anything? I'll take scraps just to dog on him."
yea thats exactly what i should have done or just maybe, maybe, i just wanted to find out what they are writing about the team and franchise, you see me posting anywhere about trading him,,,im actually in favor of the guy and think we would be stupid to let him go so just relax,,and hope someone with Insider subscription will post the info here
Always love to contribute to controversy..so here it is. Its nothing new...jsut what weve seen already written by a National reporter who knows less than us Francis no longer Rockets' No. 1 option By Terry Brown NBA Insider Friday, February 6 Updated: February 6 10:08 AM ET If Jeff Van Gundy says it's hot, then Steve Francis is, most likely, going to argue it's cold. "It's never going to be over as far as an endpoint," Francis said in the Houston Chronicle of their latest argument concerning his Super Bowl Sunday disappearance. "He's going to coach the way he wants to coach, and I'm going to play the way I want to play. There's always going to be conflict. It's not like we're going to be best friends. There are going to be days when he thinks I should have done this better, and there are going to be days when I think he should have done things better. We both understand that." Or maybe it's Van Gundy saying it's cold and Francis opting for hot. "I would agree with that -- not that he'll play the way he wants to play -- but I agree with everything else," Van Gundy said. But there is at least one thing they will agree on. Steve "The Franchise" Francis is no longer the centerpiece of the Houston Rocket Franchise even if his teammates don't understand that yet. "The best player on the team and the coach are going to always have their spats, regardless of what team you're on," Rockets forward Maurice Taylor said. "That's why they are the best player, they can have spats with the head coach." Because if Francis really were the best player on the team, then why would he be allowed to shoot 14.8 times per game this season when he shot 16.2 times per game last year and 17.6 times the year before that. As a result, his numbers have dropped off considerably across the board. 2002-03 Season: 21 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 6.2 apg, 1.7 spg, 0.5 bpg, 43% from field, 35% from 3, 80% free throw 2003-04 Season: 16.7 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 5.9 apg, 1.4 spg, 0.4 bpg, 39% from field, 29% from 3, 75% free throw Of course, Van Gundy will tell you this is by design. He wants 7-foot-6 center Yao Ming to be the focal point of the offense. After all, Yao has shot 51 percent from the field over his brief career while Francis is at 43 percent. Van Gundy wants Francis to play a controlled game that sees Yao as the first option. Francis, of course, wants an up-and-down game with plenty of fast breaks and 3-point shots. So far, the change is philosophy is mixed. Yao Ming Center Houston Rockets Profile 2003-2004 SEASON STATISTICS GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT% 48 16.1 9.1 1.4 .532 .769 So far this season, Yao has gone from scoring 13.5 points per game last year to 16.1 this year as the Rockets moved to a 27-21 record while scoring 87.2 points per game and shooting 43.4 percent from the field. Last year, they were at 26-22 at this point of the season and finished averaging 93.8 points per game while shooting 44 percent from the field. Last year, Yao shot the ball 9.8 times per game. This year, he's shooting the ball 11.2 times per game. But regardless of these statistical results, Francis knows as well as Van Gundy that this trend will continue. This year, next year, the year after that, Francis' role is changing. In 15 games in November, Francis took 241 shots. In 15 games in December, he shot 225 times. In 15 games in January, he shot 207 times. "It's out of my mind," Francis said. "As far as prolonging it, I could care less. I don't have any bad feelings against him. I've still got to play for him, God knows how long. I have no problem with coach at all." And, depending on how you look at it, Van Gundy said hot . . . Or cold. "I don't look at it as a conflict between me and Steve," Van Gundy said. "Because you could have erased his name and put anybody else's name in there and it would have been the same course of action. Steve and I are fine. Like I said, I enjoy him. I'm sure there are things at times that we'll disagree on, just like I'll disagree with any player on."
