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Who would you build the team around, Yao or Francis?

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by Hottoddie, Apr 10, 2004.

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Who would you build the team around?

  1. Yao Ming

    238 vote(s)
    65.6%

  2. Steve Francis

    13 vote(s)
    3.6%

  3. Both of them

    90 vote(s)
    24.8%

  4. Neither one of them

    22 vote(s)
    6.1%
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  1. Hottoddie

    Hottoddie Member

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    With the YOF's & FOF's drawing a line in the sand & taking up sides, I guess it's time to stand up & be counted. There can only be one dominant bull in the barn. Who would you build the team around?

    Personally, I'm choosing Yao. 7'5" 300 lb. centers with a soft shooting touch, good hands, good passing skills, & great court vision don't come around very often.

    In my opinion, Francis is an undersized, average shooting, SG, that wants to be a PG. There's no doubt that he's a great athlete, but he's currently being forced to play in a system that doesn't properly utilize his talents. Imo, Francis's greatest strength, is his ability to break down defenses & go strong to the hole. Everytime he does that, he either scores or draws a foul from the other team.

    His outside shooting percentages are very average & have been throughout his NBA career. Check his stats, if you have any doubts. Another problem that I have with Francis, is his turnovers. He's currently #2 in the NBA in total turnovers. Everytime he turns the ball over, it amounts to a 4 point swing. The problem is, he's (by his own admission) got small hands & can't hang onto the ball.

    Finally, with the exception of Jordan (& even he needed talent around him), how many PG/SG's have ever lead their teams to the Championship? Magic made everyone around him better, but he still had to have one of the greatest big men in the game (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) to get him to the Championship game. Francis is no Magic or Jordan. Not even close.

    As for Yao's weaknesses, he's still too passive & has (lately) started whinning to the refs after every call. I guess he's been watching our guards too closely.:rolleyes: I have seen progress in his game throughout the year. His scoring, rebounding, shooting percentages, & blocks are all up this year. As the season has worn on, he's gotten more aggressive & appears to be adjusting to the more physical NBA game. With the increased endurance that he's had this year, he's got to be sold on the idea of getting stronger during the off season. I can't wait to see him next year.
     
    #1 Hottoddie, Apr 10, 2004
  2. yipengzhao

    yipengzhao Member

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    Voted for Yao. I guess there's no mistake about why I feel that's the better choice since I've been rambling on and on about it in the other threads. But I would like to hear some compelling argument on why someone would feel Francis is better to build around.

    I mean who would you have to have to make a francis center team a championship contender? Two other really good player at least. Then he might not even have the best stats on the team.
     
    #2 yipengzhao, Apr 10, 2004
  3. Hottoddie

    Hottoddie Member

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    I'm not really sure, but a team with several perimeter shooters & a center that can shoot from outside might get it done. It'd have to be a team that ran the floor really well & Francis would have to accept the SG role. How about Dallas, Sacramento, Memphis, or Denver? They've got teams that might be better suited for Francis's game.
     
    #3 Hottoddie, Apr 10, 2004
  4. fa7999

    fa7999 Member

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    Not gonna vote since this debate has been close for months.
     
    #4 fa7999, Apr 10, 2004
  5. Stack24

    Stack24 Member

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    You can just ask any GM who would they rather start around.....a Center or a Guard.

    Unless you are Jordan your not going to build a team around a Guard. The only other one i will give props too is probably Isiah cuase he didn't have a good center either.


    Guards Come and go and every kid out there wants to be that showboating guard scoring all the points etc. So you have so many of them with talent.

    To find a big man with talent is much harder. It's nice that we have a team with both positions being talented but i think anyone would want a center first.

    Hey they are called centers for a reason...i believe they are the CENTERPIECE of any really good team.
     
    #5 Stack24, Apr 10, 2004
  6. leroy

    leroy Member
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    If Steve is hitting somewhere closer to 45% of his shots, then there is no reason this team can't be built around Stevie, Yao and Cuttino. Each can get their points. We just need a better PF that can consistently rebound and block shots. Cato can, he just doesn't do it night in and night out.
     
    #6 leroy, Apr 10, 2004
  7. Rasselas

    Rasselas Member

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    I just want to put juugie and Yetti in a boxing ring and enjoy a good fight.
     
    #7 Rasselas, Apr 10, 2004
  8. Xenogears

    Xenogears Member

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    Easy answer. In only his 2nd year, Yao was able to lead this team to the playoffs while having francis play terrible all year. "The Franchise" could only lead this team to the lottery when he played his iso, which was good for his stats, but not for the team.
     
    #8 Xenogears, Apr 10, 2004
  9. Summer Song Giver

    Summer Song Giver Member

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    I'll take the real player over the marketing ploy every time. You give me a legit big man who can play the four and run at steve's pace ala jermaine oneal and the same rest of the rox and i'll give you yao and the same rox minus steve with any pg of your choice and my team will whip your team up and down the court nine times out of ten especially late in the season.

    We should do this poll again after the playoffs when yao proves that april was no fluke. Yao Ming in a seven game western conference playoff series, ha, the giant will fall. No heart, no stamina, no thanks.
     
    #9 Summer Song Giver, Apr 10, 2004
  10. RocksMillenium

    RocksMillenium Member

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    How about both since we have both? People are never satisfied, I don't know why people have to make it one Rockets player vs another Rockets player. For the last few years it was Francis vs Mobley, now it's Francis vs Yao. But we have all of them, so why not build around ALL of them!
     
    #10 RocksMillenium, Apr 10, 2004
  11. Summer Song Giver

    Summer Song Giver Member

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    sounds good to me but gun to my head pick one it's steve not yao.....
     
    #11 Summer Song Giver, Apr 10, 2004
  12. MFW2310

    MFW2310 Member

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    Wait a sec, didn't we do that the last 5 yrs? How did that work out btw cuz I missed out on the results.
     
    #12 MFW2310, Apr 11, 2004
  13. James23

    James23 Member

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    you don't see many agile 7'5", 310 lbs basketball player who has great skills. so, of course you would and should always pick yao ming over francis, lebron james, carmelo anthony, tracy mcgrady, kobe and even KG.
     
    #13 James23, Apr 11, 2004
  14. Yetti

    Yetti Member

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    You are missing the BIG point of all of this:- Steve Francis is not a Playmaker Point Guard and he is too expensive for a middle of the road Shooting Guard.He should be on a Team that can use his open court one on one style of play.
     
    #14 Yetti, Apr 11, 2004
  15. Yetti

    Yetti Member

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    Juugie wouldn't hit his Grand Dad would he?
     
    #15 Yetti, Apr 11, 2004
  16. Summer Song Giver

    Summer Song Giver Member

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    we were building this team those years adding pieces each year and getting better, the playoffs are the sum of all these parts. when you say we didn't do squat for five years and then along comes yao and we are in the playoffs you are wrong, this is not kg or td we are talking about here.

    that coupled with yao's penchant for breaking down late in the season and his inability to stay in the game for extended periods of time no matter the situation and the history of giant's in this league and the fact that he has year round commitments and that even as a young man he has stamina problems already and his year round commitments then yes i choose steve.

    granted if i take steve then yes he is going to need more help namely a power forward who can score and grab some boards but also someone who will fit with the style that every player on this team besides yao would benefit most playing in.
     
    #16 Summer Song Giver, Apr 11, 2004
  17. Yetti

    Yetti Member

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    Simple -They arn't compatible.
     
    #17 Yetti, Apr 11, 2004
  18. Summer Song Giver

    Summer Song Giver Member

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    it's late didn't mean to repeat myself there
     
    #18 Summer Song Giver, Apr 11, 2004
  19. Summer Song Giver

    Summer Song Giver Member

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    hey yetti, like my sig:p
     
    #19 Summer Song Giver, Apr 11, 2004
  20. Hottoddie

    Hottoddie Member

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    The irony to your statement is that, every player on this roster has adjusted to JVG's system, except for Francis. In fact, Francis has been heard from in the press more than any other Rocket, & it's usually because he's grumbling about JVG's system. There was the Super Bowl incident (not system related), just recently he stated that JVG was so intense that it was making some of the players anxious when they got on the floor, & after the Denver win, he admitted that he showed up late for the game. Is this any way for a max'd out franchise player to be conducting himself? What does this say to the younger players? There's no excuse that I can accept for this kind of behaviour from the leader of my team.

    Francis had the system set up for his style of play for 4 years & was never able to even get us into the playoffs. Over half the teams in the NBA make the playoffs every year & Francis couldn't get us into the 1st round even once? How many max'd out star players can you name that've never even gotten into the playoffs in their first 4 years? I truely believe that JVG's system, Yao Ming, & JJ have gotten us into the playoffs this year, not Francis.
     
    #20 Hottoddie, Apr 11, 2004
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