I'm glad Steve thought the game meant nothing...and here I thought the objective of the NBA was to (gasp) win games. I guess this REALLY proves Francis' will to win.
In judging Sreve Francis in the Playoffs are we going to judge him on his ability to play Playmaker Point Guard and how he gets his team-mates involved.Or will he be judged on how successfully he takes over the game and plays well as an individual.
An interesting topic. If he somehow miraculously discovered how to run a fast break, pass the ball into the post on time, and stopped letting his man get by him like he is standing in cement, then yes. However, we all know none of the above is going to happen. Later Steve, don't let the door knob hit you in the A$$ on the way out of town. DD
Just one more post directed to you "Severe Rockets headache" Are you born a pessimist or have something happened to you doing the course of your life that causes you to hate and act childish to get your will?? I mean just your last post here proves that you do not want to discuss with reason.. You are basically saying that Steve does not want to win!!! You are nutcase I finally see it!! JVG is the one choosing who plays and who don't. And if you saw the Denver game you would actually also see that Steve was playing injured and still carried us to the win. But I guess you couldn't see that because of the red colour that comes in front of your eyes everytime Steve comes in the picture. No more posts from me in this thread I promise. Maybe you would be so kind to follow my example "Severe Rockets headcase"
Now you're just putting words in my mouth. I think Steve doesn't have a big will to win, thats all. BTW, I wasn't even talking to you, why do you reply to everything I say to amed who is known as a diehard Steve only fan/Yao hater. Unless you 2 are the same person, in which case you are the nut.
Why judge him on a 7-game series when he was horrible for the previous 82 games? The ONLY thing that could make me want to keep Steve is his offseason: he needs to transform himself into a SG and let the team know that he will be a SG so they can go out and get a PG. I really think that if Steve works for a while on his SG skills, then a Yao/Francis combo would work. Especially if someone ELSE is feeding this two-headed monster. As for Francis at PG, nothing would change my mind.
Because he's THE FRANCHISE BABY!!! Woo-hoo!!! Who cares how many bad games he has, the boy can dunk and has a sick crossover, he needs 1000000000000X infinity chances!!!
Don, I feel we should keep SF. He is one of the great talents in the NBA who is just in a season long slump not to mention the voice and leadership of the locker room. Keep SF!
I don't understand equating "I want SF out of here" with "I hate SF". Most of us have been defending him for years to people who had already reached the conclusion he wan't going to cut it. Other than we definitely need a different point guard, the best reason to trade him is we can probably somehow get a player we want, plus possibly more. He's the second most marketable player we have. Second by a mile. I'm not calling people who disagree with me pinheads I'm calling the people who don't understand I think it's time for Steve to go, no matter who else is on this team - pinheads. I'm so sick of guys like juggie and armed attacking Yao in order to defend Steve's God-given right to be a Rocket everytime this comes up. They can't even defend their guy on his own merits. They're are many people I respect here that don't want Steve traded. There is risk if we do or don't, and I understand that. Beyond that it's sad. But the play of this team for the last five years has been too. I want more and I want it next season. For every reason imaginable I hope SF catches fire in the playoffs. But the only thing it will mean to me is I'll have another cool Rocket memory. And I'll always like the guy.
I want to come out and say I am a Steve Francis fan, I always have been, but more importantly, I am a Houston Rockets Fan. It's clear to see that SF won't be coming back next season, he doesn't fit in JVGs system, his fg% is terrible, and he is still having the same TO problems. I will be sad to see him leave but I know its coming. I just hope that the Rockets make a smart trade and try to send SF to a winning team. Once again: My Offseason Wishlist: Rasheed Wallace- FA, but Detroit is willing to spend the big bucks. Carlos Boozer- Pipedream, Cleveland won't give him up. Rashard Lewis- Could be traded for, nice upgrade at the 3. Al Harrington- Another upgrade at the 3, could be traded for. Brent Barry- Smart, can defend, can shoot, can pass, period. Chauncy Billups- good shooter, good playmaker.
Hmmm ... an hour or so before I made this post actually. Check here http://bbs.clutchcity.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=76063 About halfway down.
Good point. You really went out on a limb with the "highly promising" statement you made 5 hours ago. How flattering...
Because the cliche is true: an NBA player's career is defined by his postseason success. I'm gonna get killed for this analogy, but remember that a guy like Mike Bibby didn't solidify himself as a big-time player until 2002, during his very first postseason run. Now obviously, Bibby and Francis are way way different (spare me the b-ball IQ, pure PG stuff for a second). Obviously, Steve's had a bad year. But the main point is, postseasons are where reputations are built. I honestly feel this upcoming postseason could be the turning point in Francis's career. There have been a lot of bumps along the way, but I see it as the culmination of Francis's career thus far. Which is why it's a bit disheartening to see other Rockets fans folding their tents before the playoffs even begin.
This is the last I'll respond to this particular argument, but please believe me when I tell you that I don't want Steve to succeed at the expense of the team. I'm not caught in the rampant bi-polarism on the BBS, where liking Steve and Yao (and the rest of the team, for that matter) are somehow mutually exclusive groups. So save the sarcasm.
I believe you, but why do you want Steve on this team so badly? What makes you want to keep him on the team when he's basically the same player, if not worse, then when he joined the league? It sounds like every person that wants Steve to stay on the Rockets 1. Blames JVG and Yao for Steve not being able to play 'his' game, thus are the 'reason' he's doing so poorly. 2. Are unconditionally loyal to Steve even though he's done nothing but talk about winning, yet hasn't significantly improved his game since his rookie year(Isn't this strange in the least bit to anyone? ). 3. Thinks the postseason might somehow validate his worth if he does well. I can't understand this logic. So we want a Robert Horry personality on the team that gets paid the Max? And whats the chance Steve will play well? Hell, the dude can't handle pressure situations in the regular season, I cringe at thinking about playoff pressure with Francis. I'd prefer a player that's consistent in 'both' seasons and we can probably get one if we move Steve. 4. Thinks Steve is having an 'off year'. I would've understood if Steve did poorly earlier in the season then picked it up later, but the guy has been horrible all year with the exception of a few games...how many great players have offseasons with decending trends in their stats from year to year? If you want to ignore me, fine, but its frustrating to see all these people run to Steve's aid yet not one of you can give a logic reason why Steve deserves to stay and how we could win a championship with him and all his flaws. I ask again...What does he do well? Steve fans are usually pretty quite when asked this question...for good reason.
Steve frustrates me as much as the rest of you, he makes careless turnovers and doesn't run the fast break well. But, I don't want the Rockets to trade him, I think his heart and ability to take games over is something this team needs. The simple solution to me is to add a solid ballhandler who can play 25 mpg allowing Steve to get some minutes at SG, this will take some pressure off Steve and allow him to attack the basket more in the flow of the offense. We all know that Francis, Mobley, and JJ all play too many minutes, so it can be done and it will be a lot easier to do than trading a max player. Steve's had a bad season overall, but he has improved in the last month and a half. His stats for March and April: 43.9%FG 35.3%3P 80.3%FT 17.0ppg 7.1apg 5.4rpg 3.5spg 4TO/g If his stats had looked like this all season long, would you still complain?
