I think you can say that Francis is a player who brings a certain attitude to the court. He doesn't coast during games like T-mac is perceived to do. The knock on Steve wasn't that he didn't play hard it was he sometimes he didn't play smart. Mac has the same issue at times with his jump shooting. He will decide to take a jumper at the worst possible times at the end of games and it comes back to kill the Rockets.
And what is Kobe's heart doing for his team? Unless he pull them to a comeback, they are down 20 right now to a Okur-and-Boozer-less Jazz team. Would you rather T-Mac not play as well and the Rockets win or average 35 a game with "heart" adn the Rockets lose? The Warriors kill us on matchups. Every where T-Mac went he was doubled. Could he have been more aggressive? Yeah. I think he should have. Don't get me wrong, I am not protecting him on everything because sometimes he is too lazy. All I am saying is last night is NOT a game to judge anything on, if it was, then this team is already lottery bound. We'll never (most likely) beat the Warriors consistently with Davis/Harrington/Jackson/Barnes and Nelson. They just match up too well against us. Yao and T-Mac become ineffective because they are both doubled before they get the ball or right as they get it. The rest of the team is not good enough to make the Warriors pay for playing that type of defense. Plus the whole team was just flat. There's no blaming it on just T-mac or just Yao or just Francis or just Battier etc. Also: Kobe's "heart" hasn't won a playoff series on it's own. It's blown a 3-1 lead. It's only made the playoff 2/3 times. ...just saying. results are what counts in the end right? Kobe has none on his own. Oh and if you want to break it down to JUST T-mac vs. Kobe simply...you can say Kobe has worse teammates. Well that may be true, but the rest of the Rockets team did not play up to par against the Warriors. They played as good or worse as the Lakers do. The Lakers supporting cast is not bad this season. If they don't make the second round of the playoffs, people will blame the talent around Kobe and not Kobe himself because Kobe has "heart". That said, I do agree T-Mac looks VERY lethargic at times. Too lethargic even for his own signature "lazy" style. But everyone look lethargic last night, let's not use that as a measure.
Well, your original post says this: Kobe - Shaq = Tmac So what I did is adding Shaq to both sides on the equation Kobe - Shaq + Shaq = Tmac + Shaq and it gives Kobe = Tmac + Shaq if you said it's too r****ded.....then that person will be you
Here is the true winner: Yao's height & low post dominance + Barbosa's speed + Ray Allen's range + Kobe's killer instinct + Chuck Hayes' rebounding skill + AI's killer crossover + Steve Nash's passing ability + KG's desire= YaoBarAllenObeHayAINaKG Who need any other players?
I was rewatching the season opener against the Lakers, and there was one play when Kobe fouled Bonzi on a fast break, and then I heard on the camera, Kobe shouting to Bonzi 'I blocked you! I blocked you!" To me, that just sounded like a person pathetically trying to cover up his insecurity. I know it's only one play, but that does speak volumes about his personality.
T-mac with Kobe's heart still does not equal Kobe imo. Besides passing, Kobe is a superior player.... The only thing that will change is that they will be equal defenders, because Mcgrady with great effort would be a all nba type defender with his quick and long arms. But as a scorer, Kobe is quicker, lighter on his feet, a better finisher, and has a smoother mid range game. The only advantage t-mac has on the scoring end is that he doesn't have to work as hard scoring because he is a few inches taller.
Add Leandor Barbosa's legs and Ray Allen's arms and you have the fastest player and best shooter in the league all in one.
Did you even watch the Rockets in the Franchise Era? Every single game, no matter how bad our record was, Francis brought it every game. He played hard ever game for us. Even in this past game against the Suns, his heart and energy is what helped us beat the Suns. He knows how to preform down in the clutch when it counts. I don't see how see has a "over-inflated ego" when he sat out the first 12 games and took it well. So well that coach has now inserted him into the rotation. You can hate on his dribbling, his decisions or any other part of his game but you can not question his heart.
Because he is fake just like the rest of California...especially with that fake ass governor. Joking.... But seriously....Kobe is not a bad person....I just think he can be a little self centered at times on and off the court. THis annoys people. Not only that...but speaking as arocket fan...he kills us. THat's enough to hate on him.
Define "Heart". Is it the over exposure of strong emotions on camera? (Chest Beating, Fish Clanching, Roaring). Is it the articles released with the player and the players' associates talking about the players' "passion" and work ethic. Is it being able to knock down shots during crucial moments? Don't we already have a term called "Clutch" for that? Is it a player telling you they will never give up when they are down 0-3 in a playoff series? Can't anybody do that? I find the term "Heart" superficial. It's a term widely manipulated by the media to give an unconditioned superiority status for a player, for what purpose? Probably sucking out money of fans who buys' the player's and team's merchandise after being "convinced" of how much heart certain player has. How can you judge if Francis has a bigger "heart" then T-Mac. Or if because Yao does not show as much emotion on camera as KG makes him of lesser "heart". It just all seems to shallow to me. I believe in the combination of talent, intelligence and confidence in a player then "heart". Kenyon Martin can beat his chest all he wants, the quiet Shawn Marion will ALWAYS be regarded the superior player. _ Laby
